"No Diggity" is a song by American R&B group

Blackstreet Blackstreet (often stylized as BLACKstreet) is an American R&B group founded in 1991 by record producers Chauncey "Black" Hannibal, and Teddy "Street" Riley. The group has released four albums with Interscope Records until 2003. They achieved ...

as the first single for their second studio album, '' Another Level'' (1996), featuring

Dr. Dre Andre Romelle Young (born February 18, 1965), known professionally as Dr. Dre, is an American rapper and record producer. He is the founder and CEO of Aftermath Entertainment and Beats Electronics, and previously co-founded, co-owned, and ...

and

Queen Pen Lynise Walters (born 1972), known professionally as Queen Pen, is an African American rapper, record producer, and novelist. Born in Brooklyn New York, she was discovered by record producer Teddy Riley at a local iHop restaurant in Virginia B ...

. Released on July 29, 1996, the song reached number one on the US ''Billboard'' Hot 100 and in Iceland and New Zealand. "No Diggity" ended "

Macarena "Macarena" is a dance song by Spanish pop duo Los del Río, about a woman of the same name. The song uses a type of clave rhythm. Originally appearing on the 1993 album '' A mí me gusta'', a subsequent remix by Miami-based producers The Bays ...

"'s 14-week reign atop the ''Billboard'' Hot 100. In the United Kingdom, the song peaked at number nine. "No Diggity" was the final number-one single of ''

Cash Box ''Cashbox'', also known as ''Cash Box'', was an American music industry trade magazine, originally published weekly from July 1942 to November 1996. Ten years after its dissolution, it was revived and continues as ''Cashbox Magazine'', an online ...

'' magazine. The track sold 1.6 million copies in 1996 and won the 1998

Grammy Award for Best R&B Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocals The Grammy Award for Best R&B Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocal was awarded between 1970 and 2011. From 1967 to 1969 and in 1971 the award included instrumental performances. The award had several minor name changes: *From 1967 to 1968 the ...

. It uses samples from

Bill Withers William Harrison Withers Jr. (July 4, 1938 – March 30, 2020) was an American singer-songwriter and musician. He had several hits over a career spanning 18 years, including "Ain't No Sunshine" (1971), "Grandma's Hands" (1971), " Use Me" (1972) ...

's "

Grandma's Hands "Grandma's Hands" is a song written by Bill Withers about his grandmother. It was included on his first album '' Just as I Am'' (1971), and was released as a single, reaching number 18 on the Best Selling Soul Singles chart and 42 on the ''Billb ...

". The song ranked at number 91 on ''

Rolling Stone ''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner, and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. It was first kno ...

'' and

MTV MTV (Originally an initialism of Music Television) is an American cable channel that launched on August 1, 1981. Based in New York City, it serves as the flagship property of the MTV Entertainment Group, part of Paramount Media Networks, a di ...

's "100 Greatest Pop Songs". It was also ranked at number 32 on VH1's "100 Greatest Songs of the '90s", number 407 on ''

Q Magazine ''Q'' was a popular music magazine published monthly in the United Kingdom. It was founded in 1986 by broadcast journalists Mark Ellen and David Hepworth, who were presenters of the BBC television music series ''The Old Grey Whistle Test''. '' ...

''s "1001 Best Songs Ever", number 33 on ''

Blender A blender (sometimes called a mixer or liquidiser in British English) is a kitchen appliance, kitchen and laboratory appliance used to mix, crush, purée or emulsion, emulsify food and other substances. A stationary blender consists of a blender ...

''s "Greatest Songs Since You Were Born", and number 43 on ''

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 ...

''s "100 Best Songs of the 1990s".

Background

William "Skylz" Stewart was using the sample of

in which

Teddy Riley Edward Theodore Riley (born October 8, 1967) is an American singer, songwriter, and record producer credited with the creation of the New Jack Swing genre. Riley credits Barry Michael Cooper with giving the genre its name.Hogan, Paul. "Tedd ...

asked to use the sample for No Diggity. Co-producer

originally offered the song to Guy as part of their short-lived reunion in 1996. After failing to record any material, he then suggested the song to Guy's lead singer Aaron Hall, who refused to take part in recording the song. He then offered the song to his other group Blackstreet. In a 2010 interview, Riley revealed the song was initially a hard sell among group members. He stated:

"None of the guys liked 'No Diggity'. None of them. They would even say it. That's why I'm singing the first verse. You know how they say they pushed the little one out there to see if it tastes good and see if he would get egged? Well they pushed me out there – and it became a hit. And now they wish they were singing the first verse, so that they can have the notoriety like me. So they trust what I'm saying..."

