"No, No, No" is a song recorded by American girl group
Destiny's Child
Destiny's Child was an American girl group whose final line-up comprised Beyoncé Knowles, Kelly Rowland, and Michelle Williams. The group began their musical career as Girl's Tyme, formed in 1990 in Houston, Texas. After years of limited ...
for their
eponymous debut studio album (1998). It was written by Calvin Gaines,
Mary Brown,
Rob Fusari
Rob Fusari, also known as 8Bit, is an American record producer and songwriter. He has worked with Beyoncé, Kelly Rowland, Will Smith, Whitney Houston and Lady Gaga.
Early life
Rob Fusari was born between 1967 and 1968. And raised in Livingston, ...
and
Vincent Herbert
Vincent Herbert (born January 27, 1973) is an American songwriter, record producer, record executive, and founder of Streamline Records, an imprint of Interscope Records.
Work
He has worked with artists such as Aaliyah, Tatyana Ali, Toni Braxt ...
, with production helmed by Fusari und Herbert. A sensual mid-tempo ballad blending
contemporary R&B
Contemporary R&B (or simply R&B) is a popular music genre that combines rhythm and blues with elements of pop, soul, funk, hip hop, and electronic music.
The genre features a distinctive record production style, drum machine-backed rhythm ...
with "lush"
1970s soul, it was renamed "No, No, No (Part 1)" after musician
Wyclef Jean
Nel Ust Wyclef Jean (; born October 17, 1969) is a Haitian rapper, musician, and actor. At the age of nine, Jean immigrated to the United States with his family. He first achieved fame as a member of the New Jersey hip hop group the Fugees, a ...
was consulted to produce and appear on a remix of the song. Built around a hard-sliding bassline and sung in a
staccato
Staccato (; Italian for "detached") is a form of musical articulation. In modern notation, it signifies a note of shortened duration, separated from the note that may follow by silence. It has been described by theorists and has appeared in music ...
, rhythmic style, featuring co-production from Che Greene and
Jerry Duplessis
Jerry "Wonda" Duplessis (born 9 August 1975) is a Haitian music producer, film score composer, entrepreneur and philanthropist. His first major success was as a producer for the Fugees' 1996 album '' The Score''. He also played the bass guitar w ...
, it was titled "No, No, No (Part 2)".
"No, No, No" was released as Destiny's Child debut single on October 27, 1997, by
Columbia Records
Columbia Records is an American record label owned by Sony Music, Sony Music Entertainment, a subsidiary of Sony Corporation of America, the North American division of Japanese Conglomerate (company), conglomerate Sony. It was founded on Janua ...
, with both versions serviced to radio stations and
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 promotion (marketing), promotional or musical artistic purposes. Modern music videos are primarily made and used as a m ...
networks. In the United States, the song reached number three on the
''Billboard'' Hot 100 and was eventually certified
platinum
Platinum is a chemical element with the symbol Pt and atomic number 78. It is a dense, malleable, ductile, highly unreactive, precious, silverish-white transition metal. Its name originates from Spanish , a diminutive of "silver".
Platinu ...
by the
Recording Industry Association of America
The Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) is a trade organization that represents the music recording industry in the United States. Its members consist of record labels and distributors that the RIAA says "create, manufacture, and/o ...
(RIAA). Elsewhere, "No, No, No" reached the top ten in the Netherlands, Norway, and the United Kingdom.
Darren Grant
Darren Grant is an American television, film and music video director. He has directed over eighty music videos for mostly R&B and hip hop artists.
In 2005, Grant directed his debut film Tyler Perry's '' Diary of a Mad Black Woman''. In 2008, ...
directed accompanying music videos for each version of "No, No, No". Part 1 features the group performing at a
nightclub
A nightclub (music club, discothèque, disco club, or simply club) is an entertainment venue during nighttime comprising a dance floor, lightshow, and a stage for live music or a disc jockey (DJ) who plays recorded music.
