"Doo Wop (That Thing)" is a song recorded by American recording artist

Lauryn Hill Lauryn Noelle Hill (born May 26, 1975) is an American singer, songwriter, rapper, and record producer. She is often regarded as one of the greatest rappers of all time, as well as being one of the most influential musicians of her generation. ...

for her debut solo studio album ''

The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill ''The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill'' is the debut solo album by American singer and rapper Lauryn Hill. It was released on August 25, 1998, by Ruffhouse Records and Columbia Records. ''The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill'' is a neo soul and R&B alb ...

'' (1998). It was written and produced by Hill. The song was released as the

lead single A lead single (also known as a debut single) is the first single to be released from a studio album by an artist or a band, usually before the album itself is released and also occasionally on the same day of the album's release date. Release s ...

from ''The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill'' on August 10, 1998, by

Ruffhouse Records Ruffhouse Records is an American record label founded in 1989 by Chris Schwartz and Joe Nicolo as a joint venture with Columbia Records. In 1999, Schwartz and Nicolo closed the label, and Schwartz and Kevon Glickman continued with RuffNat ...

and

Columbia Records Columbia Records is an American record label owned by Sony Music Entertainment, a subsidiary of Sony Corporation of America, the North American division of Japanese conglomerate Sony. It was founded on January 15, 1889, evolving from the A ...

. No commercial release was originally intended for the single in the US, but limited-quantity physical formats were issued two months later, on October 27. "Doo Wop (That Thing)" became Hill's first and, to date, only US ''Billboard'' Hot 100 number-one hit. It became the first US number-one written, produced and recorded by one sole woman since

Debbie Gibson Deborah Ann Gibson (born August 31, 1970) is an American singer-songwriter, record producer and actress. Gibson released her debut album '' Out of the Blue'' in 1987, which spawned several international hits, later being certified triple plati ...

's "

Lost in Your Eyes "Lost in Your Eyes" is a song by American singer-songwriter Debbie Gibson, released as the first single from her second album, '' Electric Youth'' (1989). The song was written by Gibson in late 1987 and published by Creative Bloc Music, Ltd. an ...

" (1989). It debuted atop the ''Billboard'' Hot 100, making it the tenth song in the chart's history to do so, the first debut single to do so, and the first solo hip hop song to do so. It also marked the first song by a female rapper to peak at number one on the Hot 100, and remained the only solo song by a female rapper to debut at number one for nearly a quarter of century afterwards. The song stayed at number one for two weeks, setting the record for the longest-running number one by a solo female rapper, holding that record for almost 19 years. Critically acclaimed, "Doo Wop (That Thing)" was named the best single of the year by ''

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

''. It went on to win

Best Female R&B Vocal Performance The Grammy Award for Best Female R&B Vocal Performance (previously called Best Rhythm and Blues Solo Vocal Performance, Female) was an honor presented at the Grammy Awards, a ceremony established in 1958 and originally called the Gramophone Awards ...

and

Best R&B Song The Grammy Award for Best R&B Song (sometimes known as the R&B Songwriter's Award) has been awarded since 1969. From 1969 to 2000, it was known as the Grammy Award for Best Rhythm and Blues Song. Beyoncé has won it a record four times, while Bab ...

at the

41st Annual Grammy Awards The 41st Annual Grammy Awards were held on February 24, 1999, at Shrine Auditorium, Los Angeles. They recognized accomplishments by musicians from the year 1998. Lauryn Hill received the most nominations with 10, setting a record for the most no ...

(1999). According to

Apple Music Apple Music is a music, audio and video streaming service developed by Apple Inc. Users select music to stream to their device on-demand, or they can listen to existing playlists. The service also includes the Internet radio stations Appl ...

, it is one of the most streamed songs of the 1990s. ''

NPR National Public Radio (NPR, stylized in all lowercase) is an American privately and state funded nonprofit media organization headquartered in Washington, D.C., with its NPR West headquarters in Culver City, California. It differs from other ...