Upon the release of the finished recording by Blackstreet, Tupac and Death Row responded with a

diss track A diss track, diss record or diss song (diss – abbr. from ''disrespect'') is a song whose primary purpose is to verbally attack someone else, usually another artist. Diss tracks are often the result of an existing, escalating feud between the ...

containing numerous insults aimed at Dr. Dre over an instrumental sampling "No Diggity", but were forced to replace the production after Blackstreet issued the label with a

cease and desist A cease and desist letter is a document sent to an individual or business to stop alleged illegal activity. The phrase "cease and desist" is a legal doublet, made up of two near-synonyms. The letter may warn that, if the recipient does not dis ...

order stopping them from distributing the song. An updated version of this response, "

Toss It Up "Toss It Up" is a song by rapper Tupac Shakur from his fifth studio album, '' The Don Killuminati: The 7 Day Theory'' (1996). Released under the stage name Makaveli, the song served as the lead single to the posthumous album. It was first released ...

", would be released under his Makaveli alias just days after his death, featuring Aaron Hall.

Content

The song's musical backing track is an altered sample from the beginning of "

" by R&B singer

Critical reception

The song garnered acclaim from music critics. Bill Lamb from

About.com Dotdash Meredith (formerly About.com) is an American digital media company based in New York City. The company publishes online articles and videos about various subjects across categories including health, home, food, finance, tech, beauty, ...

complimented it as "the peak of the work" created by

, "a key architect of

new jack swing New jack swing, new jack, or swingbeat is a fusion genre of the rhythms and production techniques of hip hop and dance-pop, and the urban contemporary sound of R&B. Spearheaded by producers Teddy Riley and Bernard Belle, new jack swing was mos ...

. "No Diggity" is that genre fully refined."

Larry Flick Larry Flick is an American journalist, former dance music columnist, single reviewer, and Senior Talent Editor for ''Billboard'' magazine, where he worked for 14 years. Now he produces and hosts Sirius XM radio shows. Flick started in the music ...

from ''

Billboard A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertise ...

'' noted, "Finally honing his

Boz Scaggs William Royce "Boz" Scaggs (born June 8, 1944) is an American singer, songwriter, and guitarist. An early bandmate of Steve Miller in The Ardells and the Steve Miller Band, he began his solo career in 1969, though he lacked a major hit until h ...

-like vocal style, Riley utilizes his infallible production and recent free agent

to ensure the single's add to several radio formats, as well as club and personal boombox playlists." He added, "As always, other BLACKstreet members perform superbly." James Bernard from ''

Entertainment Weekly ''Entertainment Weekly'' (sometimes abbreviated as ''EW'') is an American digital-only entertainment magazine based in New York City, published by Dotdash Meredith, that covers film, television, music, Broadway theatre, books, and popular cul ...

'' felt that "beatwise, it struts confidently, accompanied by a light keyboard action. Voices, including guest Dr. Dre's, croon and rap with a sexual urgency notable even by today's standards." Tom Ewing of Freaky Trigger remarked that the song "is first of all capitalism in its slinkiest form, in every sense classy. A hymn to money, sex, upward mobility, 'No Diggity' triumphs over every other swingbeat anthem because it walks it so much like it talks it." A reviewer from ''

Knight Ridder Knight Ridder was an American media company, specializing in newspaper and Internet publishing. Until it was bought by McClatchy on June 27, 2006, it was the second largest newspaper publisher in the United States, with 32 daily newspaper brand ...

'' described it as a "uptempo excursion" and a "pointed, post- hiphop strut". Tony Farsides from ''

Music Week ''Music Week'' is a trade publication for the UK record industry distributed via a website and a monthly print magazine. It is published by Future. History Founded in 1959 as '' Record Retailer'', it relaunched on 18 March 1972 as ''Music W ...

'' ''RM'' Dance Update rated the song four out of five. He commented, "A real grower which is already popular in the clubs, the song features Blackstreet's trademark harmonies interspersed with rap and a killer grand piano sample following the chorus. Unlikely to cross over but a good bet for r&b fans and the lower reaches of the charts." Malaysian newspaper ''

New Straits Times The ''New Straits Times'' is an English-language newspaper published in Malaysia. It is Malaysia's oldest newspaper still in print (though not the first), having been founded as ''The Straits Times'' on 15 July 1845. It was relaunched as the ' ...

'' stated that sampling

's bluesy

and fitting it with a swingbeat base, "the song is instantly transformed into a hip-hop masterpiece of unimaginable brilliance." Jon Pareles from ''

New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid d ...

