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"Caught Out There" is a song recorded by American singer
Kelis
Kelis Rogers-Mora (; born August 21, 1979), known mononymously as Kelis, is an American singer, songwriter and a professionally trained chef. At age 14, she was admitted to New York's Fiorello H. LaGuardia High School of Music & Art and Perform ...
for her debut studio album ''
Kaleidoscope
A kaleidoscope () is an optical instrument with two or more reflecting surfaces (or mirrors) tilted to each other at an angle, so that one or more (parts of) objects on one end of these mirrors are shown as a regular symmetrical pattern when v ...
'' (1999). Written and produced by
The Neptunes
The Neptunes are an American songwriting and production duo composed of Pharrell Williams and Chad Hugo, formed in Virginia Beach, Virginia, in 1992. Williams often provides additional vocals on records and appears in the duo's music videos ...
, the song was released as the album's lead single in the United States on October 5, 1999. It peaked at number 54 on the US
''Billboard'' Hot 100 but fared better outside the United States, reaching the top ten in Canada, Iceland, Italy, the Netherlands, Sweden, and the United Kingdom.
Pharrell Williams of The Neptunes said in an interview that the instrumental track was originally meant for rapper
Busta Rhymes, who rejected it.
Critical reception
Quentin Harrison from Albumism stated that Kelis is "burning with righteous anger" on the song, noting that she is "all heart with a hint of hedonism". He added that "Caught Out There" was "
heonly one song
hat
A hat is a head covering which is worn for various reasons, including protection against weather conditions, ceremonial reasons such as university graduation, religious reasons, safety, or as a fashion accessory. Hats which incorporate mecha ...
could announce Kelis with a bang", when her debut album was launched.
AllMusic
AllMusic (previously known as All Music Guide and AMG) is an American online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on musicians and bands. Initiated in 1991, the databa ...
editor Jaime Sunao Ikeda picked it as a "standout" track of the ''
Kaleidoscope
A kaleidoscope () is an optical instrument with two or more reflecting surfaces (or mirrors) tilted to each other at an angle, so that one or more (parts of) objects on one end of these mirrors are shown as a regular symmetrical pattern when v ...
'' album. Daryl Easlea for the
BBC #REDIRECT BBC #REDIRECT BBC
Here i going to introduce about the best teacher of my life b BALAJI sir. He is the precious gift that I got befor 2yrs . How has helped and thought all the concept and made my success in the 10th board exam. ...
...
said in his 2012 review that "it still steals the show today, and was one of those songs that was heard everywhere at the time." Swedish newspaper ''
Expressen'' stated that "over a crunchy beat, she makes up with a lying boyfriend". Brian Rusnica from ''
The Heights'' described it as a "five minute explosion of emotion and female rage featuring the raw chorus, "I hate you so much right now!"". Ireland's ''
Evening Herald
''The Herald'' is a nationwide mid-market tabloid newspaper headquartered in Dublin, Ireland, and published by Independent News & Media who are a subsidiary of Mediahuis. It is published Monday–Saturday. The newspaper was known as the ''Even ...
'' stated that the song "established her as a leading light on the music scene", while the ''
Irish Independent'' called it "shouty".
Jim Wirth from ''
NME
''New Musical Express'' (''NME'') is a British music, film, gaming, and culture website and brand. Founded as a newspaper in 1952, with the publication being referred to as a 'rock inkie', the NME would become a magazine that ended up as a f ...
'' commented, "Men, men, men; we're untrustworthy, lying scoundrels at heart, and as this
Harlem
Harlem is a neighborhood in Upper Manhattan, New York City. It is bounded roughly by the Hudson River on the west; the Harlem River and 155th Street on the north; Fifth Avenue on the east; and Central Park North on the south. The greater Ha ...
-based
hip-hop soulster rightly points out, we're always at our worst shortly after we've gone through the old 'I love you' routine. Kelis knows the score, though, because on Valentine's Day last year, some no-good, scum-sucking wretch did the dirty on her. Still, he did her a favour in the end, because 'Caught Out There', with its unforgettable primal-scream refrain, looks set to be massive very soon. Stretched out over a spartan backbeat, it would be a cynical swine who would dismiss this titanic slab of
breakbeat pop as
Jimmy Nail
James Michael Aloysius Bradford (born 16 March 1954), known as Jimmy Nail, is an English singer-songwriter, actor, film producer, and television writer. He played the role of Leonard "Oz" Osborne in the television show '' Auf Wiedersehen, Pet'' ...
's '
Ain't No Doubt' but, y'know, for girls." Another editor stated that Kelis's "honeyed vocal, which broke into unfiltered madness, was the thing that took this track over the top." Sal Cinquemani from ''
Slant
Slant can refer to:
Bias
*Bias or other non-objectivity in journalism, politics, academia or other fields
Technical
* Slant range, in telecommunications, the line-of-sight distance between two points which are not at the same level
* Slant d ...
'' wrote that it "proves why Kelis's legacy should extend beyond simply bringing the boys to the yard. No, she wasn't "the first girl to scream on a track", as she claims on 2006's "Bossy", but her debut single, released when she was a 19-year-old with pink eyebrows, not only became a girl-power anthem thanks to its livid hook and indignant lyrics, but helped announced the
Neptunes
The Neptunes are an American songwriting and production duo composed of Pharrell Williams and Chad Hugo, formed in Virginia Beach, Virginia, in 1992. Williams often provides additional vocals on records and appears in the duo's music videos ...
as one of the premier superstar production teams of 21st-century pop music." A reviewer from ''
Sunday Life'' deemed it as "attentiongrabbing".
