Just Playing (Dreams) is a promotional single by American hip hop artist

The Notorious B.I.G. Christopher George Latore Wallace (May 21, 1972 – March 9, 1997), better known by his stage names the Notorious B.I.G., Biggie Smalls, or simply Biggie, was an American rapper. Rooted in East Coast hip hop and particularly gangsta ...

for his 1994 debut album ''

Ready to Die ''Ready to Die'' is the debut studio album by American rapper The Notorious B.I.G., released on September 13, 1994, by Bad Boy Records and Arista Records. The album features productions by Bad Boy founder Sean "Puffy" Combs, Easy Mo Bee, Chucky ...

''. It was produced by Rashad Smith, and contains a sample of

James Brown James Joseph Brown (May 3, 1933 – December 25, 2006) was an American singer, dancer, musician, record producer and bandleader. The central progenitor of funk music and a major figure of 20th century music, he is often referred to by the honor ...

's "Blues and Pants" from ''

Hot Pants Hotpants or hot pants are extremely short shorts. The term was first used by ''Women's Wear Daily'' in 1970 to describe shorts made in luxury fabrics such as velvet and satin for fashionable wear, rather than their more practical equivalents th ...

''. ''

Complex Complex commonly refers to: * Complexity, the behaviour of a system whose components interact in multiple ways so possible interactions are difficult to describe ** Complex system, a system composed of many components which may interact with each ...

'' magazine ranked the song number two on its list of "The 50 Funniest Rap Songs". Although the song does not appear on the original version of ''Ready to Die'', it appears on the 2004 remastered version.

Background

Some of the lyrics initially appeared on

Mary J. Blige Mary Jane Blige ( ; born January 11, 1971) is an American singer, songwriter, and actress. Often referred to as the " Queen of Hip-Hop Soul" and " Queen of R&B", Blige has won nine Grammy Awards, a Primetime Emmy Award, four American Music Award ...

's "What's the 411?" remix. The song was released as a

promotional single A promotional recording, or promo, or plug copy, is an audio or video recording distributed free, usually in order to promote a recording that is or soon will be commercially available. Promos are normally sent directly to broadcasters, such as ...

for

Biggie Christopher George Latore Wallace (May 21, 1972 – March 9, 1997), better known by his stage names the Notorious B.I.G., Biggie Smalls, or simply Biggie, was an American rapper. Rooted in East Coast hip hop and particularly gangsta ...

's debut album ''

''.

Composition

"Just Playing (Dreams)" was written by The Notorious B.I.G. and Rashad "Ringo" Smith. The song is built on a sample of "Blues and Pants" written by James Brown, and its production was done by Ringo. In the song, Biggie takes aim at 20 of his favorite R&B singers and lists what he'd like to do to them. The list includes female R&B singers

Patti LaBelle Patricia Louise Holte (born May 24, 1944), known professionally as Patti LaBelle, is an American R&B singer, actress and businesswoman. LaBelle is referred to as the " Godmother of Soul". She began her career in the early 1960s as lead singe ...

Mariah Carey Mariah Carey (; born March 27, 1969) is an American singer, songwriter, actress, and record producer. Referred to as the " Songbird Supreme", she is noted for her five-octave vocal range, melismatic singing style and signature use of the whi ...

Chaka Khan Yvette Marie Stevens (born March 23, 1953), better known by her stage name Chaka Khan (), is an American singer. Her career has spanned more than five decades, beginning in the 1970s as the lead vocalist of the funk band Rufus. Known as the " Qu ...

, and

Rupaul RuPaul Andre Charles (born November 17, 1960; stylized as RuPaul) is an American drag queen, television personality, actor, musician, and model. Best known for producing, hosting, and judging the reality competition series ''RuPaul's Drag Race'' ...

, who didn't take offense to the song. However,

Raven-Symoné Raven-Symoné Christina Pearman-Maday () (née Pearman; born December 10, 1985), also known mononymously as Raven, is an American actress, singer, and songwriter. She has received several accolades, including five NAACP Image Awards, two Kids ...

was 8 years old when Biggie rapped the line, “make Raven-Symoné call

date rape Date rape is a form of acquaintance rape and dating violence. The two phrases are often used interchangeably, but date rape specifically refers to a rape in which there has been some sort of romantic or potentially sexual relationship between ...

.” The R&B quartet Xscape didn't appreciate the song, which contained the line "those ugly-ass Xscape bitches." In a 2009 interview, group member

Kandi Burruss Kandi Lenice Burruss Tucker (born May 17, 1976), known professionally by her mononym Kandi, is an American producer, television personality, singer, songwriter and actress. She first gained notice in 1992 as a member of the female vocal group Xs ...

said that her bandmate Tameka "Tiny" Cottle ran into Biggie on the evening of his death, and he apologized for the lyric.

Cover versions and remixes

*In 1996,

Lil Kim Lil or LIL may refer to: Use as a short form of "little" Artists * Lill Babs, Swedish musician *Lil B, American rapper * Lil'B, Japanese pop duo *Lil Baby, American rapper *Lil Bibby, American rapper * Lil Bitts, Trinidadian musician *Li ...

's song "Dreams Freestyle" sampled the lyrics of "Just Playing" on her debut studio album '' Hard Core''. *In 1996,

Mad Skillz Donnie Shaquan Lewis, (born June 2, 1974) also known as Skillz, or Mad Skillz is an American rapper known for his acclaimed 1996 album ''From Where???'', a reference to his origins in Virginia, not a New York City or Los Angeles rapper. He ...

, sampled the line “Everybody, move ya body” as the chorus of his song "Move Ya Body" on his debut album '' From Where???'' *In 2015, rapper

Young M.A Katorah Kasanova Marrero (born April 3, 1992), better known by her stage name Young M.A (acronym for Young Me. Always), is an American rapper. She first gained widespread recognition with the release of the quadruple-platinum hit single " Ooouuu ...

dropped her "Dreams Freestyle" from her debut 13-track mixtape ''Sleep Walkin''. *In 2018, rapper

Nicki Minaj Onika Tanya Maraj-Petty (; born December 8, 1982), known professionally as Nicki Minaj ( ), is a Trinidadian-born rapper based in the United States. She is known for her musical versatility, animated flow in her rapping, alter egos and accent ...

sampled the song for her studio album ''

Queen Queen or QUEEN may refer to: Monarchy * Queen regnant, a female monarch of a Kingdom ** List of queens regnant * Queen consort, the wife of a reigning king * Queen dowager, the widow of a king * Queen mother, a queen dowager who is the mother ...

'' in the song "

Barbie Dreams "Barbie Dreams" is a song recorded by rapper Nicki Minaj for her fourth studio album ''Queen'' (2018). It was released on August 14, 2018, to radio stations through Young Money Entertainment and Cash Money Records as the third single from the a ...

". The single reached number 18 on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 and number 36 on the UK Singles Chart.

References

{{authority control 1994 songs The Notorious B.I.G. songs Songs written by Rashad Smith Songs written by the Notorious B.I.G.