'' noted that the track uses a spiky Bill Withers guitar lick and a rap by Dr. Dre promising that listeners will be "giving up eargasms with my mellow accent." ''

'' called it "such a classy concoction of urban swagger and classic R&B". ''

People Magazine ''People'' is an American weekly magazine that specializes in celebrity news and human-interest stories. It is published by Dotdash Meredith, a subsidiary of IAC (company), IAC. With a readership of 46.6 million adults in 2009, ''People ...

'' said that "by combining R&B vocals with hip hop's aggressive beats", "that powerful one-two punch flavors "No Diggity", which takes a nasty Delta blues riff and marries it to lip-smacking lasciviousness. The result is an instant, five-minute pop classic." Michael A. Gonzales for ''

Vibe ''Vibe'' is an American music and entertainment magazine founded by producers David Salzman and Quincy Jones. The publication predominantly features R&B and hip hop music artists, actors and other entertainers. After shutting down productio ...

'' wrote that "with a mellow D-Funk rap intro from Dr. Dre, this track pumps like a Lexus roaring down 125th Street as the Harlem neighborhood hotties look on with glee. "I can't get her outta my mind / I think about the girl all the time", Teddy whines about his object of desire, over haunting keyboards and astonishingly bouncy, minimalist production."

Music video

The accompanying

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 ...

for the song is 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 ...

and features Blackstreet members in front of a beachhouse standing in the sand, dancers in a wet road surrounded by black limousines, and a marionette playing the piano sample in a club. The music video was released for the week ending on August 11, 1996.

Impact and legacy

'' ranked it at number 407 in their list of "1001 Best Songs Ever" in 2003. ''

'' listed "No Diggity" at number 33 on their ranking of "Greatest Songs Since You Were Born" in 2005. ''

Slant Magazine ''Slant Magazine'' is an American online publication that features reviews of movies, music, TV, DVDs, theater, and video games, as well as interviews with actors, directors, and musicians. The site covers various film festivals like the New York ...

'' listed the song at number 15 in their ranking of "The 100 Best Singles of the 1990s" in 2011. ''

'' placed it at number 43 on their "100 Best Songs Of The 1990s" list in 2012. ''Porcys'' listed the song at number 80 in their ranking of "100 Singles 1990-1999" in 2012, noting that it "probably sRiley's most perfect pop moment." ''

'' included "No Diggity" in their list of "500 Best Songs of All Time" in 2021 at No. 424. VH1 put it on number 32 in their list of "100 Greatest Songs of the '90s".

Track listings

* US CD and cassette single # "No Diggity" (LP version) – 5:03 # "

Billie Jean "Billie Jean" is a song by American singer Michael Jackson, released by Epic Records on January 2, 1983, as the second single from his sixth studio album, '' Thriller'' (1982). It was written and composed by Jackson and produced by Jackson and ...

" (remix) – 5:01 * US maxi-CD and maxi-cassette single # "No Diggity" (LP version) – 5:03 # "No Diggity" ("All-Star" remix) – 4:44 # "No Diggity" ("Will" remix) – 4:27 # "Billie Jean" (remix) – 5:38 # "No Diggity" (LP instrumental) – 4:44 * US 12-inch single :A1. "Billie Jean" (remix) – 5:38 :A2. "Billie Jean" (instrumental) – 5:38 :A3. "No Diggity" ("Will" remix) – 4:26 :B1. "No Diggity" ("All-Star" remix) – 4:44 :B2. "No Diggity" ("All-Star" remix instrumental) – 4:44 :B3. "No Diggity" (a cappella) – 4:42 * European CD single # "No Diggity" (radio edit) – 4:11 # "No Diggity" (album version) – 5:03 * UK CD single # "No Diggity" (radio version) # "No Diggity" (album version) # "No Diggity" (All-Star remix) # "No Diggity" (Billie Jean remix) # "No Diggity" (Will remix) * UK 12-inch single :A1. "No Diggity" (album version) :A2. "No Diggity" (All-Star remix) :B1. "No Diggity" (Billie Jean remix) :B2. "No Diggity" (Will remix) * UK cassette single # "No Diggity" (album version) # "No Diggity" (Billie Jean remix) * Australian CD single # "No Diggity" (LP version) # "No Diggity" (clean version) # "No Diggity" (Billie Jean remix) # "No Diggity" (All-Star remix) # "No Diggity" (instrumental)

Credits and personnel

Published by Donrill Music/Zomba Enterprises, Inc. (ASCAP/Chauncey Black Music for Smokin' Sounds

SCAP SCAP may refer to: * S.C.A.P., an early French manufacturer of cars and engines * Security Content Automation Protocol * ''The Shackled City Adventure Path'', a role-playing game * SREBP cleavage activating protein * Supervisory Capital Assessment ...