'' named it one of the 300 most important songs of the 20th century. In 2021, "Doo Wop (That Thing)" ranked number 49 on ''Rolling Stone'''s 500 Greatest Songs of All Time. 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 promotional or musical artistic purposes. Modern music videos are primarily made and used as a music marketing devic ...

for "Doo Wop (That Thing)" won four awards at the

1999 MTV Video Music Awards The 1999 MTV Video Music Awards (stylized as 9999 MTV Video Music Awards) aired live on September 9, 1999, honoring the best music videos from June 13, 1998, to June 11, 1999. The show was hosted by Chris Rock at the Metropolitan Opera House in N ...

, including the top prize Video of the Year, becoming the first hip hop video to win the award, and made Hill the first solo black artist to win. At the

Soul Train Music Awards 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 p ...

, the video was awarded the Michael Jackson Award for Best R&B/Soul or Rap Music Video. VH1 and ''

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 Yo ...

'' have both ranked it as one of the 100 greatest music videos, with the latter ranking it as the 20th greatest music video of all time.

Background

The hip hop and R&B song is a warning from

African-American African Americans (also referred to as Black Americans and Afro-Americans) are an ethnic group consisting of Americans with partial or total ancestry from sub-Saharan Africa. The term "African American" generally denotes descendants of ensl ...

men and women caught in "the struggle". Both the women who " ry tobe a hard rock when they really are a gem", and the men who are "more concerned with his rims, and his Timbs, than women", are admonished by Hill, who warns them not to allow "that thing" to ruin their lives. The

chorus Chorus may refer to: Music * Chorus (song) or refrain, line or lines that are repeated in music or in verse * Chorus effect, the perception of similar sounds from multiple sources as a single, richer sound * Chorus form, song in which all verse ...

seems to promote egalitarianism between the sexes, but the overall message of the lyrics has been described as conservative. In terms of production value, Hill borrows heavily from elements of

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 ...

and

doo-wop Doo-wop (also spelled doowop and doo wop) is a genre of rhythm and blues music that originated in African-American communities during the 1940s, mainly in the large cities of the United States, including New York, Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, Chica ...

, lending credence to the song's title. In its official album and single release, several of the song's lyrics are censored, though the original words can be found in the liners. The only noted semi-official release of the uncensored version is in a 12-inch promo labelled as "(Album Version)" (different from the 5:21 version) at 4 minutes in length.

Commercial performance

In the United States, "Doo Wop (That Thing)" debuted at number one on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100, making it the tenth song in the chart's history to debut atop the chart. The track became the first single since

's 1989 single "

" to reach number one in the US, that was written, produced and recorded by one sole woman. Hill joined

Roberta Flack Roberta Cleopatra Flack (born February 10, 1937) is a retired American singer. She topped the ''Billboard'' charts with the No. 1 singles " The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face", " Killing Me Softly with His Song", " Feel Like Makin' Love", " W ...

, Linda Goldstein, and

Sinéad O'Connor Shuhada Sadaqat (born Sinéad Marie Bernadette O'Connor on 8 December 1966; ) is an Irish singer-songwriter. Her debut album, '' The Lion and the Cobra'', was released in 1987 and charted internationally. Her second album, ''I Do Not Want Wha ...

as the only women at the time to solely produce a number one single, and joined the latter three woman along with

Valerie Simpson Ashford & Simpson were an American husband-and-wife songwriting-production team and recording duo of Nickolas Ashford (May 4, 1941 – August 22, 2011) and Valerie Simpson (born August 26, 1946). Ashford was born in Fairfield, South Carolina, ...

and

Ellie Greenwich Eleanor Louise Greenwich (October 23, 1940 – August 26, 2009) was an American pop music singer, songwriter, and record producer. She wrote or co-wrote "Da Doo Ron Ron", "Be My Baby", "Maybe I Know", "Then He Kissed Me", "Do Wah Diddy Diddy", ...

as the sixth woman overall to produce a number one single. It marked the first time that a female rapper peaked or debuted at number one on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 chart. "Doo Wop (That Thing)" also became the first debut single to enter atop the chart. Additionally, it was the first and only solo hip hop song to debut at number one, until "

Not Afraid "Not Afraid" is a song by American rapper Eminem from his seventh studio album '' Recovery'' (2010). It was released as the album's lead single on April 27, 2010, by Interscope Records. "Not Afraid" was first revealed as a single ...