Music video
The
music video
A music video is a video of variable duration, that integrates a music song or a music album with imagery that is produced for promotional or musical artistic purposes. Modern music videos are primarily made and used as a music marketing device ...
for "Caught Out There" was directed by
Hype Williams
Harold Williams (born August 1, 1970) is an American music video director, film director, film producer, and screenwriter.
Early life
Williams was born in Queens, New York. He is of mixed African-American and Honduran descent. He attended Adel ...
. In the video, Kelis, in her technicolor spiral afro, blond, gold, orange, red, and fuchsia hair, starts in a confessional style, before opening to the chorus where she rips up the living room. Afterwards, Kelis and a group of fed-up women boycott and picket men. Finally, as she sings, "Got something for y'all", a gun cock is heard and the video finishes by alluding to her exacting revenge for her former lover's infidelity.
The video premiered on
BET
Black Entertainment Television (acronym BET) is an American basic cable channel targeting African-American audiences. It is owned by the CBS Entertainment Group unit of Paramount Global via BET Networks and has offices in New York City, Los ...
the week ending on October 10, 1999.
Impact and legacy
The song was used on
MuchMusic's ''Shortest Weddings'' special. The signature yell "I hate you so much right now!" was used in the ''
Daria
''Daria'' is an American adult animated sitcom created by Glenn Eichler and Susie Lewis Lynn. The series ran from March 3, 1997, to January 21, 2002, on MTV. It focuses on the title character, Daria Morgendorffer, an intelligent, cynical high ...
'' episode "Partner's Complaint", first aired on February 25, 2000, and later in 2009 in British children's television sitcom ''
Hotel Trubble
''Hotel Trubble'' is a British children's sitcom made by the BBC and broadcast on its flagship children and young person's channel CBBC. It stars Dominique Moore as Sally, the receptionist; Gary Damer as Lenny; Sam Phillips as Jamie, the bellboy; ...
''. It was also used in BBC3's ''
Most Annoying People 2007'', under
Tony Blair
Sir Anthony Charles Lynton Blair (born 6 May 1953) is a British former politician who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1997 to 2007 and Leader of the Labour Party from 1994 to 2007. He previously served as Leader of th ...
(8 on the list), and in 2011 in a
Calvin Klein ad for
CK One CK One is a citrus aromatic chypre unisex fragrance developed by Alberto Morillas and Harry Fremont for Calvin Klein.
Composition and marketing
CK One's top notes include pineapple, mandarin orange, papaya, bergamot, cardamom and lemon. Its middl ...
. In 2010, the line "look, I found her red coat" was sampled extensively in the
James Blake song "CMYK".
In 2003, ''
Q'' magazine ranked "Caught Out There" at number 649 in their list of the "1001 Best Songs Ever".
In 2010, ''
Pitchfork
A pitchfork (also a hay fork) is an agricultural tool with a long handle and two to five tines used to lift and pitch or throw loose material, such as hay, straw, manure, or leaves.
The term is also applied colloquially, but inaccurately, to ...
'' named it the 161st-best track of the 1990s. They wrote, "Soundtracking this post-breakup mania is a top-rate, ahead-of-its-time Neptunes production, with snapping keyboards accompanied by high-pitched tones that sound like dynamite exploding in space. In a word: Damn."
In 2012, ''NME'' placed the song at number 24 on its list of the "100 Best Songs of the 1990s".
In 2012, ''Porcys'' listed the song at number 24 in their ranking of "100 Singles 1990-1999", adding, "Here's the classic Kelis at its best. A perfect, uncommon bit of Neptunes in the foreground is the perfection of this protest- or rather statement-song."
In 2021, American rapper
Ashnikko
Ashton Nicole Casey (born February 19, 1996), known professionally as Ashnikko ( ), is an American singer, rapper, and songwriter. They rose to prominence with their 2019 single "Stupid" with (Yung) Baby Tate, which gained viral popularity on t ...
sampled the song on her single "Deal With It", which also features Kelis as a guest artist.
Track listings
*UK CD single
#"Caught Out There" (UK Radio Edit) – 3:36
#"Caught Out There" (The Neptunes Extended Mix) – 6:23
#"Suspended" – 4:53
#"Caught Out There" (video)
*US CD single
#"Caught Out There" (Single Radio Edit) – 4:09
#"Caught Out There" (The Neptunes Extended Mix) – 6:22
#"Caught Out There" (LP Version) – 4:51
#"Caught Out There" (The Neptunes Extended Instrumental Mix) – 6:22
*US cassette single
:A1. "Caught Out There" (LP Version) – 4:51
:A2. "Caught Out There" (Single Radio Edit) – 4:09
:B. "Caught Out There" (The Neptunes Extended Mix) – 6:22
Charts
Weekly charts
Year-end charts
Certifications
Release history
References
{{Authority control
1999 debut singles
1999 songs
Kelis songs
Music videos directed by Hype Williams
Song recordings produced by the Neptunes
Songs about infidelity
Songs written by Chad Hugo
Songs written by Pharrell Williams
Virgin Records singles