"911" is a duet between Haitian

rapper Rapping (also rhyming, spitting, emceeing or MCing) is a musical form of vocal delivery that incorporates "rhyme, rhythmic speech, and street vernacular". It is performed or chanted, usually over a backing beat or musical accompaniment. The ...

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, ...

and American

soul music Soul music is a popular music genre that originated in the African American community throughout the United States in the late 1950s and early 1960s. It has its roots in African-American gospel music and rhythm and blues. Soul music became ...

singer Mary J. Blige. It was released on 5 September 2000 as the third single from Jean's second studio album, '' The Ecleftic: 2 Sides II a Book'' (2000), and was later included on Blige's compilation '' Reflections (A Retrospective)'' (2006). The song peaked at number 38 on the US ''

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 adverti ...

Hot 100 The ''Billboard'' Hot 100 is the music industry standard record chart in the United States for songs, published weekly by '' Billboard'' magazine. Chart rankings are based on sales (physical and digital), radio play, and online streaming ...

and had success worldwide, particularly in

Scandinavia Scandinavia; Sámi languages: /. ( ) is a subregion in Northern Europe, with strong historical, cultural, and linguistic ties between its constituent peoples. In English usage, ''Scandinavia'' most commonly refers to Denmark, Norway, and S ...

n countries, reaching number one in Norway and Sweden.

Music and video

The song depicted two star-crossed lovers in a web of drama with the male narrator running from police while the female narrator worries forlornly over him. The relationship is apparently under external pressures, as Jean sings "messing around with you is gonna get (the man) life", and later reflecting "it's worth the sacrifice".

Chart performances and awards

"911" was a hit for the two singers as it reached No. 38 on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100. The song was very successful in Sweden and in Norway where it reached number-one for almost two months. It earned a

Platinum disc Music recording certification is a system of certifying that a music recording has shipped, sold, or streamed a certain number of units. The threshold quantity varies by type (such as album, single, music video) and by nation or territory (see ...

in Norway. It was also a top ten hit in Ireland, UK, Switzerland, Denmark, the Netherlands and Finland. It was nominated for a

Grammy 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 pres ...

for Best R&B Vocal Performance by a duo or group in 2001.

Track listings

US 12-inch single :A1. "911" (Ghetto Love remix) – 4:01 :A2. "911" (Ghetto Love remix instrumental) – 4:01 :A3. "911" (Ghetto Love remix a cappella) – 4:01 :B1. "911" (Emergency remix) – 4:23 :B2. "911" (Emergency remix instrumental) – 4:23 :B3. "911" (LP version) – 4:01 Australian CD single 1 # "911" (radio edit) – 4:06 # "911" (Ghetto Love remix) – 4:01 # "Younger Days" – 5:00 # " It Doesn't Matter" (remix featuring Hope) – 4:05 Australian CD single 2 # "911" (Emergency remix) – 4:23 # "911" (radio edit) – 4:06 # "911" (Ghetto Love remix) – 4:01 # "Younger Days" – 5:00 # "It Doesn't Matter" (remix featuring Hope) – 4:05 UK CD single # "911" (LP version) – 4:21 # " Gone till November" – 3:29 # "It Doesn't Matter" – 4:05 UK cassette single # "911" (LP version) – 4:21 # "911" (Ghetto Love remix) – 4:01 European CD single # "911" (LP version) – 4:21 # "911" (Ghetto Love remix) – 4:01 # "911" (Emergency remix) – 4:23 French CD single # "911" (radio edit) – 4:06 # "911" (Ghetto Love remix) – 4:01

Credits and personnel

Credits and personnel are taken from '' The Ecleftic: 2 Sides II a Book'' album booklet. Studios * Recorded and mixed at

The Hit Factory The Hit Factory is a recording studio in New York City owned and operated by Troy Germano. History On March 6, 1975, Edward Germano, a singer, record producer, and one of the principal owners of the Record Plant Studios New York, purchased the ...

(New York City) * Mastered at Sterling Sound (New York City) Personnel *

– writing, vocals, production * Jerry "Wonder" Duplessis – writing, production * Katia Cadet – writing * Mary Brown – writing, background arrangements * Mary J. Blige – featured vocals * MB² – backing vocals * Sedeck – co-production * Andy Grassi – mixing, recording engineer, mastering * Michael McCoy – recording engineer *

Chris Gehringer Chris Gehringer (born May 27, 1962) is an American mastering engineer, known for having mastered recordings such as Gwen Stefani's '' Love. Angel. Music. Baby.'' (2004), Rihanna's '' Loud'' (2010), Lady Gaga's '' Born This Way'' (2011) and Drake' ...

– mastering * Serge "Sergical" Tsai – mastering

Charts

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

Certifications

Release history

References

{{Authority control Wyclef Jean songs Mary J. Blige songs 2000 singles 2000 songs Columbia Records singles Male–female vocal duets Music videos directed by Marcus Raboy Number-one singles in Norway Number-one singles in Sweden Song recordings produced by Jerry Duplessis Song recordings produced by Wyclef Jean Songs written by Jerry Duplessis Songs written by Wyclef Jean