" by

Eminem Marshall Bruce Mathers III (born October 17, 1972), known professionally as Eminem (; often stylized as EMINƎM), is an American rapper and record producer. He is credited with popularizing Hip hop music, hip hop in Middle America (United Sta ...

debuted atop the chart in 2010. "Doo Wop (That Thing)" remained the only single by a female rapper to debut atop the chart until

Nicki Minaj Onika Tanya Maraj-Petty (; born December 8, 1982), known professionally as Nicki Minaj ( ), is a Trinidadian-born rapper based in the United States. She is known for her musical versatility, animated flow in her rapping, alter egos and accents ...

's " Trollz" with

6ix9ine Daniel Hernandez (born May 8, 1996), known professionally as 6ix9ine (stylized 6IX9INE and pronounced "six nine") and also as Tekashi69, is an American rapper. His music has been marked by an aggressive style of rapping, while his controversia ...

began at number one in 2020. While the song remained the only solo release by a female rapper to debut at number one, until Minaj's "

Super Freaky Girl "Super Freaky Girl" is a song by rapper Trinidadian- american Nicki Minaj, released on August 12, 2022, by Young Money Entertainment and Republic Records. It is an upbeat, raunchy song that samples Rick James' 1981 single "Super Freak," as Mina ...

" debuted atop the Hot 100, matching the feat 24 years later. It stayed at number one for two weeks in November 1998, making Hill the third woman unaccompanied by another artist to do so with a song that debuted at number one, following

Mariah Carey Mariah Carey (; born March 27, 1969) is an American singer, songwriter, actress, and record producer. Referred to as the " Songbird Supreme", she is noted for her five-octave vocal range, melismatic singing style and signature use of the w ...

and

Celine Dion Céline Marie Claudette Dion ( ; born 30 March 1968) is a Canadian singer. Noted for her powerful and technically skilled vocals, Dion is the best-selling Canadian recording artist, and the best-selling French-language artist of all time. Her ...

. The song set the record for the longest-running number one by a solo female rapper, holding that record for almost 19 years, until it was surpassed by

Cardi B Belcalis Marlenis Almánzar Cephus (, ; born October 11, 1992), known professionally as Cardi B, is an American rapper and songwriter. She first gained popularity as an influencer on Vine (service), Vine and Instagram. From 2015 to early 2017, ...

's single "

Bodak Yellow "Bodak Yellow" (alternatively titled "Bodak Yellow (Money Moves)") is the major-label debut single by American rapper Cardi B. It was written by Cardi B, Jordan Thorpe, Klenord Raphael, and produced by J. White Did It and Laquan Green. It was r ...

", which stayed atop the Hot 100 chart for three weeks. "Doo Wop (That Thing)" also peaked atop ''Billboard''s

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, making her the first solo female artist to top both charts simultaneously, and remained the sole single by a unaccompanied female artist to do so, until it was matched by

's " Up" in 2021. On the

R&B Singles 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 ...

chart, it peaked at number two for three weeks in November 1998, and reached 50 million audience impressions on radio, however it was held out of the top spot by "

Nobody's Supposed to Be Here "Nobody's Supposed to Be Here" is the lead single released by Canadian recording artist Deborah Cox from her second studio album '' One Wish'' (1998). It is Cox's most successful song, peaking at number two on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 for eight ...

" by

Deborah Cox Deborah Cox (born July 13, 1974) is a Canadian singer, songwriter, actress, and record producer. Born and raised in Toronto, she began performing on television commercials at age 12, and entered various talent shows in her teenage years before ...

. The song experienced similar success abroad, reaching number one in Iceland, and peaking within the top ten in various other countries worldwide. In the United Kingdom the song peaked at number three, debuted at number one on the UK Hip Hop and R&B Chart, and has 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". Pla ...

by the

British Phonographic Industry British Phonographic Industry (BPI) is the British recorded music industry's Trade association. It runs the BRIT Awards, the Classic BRIT Awards, National Album Day, is home to the Mercury Prize, and co-owns the Official Charts Company with ...

. According to

, It is one of the most streamed songs of the 1990s.

