"Doin It" is a song by American rapper

LL Cool J James Todd Smith (born January 14, 1968), known professionally as LL Cool J (short for Ladies Love Cool James), is an American rapper and actor. He is one of the earliest rappers to achieve commercial success, alongside fellow new school hip ho ...

, released by

Def Jam Recordings Def Jam Recordings (also simply known as Def Jam) is an American multinational record label owned by Universal Music Group. It is based in Manhattan, New York City, specializing predominantly in hip hop, contemporary R&B, soul and pop. The l ...

on February 20, 1996, as the second single from his sixth album, '' Mr. Smith''. Based on a sample of

Grace Jones Grace Beverly Jones (born 19 May 1948) is a Jamaican singer, songwriter, model and actress. She began her Model (person), modelling career in New York State, then in Paris, working for fashion houses such as Yves Saint Laurent (brand), Yves St ...

' "

My Jamaican Guy "My Jamaican Guy" is a single by the Jamaican singer and actress Grace Jones, released in 1983. Background "My Jamaican Guy" was the third single to Grace Jones' 1982 album '' Living My Life'', her third and last album recorded in the Compass Po ...

", it contains a guest appearance from LeShaun (who previously released a song with the same sample and theme in 1988 titled "Wild Thang"), while production was handled by Rashad "Ringo" Smith and LL Cool J. Its

B-side The A-side and B-side are the two sides of phonograph record, vinyl records and Compact cassette, cassettes, and the terms have often been printed on the labels of two-sided music recordings. The A-side of a Single (music), single usually ...

was the album's previous single, " Hey Lover". "Doin It" peaked at number nine on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100, and number seven on the

Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs 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 ...

''Billboard'' chart. In several interviews, both the artist and producer have stated that the instrumental was originally meant for the Notorious B.I.G. on his '' Life After Death'' album. The crowd noise heard throughout the song, shouting "Go Brooklyn!", is sampled from "Go Stetsa" by Stetsasonic. Furthermore, the hook of "Doin It" interpolates "Wild Thang" by 2 Much, a group LeShaun was part of.

Content

Lyrically, the song finds its performers discussing their sexual desire for each other.

Remix

The remix featured on the soundtrack to '' The Nutty Professor'' samples the

Art of Noise Art of Noise (also the Art of Noise) were a British avant-garde synth-rock group formed in early 1983 by engineer/producer Gary Langan and programmer J. J. Jeczalik, along with keyboardist/arranger Anne Dudley, producer Trevor Horn, and ...

's song " Moments in Love."

Legacy

American singer

Keri Hilson Keri Lynn Hilson (born December 5, 1982) is an American singer and songwriter. Born and raised in Decatur, Georgia, she began her musical career as a songwriter and backing vocalist for other artists under the wing of record producer Anthony De ...

sampled this song in her song "Do It" (featuring

Tank A tank is an armoured fighting vehicle intended as a primary offensive weapon in front-line ground combat. Tank designs are a balance of heavy firepower, strong armour, and battlefield mobility provided by tracks and a powerful engine; ...

), from her debut album '' In a Perfect World...'' (2009).

Fabolous John David Jackson (born November 18, 1977), known professionally as Fabolous, is an American rapper. Raised in Brooklyn, he first gained recognition for his ability upon performing live on DJ Clue's WQHT, Hot 97 radio show. Jackson then signed ...

, LL Cool J's fellow New York native, sampled the song for his song "Doin it Well" (featuring

Nicki Minaj Onika Tanya Maraj-Petty (born December 8, 1982), known professionally as Nicki Minaj ( ), is a Trinidadian rapper, singer, and songwriter. Regarded as the "Queen of Rap" and one of the most influential rappers of all time, she is noted for her ...

and

Trey Songz Tremaine Aldon Neverson (born November 28, 1984), known professionally as Trey Songz, is an American Contemporary R&B, R&B singer and songwriter. After being discovered by record producer Troy Taylor (record producer), Troy Taylor in 2003, Songz ...

), from his mixtape '' Summertime Shootout'' (2015).

Music video

The

music video A music video is a video that integrates a song or an album with imagery that is produced for promotion (marketing), promotional or musical artistic purposes. Modern music videos are primarily made and used as a music marketing device intended to ...

, directed by

Hype Williams Harold "Hype" Williams (born August 1, 1970) is an American music video and film director, film producer, and screenwriter. Early life Williams was born in Queens. He is of mixed African-American and Honduran descent. He attended Adelphi Univ ...

, was shot in January 1996. LeShaun did not appear in the

, as she was pregnant at the time, although several models took her place and

lip sync Lip sync or lip synch (pronounced , like the word ''sink'', despite the Hard and soft C, spelling of the participial forms ''synced'' and ''syncing''), short for lip synchronization, is a technical term for matching a Speech, speaking or singin ...

ed her parts.

Track listing

A-side

#"Doin It" (LP Version)- 4:40 #"Doin It" (Unarmed Version)- 4:05

B-side

#" Hey Lover" (Street Version)- 4:04 #"Hey Lover" (Street Instrumental)- 4:04

Charts

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

Certifications and sales

References

{{authority control 1996 songs 1996 singles LL Cool J songs Def Jam Recordings singles Dirty rap songs Music videos directed by Hype Williams Songs written by LL Cool J Songs written by Grace Jones Songs about casual sex