Nightclubs gener ...
stage, while Part 2 begins with a choreographed dance in a large golden room. Destiny's Child performed "No, No, No" on several television shows and award show ceremonies, such as ''
Teen Summit
Adolescence () is a transitional stage of physical and psychological development that generally occurs during the period from puberty to adulthood (typically corresponding to the age of majority). Adolescence is usually associated with the ...
'', ''
The Keenen Ivory Wayans Show
''The Keenen Ivory Wayans Show'' is a late night syndicated television talk show hosted by Keenen Ivory Wayans. The show premiered August 4, 1997, and was cancelled in March 1998. The show had an opening monologue and comedy sketches. His in-hous ...
'', and the
Soul Train Lady of Soul Award
The Soul Train Music Awards is an annual music awards show which previously aired in national broadcast syndication, and honors the best in African-American culture, music and entertainment. It is produced by the makers of ''Soul Train'', the pro ...
s. It was performed during all of the group's concert tours, and is featured on their remix album ''
This Is the Remix'' (2002), as well as their compilation albums ''
#1's'' (2005) and ''
Playlist: The Very Best of Destiny's Child'' (2012).
Recording and production
"No, No, No" was written by Calvin Gaines, former
Abstrac member Mary Brown,
Rob Fusari
Rob Fusari, also known as 8Bit, is an American record producer and songwriter. He has worked with Beyoncé, Kelly Rowland, Will Smith, Whitney Houston and Lady Gaga.
Early life
Rob Fusari was born between 1967 and 1968. And raised in Livingston, ...
and
Vincent Herbert
Vincent Herbert (born January 27, 1973) is an American songwriter, record producer, record executive, and founder of Streamline Records, an imprint of Interscope Records.
Work
He has worked with artists such as Aaliyah, Tatyana Ali, Toni Braxt ...
.
On Part 2,
Barry White
Barry Eugene Carter (September 12, 1944 – July 4, 2003), better known by his stage name Barry White, was an American singer and songwriter. A two-time Grammy Award winner known for his bass voice and romantic image, his greatest success came ...
is also credited as songwriter due to the inclusion of a
sample
Sample or samples may refer to:
Base meaning
* Sample (statistics), a subset of a population – complete data set
* Sample (signal), a digital discrete sample of a continuous analog signal
* Sample (material), a specimen or small quantity of s ...
from "Strange Games & Things" by
The Love Unlimited Orchestra
The Love Unlimited Orchestra was a 40-piece string-laden orchestra formed by American singer Barry White, and serving as a backing unit for White and for female vocal trio Love Unlimited. From the early 1970s on, they also recorded several sing ...
.
The original track was based on an idea from and produced by Fusari.
Heavily influenced by R&B, he was inspired to start writing "No, No, No" on one of his
synthesizer
A synthesizer (also spelled synthesiser) is an electronic musical instrument that generates audio signals. Synthesizers typically create sounds by generating waveforms through methods including subtractive synthesis, additive synthesis and ...
s after listening to "
Stroke You Up" (1994), written by singer
R. Kelly
Robert Sylvester Kelly (born January 8, 1967) is an American singer, songwriter, record producer, and sex offender convicted of racketeering and multiple sex offenses.
During his recording career, Kelly sold over 75 million records worldwi ...
for R&B duo
Changing Faces.
A few weeks later, Gaines, a songwriter and friend of Fusari's, brought producer and entrepreneur Herbert to Fusari's studio in his mother's basement in
Livingston, New Jersey
Livingston is a township (New Jersey), township in Essex County, New Jersey, Essex County, New Jersey. As of the 2010 United States census, 2010 U.S. census, the township's population was 29,366, reflecting an increase of 1,975 (+7.2%) from the ...
.
Upon listening to several demos, Herbert liked the track and asked for a cassette copy, taking it to Columbia A&R executive
Teresa LaBarbera-Whites.
