"P.I.M.P." is a song recorded by American rapper

50 Cent Curtis James Jackson III (born July 6, 1975), known professionally as 50 Cent, is an American rapper, actor, and television producer. Born in Queens, a borough of New York City, Jackson began pursuing a musical career in 1996. In 1999–2000, ...

for his debut studio album ''

Get Rich or Die Tryin' ''Get Rich or Die Tryin'' is the debut studio album by American rapper 50 Cent. It was released on February 6, 2003, by Interscope Records, Eminem's Shady Records, Dr. Dre's Aftermath Entertainment, and 50 Cent's G-Unit Records. After si ...

'' (2003). It features production from

Mr. Porter Denaun Montez Porter (born December 7, 1978), also known by the stage names Mr. Porter, Kon Artis, or Denaun, is an American rapper and record producer. He was a member of Detroit hip hop group D12. He has a close association with rapper Emin ...

of D12 and was mixed by

Dr. Dre Andre Romell Young (born February 18, 1965), known professionally as Dr. Dre, is an American rapper, record producer, record executive, and actor. He is the founder and CEO of Aftermath Entertainment and Beats Electronics, and co-founder of ...

. The song was released as the third single from ''Get Rich or Die Tryin'' alongside its remix, featuring American rappers

Snoop Dogg Calvin Cordozar Broadus Jr. ( ; born October 20, 1971), better known by his stage name Snoop Dogg (previously Snoop Doggy Dogg), is an American rapper, record producer, and actor. Rooted in West Coast hip-hop, he is widely regarded as one of t ...

Lloyd Banks Christopher Charles Lloyd (born April 30, 1982), better known by his stage name Lloyd Banks, is an American rapper. He began his career as a member of East Coast hip-hop, East Coast hip hop group G-Unit, which he formed with childhood friends ...

and

Young Buck David Darnell Brown (born March 15, 1981), better known by his stage name Young Buck, is an American rapper. He signed with Birdman's Cash Money Records in 1997, formed the hip hop collective UTP with Juvenile and Soulja Slim in 2000, and j ...

, on June 24, 2003, by

Interscope Records Interscope Records is an American record label based in Santa Monica, California, owned by Universal Music Group through its Interscope Geffen A&M imprint. Founded in late 1990 by Jimmy Iovine and Ted Field as a $20 million joint venture ...

Shady Records Shady Records is an American record label founded by rapper Eminem and his manager Paul Rosenberg in 1999, following the commercially successful release of '' The Slim Shady LP'' that same year. The label's name comes from the last name of Eminem ...

and

Aftermath Entertainment Aftermath Entertainment is an American record label founded by hip hop producer and rapper Dr. Dre in 1996. It operates as a subsidiary of Universal Music Group, and is distributed through Interscope Records. The label's roster includes artists ...

. Upon its release, "P.I.M.P." was a significant commercial success, especially in the United States, where it peaked at number three on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100, while reaching the top ten of numerous national charts worldwide. The song was later certified

gold Gold is a chemical element; it has chemical symbol Au (from Latin ) and atomic number 79. In its pure form, it is a brightness, bright, slightly orange-yellow, dense, soft, malleable, and ductile metal. Chemically, gold is a transition metal ...

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/o ...

(RIAA). Although the remix was not originally part of the track listing for ''Get Rich or Die Tryin, it was later added as a bonus track on some digital editions of the album.

Content

Musically, the song is based on a highly

steelpan The steelpan (also known as a pan or steel drum) is a musical instrument originating in Trinidad and Tobago from Afro–Trinidadians and Tobagonians, Afro-Trinidadians. Steelpan musicians are called pannists. In 1992, the steelpan was declared ...

prominent production from

from D12, and although it is predominantly a rap song, features elements of other genres, especially reggae, or music similar to that of the Caribbean. Lyrically, the song glorifies 50 Cent's supposed involvement in the '

pimp Procuring, pimping, or pandering is the facilitation or provision of a prostitute or other sex worker in the arrangement of a sex act with a customer. A procurer, colloquially called a pimp (if male) or a madam (if female, though the term "pimp" ...

' lifestyle.

Music video

The music video features the four rappers rapping with

topless Toplessness refers to the state in which a woman's breasts, including her areolas and nipples, are exposed, especially in a public place or in a visual medium. The male equivalent is known as barechestedness. Social norms around toplessness ...

women. The video comes in two slightly different versions: one with the topless women and a "clean" version without. On July 15, 2003, the video debuted on

MTV MTV (an initialism of Music Television) is an American cable television television channel, channel and the flagship property of the MTV Entertainment Group sub-division of the Paramount Media Networks division of Paramount Global. Launched on ...

