"Pumps and a Bump" is a song by
Hammer from his 1994 album ''
The Funky Headhunter
''The Funky Headhunter'' is the fifth studio album by Hammer, released on March 1, 1994, via Giant Records and Reprise Records.
The album at the time was hailed as Hammer's comeback album. As with some earlier songs such as "Crime Story" (from the ...
''. The single peaked at No. 3 on the Billboard
Hot Rap Songs
Hot Rap Songs (formerly known as Hot Rap Tracks and Hot Rap Singles) is a chart released weekly by ''Billboard'' in the United States. It lists the 25 most popular hip-hop/rap songs, calculated weekly by airplay on rhythmic and urban radio stati ...
chart and No. 26 on the
Hot 100, making it the final
Top 40
In the music industry, the Top 40 is the current, 40 most-popular songs in a particular genre. It is the best-selling or most frequently broadcast popular music. Record charts have traditionally consisted of a total of 40 songs. "Top 40" or "cont ...
hit of Hammer's career.
Release and reception
"Pumps and a Bump" was the first single off ''The Funky Headhunter'', which represented a departure from Hammer's previous pop image.
The track contains a sample of
George Clinton's 1982 single "
Atomic Dog
"Atomic Dog" is a song by George Clinton from his 1982 album ''Computer Games''. The track was released as a single in December 1982 and became the P-Funk collective's last to reach #1 on the U.S. R&B Chart. The single failed to chart on the ...
".
The original music video featured Hammer wearing nothing but a
Speedo
Speedo International Limited is a distributor of swimwear and swim-related accessories based in Nottingham, England, known for its swim briefs. The company has roots in Australia but is no longer based there. Founded in Sydney in 1914 by A ...
and dancing suggestively alongside numerous swimsuit-clad women, which resulted in it being banned from
MTV as it was considered too graphic. An alternative video was filmed with Hammer fully clothed and featuring an appearance by
Deion Sanders, while promoted as representing a remix of the song.
The video was nominated for
Best Choreography at the
1994 MTV Video Music Awards.
Impact
In 2010, ''
American Idol
''American Idol'' is an American singing competition television series created by Simon Fuller, produced by Fremantle North America and 19 Entertainment, and distributed by Fremantle North America. It aired on Fox from June 11, 2002, to Ap ...
'' contestant
Larry Platt performed his own song titled "
Pants on the Ground", which ''
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 cu ...
'' claimed sounded similar to "Pumps and a Bump".
''
Spin'' magazine described the banned music video as "'
Elvis on the ''Ed Sullivan Show''' cranked to 11".
Chart positions
Additional chart positions:
US R&B
The Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart ranks the most popular R&B and hip hop songs in the United States and is published weekly by ''Billboard''. Rankings are based on a measure of radio airplay, sales data, and streaming activity. The chart had 100 p ...
No. 21 /
US Rap No. 3 /
US Dance
Dance Club Songs is a chart published weekly by '' Billboard'' magazine in the United States. It is a national look over of club disc jockeys to determine the most popular songs being played in nightclubs across the country. It was launched as t ...
No. 34
Year-end charts
Certifications
References
{{MC Hammer
1994 singles
MC Hammer songs
G-funk songs
1994 songs
Songs written by MC Hammer
Songs written by Garry Shider
Songs written by George Clinton (funk musician)
Giant Records (Warner) singles
Music video controversies