The same night, Herbert called Fusari to tell him that LaBarbera-Whites wanted them to record the song with Columbia's then-new signees, Destiny's Child, after Herbert had told her that he would be giving the song to singer
Brandy
Brandy is a liquor produced by distilling wine. Brandy generally contains 35–60% alcohol by volume (70–120 US proof) and is typically consumed as an after-dinner digestif. Some brandies are aged in wooden casks. Others are coloured with ...
, one of his artists, had she not let Destiny's Child record "No, No, No" for their debut album.
The next day, Fusari was called into their studio to arrange a production deal.
After finishing writing the song with Gaines and Brown, Fusari and Herbert met with the group at the
Chung King Studios
Chung King Studios was a recording studio that operated in New York City under that name from 1986 to 2015. It was founded by producer John King and engineer Steve Ett with financial backing from the Etches brothers, occupying three different locat ...
in
Manhattan, New York City
Manhattan (), known regionally as the City, is the most densely populated and geographically smallest of the five Boroughs of New York City, boroughs of New York City. The borough is also coextensive with New York County, one of the List of co ...
to record "No, No, No".
Music videos
As with the single, two videos were made to promote both versions of the song, directed by
Darren Grant
Darren Grant is an American television, film and music video director. He has directed over eighty music videos for mostly R&B and hip hop artists.
In 2005, Grant directed his debut film Tyler Perry's '' Diary of a Mad Black Woman''. In 2008, ...
and shot in November 1997. In the video for "Part 1", the group performs a choreographed dance at a
nightclub
A nightclub (music club, discothèque, disco club, or simply club) is an entertainment venue during nighttime comprising a dance floor, lightshow, and a stage for live music or a disc jockey (DJ) who plays recorded music.
Nightclubs gener ...
.
Marques Houston
Marques Barrett Houston (born August 4, 1981) is an American Contemporary R&B, R&B singer, songwriter, and actor. A member of the R&B group IMx, Immature/IMx from 1990 until 2002, Houston went solo in 2003. As an actor, he is best known for his ...
, along with his
Immature
Mature is the adjectival form of maturity, as immature is the adjectival form of immaturity, which have several meanings.
Mature or immature may also refer to:
* Mature, a character from ''The King of Fighters'' series
*"Mature 17+", a rating in ...
bandmates Romeo and LDB, make cameo appearances in the video. In the video for "Part 2",
Wyclef Jean
Nel Ust Wyclef Jean (; born October 17, 1969) is a Haitian rapper, musician, and actor. At the age of nine, Jean immigrated to the United States with his family. He first achieved fame as a member of the New Jersey hip hop group the Fugees, a ...
plays his
guitar
The guitar is a fretted musical instrument that typically has six strings. It is usually held flat against the player's body and played by strumming or plucking the strings with the dominant hand, while simultaneously pressing selected stri ...
as Destiny's Child sings the chorus. Beyoncé stops Wyclef, saying, "That ain't right." Wyclef says to the group, "Nah, nah, it's phat; all we need to do is drop a phat beat for the clubs. I'm tellin' you, they gon' lose their minds; I can see it right now." The group begins a choreographed dance in a large gold room. Wyclef Jean also makes an appearance in a room next to the room where the group is.
Both versions are included in the video compilation ''
The Platinum's on the Wall
''The Platinum's on the Wall'' is the first video album by American girl group Destiny's Child. It was released on March 6, 2001, by Columbia Records.
''The Platinum's on the Wall'' comprises accompanying music videos for six singles from Dest ...
''. Part 2 is in the DualDisc edition of the album ''
#1's'', Part 1 as an enhanced video is in the Australian edition of ''
The Writing's on the Wall
''The Writing's on the Wall'' is the second studio album by American girl group Destiny's Child, released in Japan on July 14, 1999, and in the US on July 27, 1999, by Columbia Records. The album was produced by Missy Elliott, Kevin "She'kspere" ...
''.
Commercial performance
In the United States, "No, No, No" was a commercial success. Heavy airplay and high sales propelled the song into the top ten of the US
''Billboard'' Hot 100. Eventually, it peaked at number three on the chart, becoming their first single to do so.