Queenpen Music (ASCAP)/Sidi Music (BMI)/Sony Songs Inc./Ain't Nothin' Goin' On But Fuckin' (ASCAP). Track was mixed by

Serban Ghenea Șerban Ghenea (born October 13, 1969) is a Grammy award-winning Romanian-Canadian audio engineer and mixer. Early life and education Ghenea was born in Bucharest, Romania in 1969. In 1976 he moved to Montreal with his family. He later attended ...

and recorded by George Mayers, John Hanes, Sean Poland and Chris Johnson for Future Recording Studios, Virginia Beach, VA. Track mastered by Herb Powers at Hit Factory, New York, NY. Queen Pen appears courtesy of Funky Mama Productions/Interscope Records. Dr. Dre appears courtesy of

Aftermath Entertainment Aftermath Entertainment is an American record label founded by hip hop producer and rapper Dr. Dre. It operates as a subsidiary of, and is distributed through, Interscope Records. Current acts include Dr. Dre himself, Eminem, Kendrick Lamar, An ...

. Track contains portions of "

" written by

and published by Interior Music Corp./Avant Garde Music Publishing, Inc. performed by Bill Withers, used courtesy of

Sony Music Entertainment Sony Music Entertainment (SME), also known as simply Sony Music, is an American multinational music company. Being owned by the parent conglomerate Sony Group Corporation, it is part of the Sony Music Group, which is owned by Sony Entertainment ...

. All-Star Remix contains a sample of " As Long As I've Got You", written by

Isaac Hayes Isaac Lee Hayes Jr. (August 20, 1942 – August 10, 2008) was an American singer, actor, songwriter, and composer. He was one of the creative forces behind the Southern soul music label Stax Records, where he served both as an in-house songwri ...

and David Porter and performed by The Charmels. Will Remix contains a mimic of "

Cell Therapy Cell therapy (also called cellular therapy, cell transplantation, or cytotherapy) is a therapy in which viable cells are injected, grafted or implanted into a patient in order to effectuate a medicinal effect, for example, by transplanting T-c ...

", written by Barnett, Burton, Gipp and Knighton and performed by

Goodie Mob Goodie Mob is an American hip hop group based in Atlanta, Georgia, consisting of CeeLo Green, Khujo, T-Mo, and Big Gipp. History The group was formed in 1991 by Cameron " Big Gipp" Gipp, Willie "Khujo" Knighton Jr., CeeLo Green (born Thoma ...

Charts

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

Decade-end charts

Certifications

Release history

Lucas & Steve version

Blackstreet re-recorded their vocals for a

house A house is a single-unit residential building. It may range in complexity from a rudimentary hut to a complex structure of wood, masonry, concrete or other material, outfitted with plumbing, electrical, and heating, ventilation, and air condi ...

version of "No Diggity" with Dutch DJs

Lucas & Steve Lucas & Steve is a Dutch DJ duo formed by Lucas de Wert and Steven Jansen from Maastricht. History The duo was formed in 2010 and joined Spinnin' Records in December 2014. They released many singles on the sub-label Spinnin' Deep. In 2014, t ...

via

Spinnin' Records Spinnin' Records is a Dutch electronic music record label founded in 1999 by Eelko van Kooten and Roger de Graaf. In September 2017, Warner Music Group acquired Spinnin' Records for over $100 million. Background Van Kooten is the son of former ...

Cover versions

* Washington State produced a cover version "Dog Doogity" encouraging dog owners to pick up their pets' waste. *

Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...

's J.C. Brooks & The Uptown Sound performed a version of the song in June 2013 for ''

The A.V. Club ''The A.V. Club'' is an American online newspaper and entertainment website featuring reviews, interviews, and other articles that examine films, music, television, books, games, and other elements of pop-culture media. ''The A.V. Club'' was cre ...

'' A.V. Undercover series.

References

{{Authority control 1996 singles Blackstreet songs Dr. Dre songs 1996 songs Billboard Hot 100 number-one singles Cashbox number-one singles Number-one singles in Iceland Number-one singles in New Zealand Music videos directed by Hype Williams Songs written by Dr. Dre Songs written by Bill Withers Songs written by Teddy Riley Song recordings produced by Teddy Riley Hip hop soul songs Music videos featuring puppetry