"Number One Spot" is the second single from rapper

Ludacris Christopher Brian Bridges (born September 11, 1977), known professionally as Ludacris (, homophonous with 'ludicrous' in American English), is an American rapper, actor, record producer and record executive. Born in Champaign, Illinois, Ludac ...

' 2004 album ''

The Red Light District ''The Red Light District'' is the fourth studio album from American rapper Ludacris. The album was released on December 7, 2004, through Disturbing tha Peace and Def Jam Recordings, and was eventually certified double platinum by the RIAA. It d ...

''. The song heavily samples "

Soul Bossa Nova "Soul Bossa Nova" is a popular instrumental, composed and first performed by musician and record producer Quincy Jones. It appeared on his 1962 '' Big Band Bossa Nova'' album on Mercury Records. Jones said that it took him twenty minutes to com ...

" by

Quincy Jones Quincy Delight Jones Jr. (born March 14, 1933) is an American record producer, musician, songwriter, composer, arranger, and film and television producer. His career spans 70 years in the entertainment industry with a record of 80 Grammy Award n ...

, which was used as the theme tune of the

Mike Myers Michael John Myers OC (born May 25, 1963) is a Canadian actor, comedian, screenwriter, and producer. His accolades include seven MTV Awards, a Primetime Emmy Award, and a Screen Actors Guild Award. In 2002, he was awarded a star on the Hollywoo ...

James Bond parody film series ''

Austin Powers ''Austin Powers'' is a series of American spy action comedy films: '' Austin Powers: International Man of Mystery'' (1997), '' Austin Powers: The Spy Who Shagged Me'' (1999) and '' Austin Powers in Goldmember'' (2002). The films were produced ...

''; the films references play a major part in "Number One Spot" and its video. In the song's first verse, Ludacris says, "Respected highly, hi, Mr. O'Reilly/Hope all is well, kiss the plaintiff and the wifey." This line is a response to commentator Bill O'Reilly's criticism of

Pepsi Pepsi is a carbonated soft drink manufactured by PepsiCo. Originally created and developed in 1893 by Caleb Bradham and introduced as Brad's Drink, it was renamed as Pepsi-Cola in 1898, and then shortened to Pepsi in 1961. History Pepsi wa ...

for featuring Ludacris in a 2002 commercial; it is a reference to a 2004 sexual harassment lawsuit brought against O'Reilly by a former employee. The song reached #19 on the US ''Billboard'' Hot 100 chart and #30 in UK. "Number One Spot" was nominated for

Best Rap Solo Performance The Grammy Award for Best Rap Solo Performance was awarded from 1991 to 2011, alongside the Best Rap Performance by a Duo or Group. Previously, a single award was presented for Best Rap Performance. In 2003, this award was split into separate a ...

at the

Grammy Awards of 2006 The Grammy Awards (stylized as GRAMMY), or simply known as the Grammys, are awards presented by the Recording Academy of the United States to recognize "outstanding" achievements in the music industry. They are regarded by many as the most pre ...

, but it lost to

Kanye West Ye ( ; born Kanye Omari West ; June 8, 1977) is an American rapper, singer, songwriter, record producer, and fashion designer. Born in Atlanta and raised in Chicago, West gained recognition as a producer for Roc-A-Fella Records in the ea ...

's "

Gold Digger Gold digger is a term for a person, typically a woman, who engages in a type of transactional relationship for money rather than love. If it turns into marriage, it is a type of marriage of convenience. Etymology and usage The term "gold ...

". A remix to the song features

Kardinal Offishall Jason Drew Harrow (born May 11, 1976), better known by his stage name Kardinal Offishall (), is a Canadian rapper, record producer, DJ, and record executive. Often credited as Canada's " hip hop ambassador", he is regarded as one of the countr ...

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 ...

features spoofs of scenes from the ''Austin Powers'' films, with Ludacris taking the roles of

Fat Bastard Fat Bastard is a fictional character in the second and third films of the ''Austin Powers'' series. A morbidly obese henchman hailing from Clydebank, Scotland, Fat Bastard serves Dr. Evil in his quest to destroy Austin Powers. The character i ...

, Goldmember and

Dr. Evil Douglas Powers, commonly known as Dr. Evil, is a fictional character portrayed by Mike Myers in the ''Austin Powers'' film series. He is the main antagonist and Austin Powers' nemesis (and secret twin brother). He is a parody of James Bond vill ...

. The video also features

LisaRaye LisaRaye McCoy (born September 23, 1967), known as LisaRaye, is an American actress, fashion designer, model, businesswoman and former first lady of the Turks and Caicos Islands. McCoy is best known for portraying Diana "Diamond" Armstrong in t ...

and

Verne Troyer Verne Jay Troyer (January 1, 1969 – April 21, 2018) was an American actor, comedian, YouTuber, and stunt performer. He was best known for his role of Mini-Me in the ''Austin Powers'' film series. He had cartilage–hair hypoplasia and was ...

, who plays Mini-Me in the film franchise.

and

Slick Rick Richard Martin Lloyd Walters (born January 14, 1965), better known as Slick Rick, is an English-American rapper and record producer. He rose to prominence with Doug E. Fresh & the Get Fresh Crew in the mid-1980s. Their songs " The Show" and " ...

also make appearances in the music video. The subsequent single entitled " The Potion" was the conclusion to the music video (lasting approximately 45 seconds). The video won the

MTV Video Music Award for Best Rap Video The MTV Video Music Award for Best Rap Video was first given out in 1989, and it was one of the four original genre categories added at the 1989 MTV Video Music Awards. This award was last given out in 2006, as MTV did not bring it back in 2008 like ...

in 2005.

Track listing

; CD Single # "Number One Spot" (clean version) – 4:34 # "Number One Spot" (explicit version) – 4:34 ; 12" single # "Number One Spot" (explicit version) – 4:34 # "The Potion" (explicit version) – 3:54 # "Get Back" (explicit version) – 4:30 # "Get Back" (Sum 41 rock remix) – 4:11

Charts

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

Certifications

References

External links

* 2004 songs 2005 singles Ludacris songs Def Jam Recordings singles Songs written by Ludacris Songs written by Quincy Jones {{2000s-hiphop-single-stub