The single is the group’s longest charting Hot 100 hit. A year following its release, the single had sold over 1,300,000 copies in the US, being the ninth best-selling single of the year, and had been certified
platinum
Platinum is a chemical element with the symbol Pt and atomic number 78. It is a dense, malleable, ductile, highly unreactive, precious, silverish-white transition metal. Its name originates from Spanish , a diminutive of "silver".
Platinu ...
by the
Recording Industry Association of America
The Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) is a trade organization that represents the music recording industry in the United States. Its members consist of record labels and distributors that the RIAA says "create, manufacture, and/o ...
(RIAA).
"No, No, No" entered the
UK Singles Chart
The UK Singles Chart (currently titled Official Singles Chart, with the upper section more commonly known as the Official UK Top 40) is compiled by the Official Charts Company (OCC), on behalf of the British record industry, listing the top-s ...
at number five, and spent eight weeks within the top 75.
In Europe, the single experienced modest success, entering the top 40 in several countries; it did, however, reach the top ten in Norway and the Netherlands.
Formats and track listings
* US CD single
# "No No No" (Part 2) (featuring Wyclef Jean) – 3:30
# "No No No" (Part 1) – 3:59
# "No No No" (Part 2 without rap) – 3:05
* US Cassette single
# "No No No" (Part 2) (featuring Wyclef Jean) – 3:27
# "No No No" (Part 1)
* US 12-inch single
:A1. "No No No" (Part 2) (featuring Wyclef Jean) – 3:30
:A2. "No No No" (Part 1) - 4:13
:A3. "No No No" (Part 2 without rap) - 3:08
:B1. "No No No" (Part 2 a cappella) (featuring Wyclef Jean) - 3:26
:B2. "No No No" (Part 2 instrumental) - 3:26
:B3. "No No No" (Part 1 instrumental) - 4:14
* Europe vinyl single
:A1. "No No No" (Part 2) (featuring Wyclef Jean) – 3:27
:A2. "No No No" (Part 1) – 4:08
:A3. "No No No" (Part 2) (no rap) – 3:05
:B1. "No No No" (Funki Dred Remix) (featuring Wyclef Jean) – 3:59
:B2. "No No No" (Funki Dred Remix) (featuring MCD) – 3:59
:B3. "No No No" (Camdino Soul Extended Remix) – 6:31
* Europe CD single
# "No No No" (Part 2) (featuring Wyclef Jean) – 3:27
# "No No No" (Part 1) – 4:08
* UK and Europe CD maxi-single
# "No No No" (Part 2) (featuring Wyclef Jean) – 3:27
# "No No No" (Part 1) – 4:08
# "No No No" (Funki Dred Remix) (featuring Wyclef Jean) – 3:59
# "No No No" (Funki Dred Remix) (featuring MCD) – 3:59
# "No No No" (Camdino Soul Extended Remix) – 6:31
* UK CD single
# "No No No" (Part 2) (featuring Wyclef Jean) – 3:27
# "No No No" (Part 1) – 4:08
# "No No No" (Part 2) (no rap) – 3:05
# "Second Nature" - 5:09
* UK CD Single 2
# "No No No" (Funki Dred Remix) (featuring Wyclef Jean) – 3:59
# "No No No" (Funki Dred Remix) (featuring MCD) – 3:59
# "No No No" (Camdino Soul Extended Remix) – 6:31
# "You're The Only One" - 3:23
Charts
Weekly charts
Year-end charts
Certifications
Release history
Notes
References
Further reading
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:No, No, No (Destiny's Child Song)
Destiny's Child songs
Wyclef Jean songs
1997 debut singles
1997 songs
Columbia Records singles
Geffen Records singles
Hip hop soul songs
Music videos directed by Darren Grant
Song recordings produced by Wyclef Jean
Songs written by Rob Fusari
Songs written by Vincent Herbert