Accolades

At the

, "Doo Wop (That Thing)" won two awards:

and

.Grammy Award Winners
grammy.com. Retrieved April 24, 2010. The success of "Doo Wop (That Thing)" and ''The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill'' established Hill as a success outside of her group,

The Fugees ''The'' () is a grammatical article in English, denoting persons or things already mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in English. ''The'' is the m ...

. In 1999, "Doo Wop (That Thing)" was ranked at number two on ''

The Village Voice ''The Village Voice'' is an American news and culture paper, known for being the country's first alternative newsweekly. Founded in 1955 by Dan Wolf, Ed Fancher, John Wilcock, and Norman Mailer, the ''Voice'' began as a platform for the cr ...

''s Pazz & Jop annual critics' poll, after

Fatboy Slim Norman Quentin Cook (born Quentin Leo Cook, 31 July 1963), also known by his stage name Fatboy Slim, is an English musician, DJ, and record producer who helped to popularise the big beat genre in the 1990s. In the 1980s, Cook was the bassist ...

s "

The Rockafeller Skank "The Rockafeller Skank", usually called "Funk Soul Brother" by fans, is a song by English big beat musician and DJ Fatboy Slim. It was released as the lead single from his second studio album, ''You've Come a Long Way, Baby'' (1998), on 8 June 19 ...

". The song's

won four 1999

MTV Video Music Awards The MTV Video Music Awards (commonly abbreviated as the VMAs) is an award show presented by the cable channel MTV to honour the best in the music video medium. Originally conceived as an alternative to the Grammy Awards (in the video category) ...

for:

Best Female Video The MTV Video Music Award for Best Female Video is one of the original general awards that has been handed out every year since the first annual MTV Video Music Awards in 1984. In 2007, however, the award was briefly renamed Female Artist of the Y ...

Best R&B Video The MTV Video Music Award for Best R&B was first awarded in 1993 under the name of Best R&B Video, and it was given every year until 2006, as the following year MTV revamped the VMAs and eliminated all the genre categories. The following year, thou ...

, Best Art Direction, and Video of the Year; with her win for Video of the Year, "Doo Wop (That Thing)" became the first hip hop video to win the award, and made Hill the first solo black artist to win, and second overall following TLC (1995).

Music video

The song's music video was Directed by Monty Whitebloom & Andy Delaney, Bigtv, and filmed in Manhattan's Washington Heights in

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

, with the video showing two Hills singing side by side at a block party. On the left side of the split screen, the 1967 Hill dressed in full retro-styled attire, complete with a

beehive A beehive is an enclosed structure in which some honey bee species of the subgenus '' Apis'' live and raise their young. Though the word ''beehive'' is commonly used to describe the nest of any bee colony, scientific and professional literature ...

and a zebra-printed dress, she pays homage to classic R&B and doo wop, and on the right side of the screen, the 1998 Hill is shown in a homage to hip hop culture.

's Paul Schrodt praised the "Doo Wop (That Thing)" music video, stating "The resulting split-screen music video is the most flabbergasting testament to what the

neo soul Neo soul (sometimes called progressive soul) is a genre of popular music. As a term, it was coined by music industry entrepreneur Kedar Massenburg during the late 1990s to market and describe a style of music that emerged from soul and con ...

movement is all about."Schrodt, Paul
Review: ''The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill''
.

. Retrieved on December 5, 2009.

Legacy

Recognition

"Doo Wop (That Thing)" is included as number 359 on the

Songs of the Century The "Songs of the Century" list is part of an education project by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA), the National Endowment for the Arts, and Scholastic Inc. that aims to "promote a better understanding of America's musical and ...

list 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/ ...

National Endowment for the Arts The National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) is an independent agency of the United States federal government that offers support and funding for projects exhibiting artistic excellence. It was created in 1965 as an independent agency of the federal ...

. The song was named as the 21st greatest hip hop song of all time by ''

BBC #REDIRECT BBC #REDIRECT BBC Here i going to introduce about the best teacher of my life b BALAJI sir. He is the precious gift that I got befor 2yrs . How has helped and thought all the concept and made my success in the 10th board exam. ...

...

Background

Commercial performance

Accolades

Music video

Legacy

Recognition

Sampling and freestyles

Cover versions

Track listings

Credits and personnel

Charts

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

Certifications

Release history

References