's ''

Total Request Live ''Total Request Live'' (commonly abbreviated as ''TRL'') is an American television program that premiered on MTV on September 14, 1998. The early version of ''TRL'' featured popular music videos played during its countdown and was also used as ...

'' at number nine and stayed on the chart for fifty days. At the 2004

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 honor the best in the music video medium. Originally conceived as an alternative to the Grammy Awards (in the video category ...

, it was nominated for Best Rap Video, but lost to

Jay-Z Shawn Corey Carter (born December 4, 1969), known professionally as Jay-Z, is an American Rapping, rapper, businessman, and record executive. Rooted in East Coast hip-hop, he was named Billboard and Vibe's 50 Greatest Rappers of All Time, the ...

's "

99 Problems "99 Problems" is the third single released by American rapper Jay-Z from '' The Black Album''. It was released on April 27, 2004. The chorus of "I got 99 problems, but a bitch ain't one" is taken from the Ice-T song "99 Problems", from the album ...

". The video had 50 Cent trying to audition to become a member of the P.I.M.P.

Legion of Doom The Legion of Doom is a group of supervillains who originated in '' Challenge of the Superfriends'', an animated series from Hanna-Barbera based on DC Comics' Justice League. The Legion of Doom has since been incorporated into the main DC Univers ...

that is led by Snoop Dogg's character. When asked why they should let him join the P.I.M.P. Legion of Doom as he doesn't have a Cadillac and/or a perm, 50 Cent ends up winning their favor by showing off his Magic Stick. The music video on

YouTube YouTube is an American social media and online video sharing platform owned by Google. YouTube was founded on February 14, 2005, by Steve Chen, Chad Hurley, and Jawed Karim who were three former employees of PayPal. Headquartered in ...

has received over 665 million views as of June 2024.

Samples and covers

In 2008, the Bacao Rhythm & Steel Band released a single "PIMP" from their album ''55'' (2016). It was such a faithful cover that many people incorrectly believed that it was the source of the steel drum melody used in the 50 Cent single, though the Bacao single was released five years after 50 Cent had released "P.I.M.P.". This cover features heavily in the French legal thriller ''

Anatomy of a Fall ''Anatomy of a Fall'' () is a 2023 French psychological legal drama film, directed by Justine Triet from a screenplay she co-wrote with Arthur Harari. It stars Sandra Hüller as a writer trying to prove her innocence in her husband's death. A ...

''. Additional covers of the song include those on ''Hip Hop Baby'' (a 2004 compilation album of kid-friendly tunes from the group Tunes for Baby That Won't Drive You Crazy), and "P.I.N.T.", a parody version by British rapper 50 Pence (from his 2004 album ''50 Pence Presents'').

Legal controversy

In June 2016, producer Brandon Parrott and business manager Erica Tucker sued almost everyone involved with the 50 Cent record ''Get Rich or Die Tryin, claiming that he was tricked into licensing the use of a beat from his track "BAMBA". Aftermath Records and Universal requested that the case be dismissed on the grounds that Parrott had already been compensated in an earlier settlement. Judge S. James Otero dismissed the complaint without leave to amend in November 2016.

Sequel

During an interview with ''

Vibe Vibe, alternatively '' vibes,'' is short for ''vibration''. A "vibe" is an emotional reaction to the aura or energy felt to belong to a person, place or thing. Vibe may also refer to: People * DJ Vibe (born 1968), Portuguese DJ * Lasse Vibe (b ...

'' in December 2006, 50 Cent revealed that he had recorded a sequel to "P.I.M.P." − titled "P.I.M.P. Pt. 2" − for his second studio album ''

The Massacre ''The Massacre'' is the second studio album by American rapper 50 Cent, released on March 3, 2005, via Interscope Records, Eminem's Shady Records, 50 Cent's G-Unit Records, and Dr. Dre's Aftermath Entertainment. With production from Dr. Dre, ...

'' (2005): however, its inclusion was vetoed by

as he did not like it.

Track listing

* UK CD single # "P.I.M.P." – 4:09 # "P.I.M.P. (Remix)" (featuring

and

) – 4:47 # "8 More Miles" (featuring

G-Unit G-Unit (short for Guerilla-Unit). was an American hip hop group formed by longtime friends and East Coast rappers 50 Cent, Tony Yayo, and Lloyd Banks. After amassing a string of self-released mixtapes in the early 2000s, the group released ...

) – 3:08 # "P.I.M.P." – The Video (Director's cut) – 4:10

Charts

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

Certifications

Release history

References

External links

50 Cent's official website
* {{Authority control 2003 songs 2003 singles 50 Cent songs G-Unit songs Snoop Dogg songs Lloyd Banks songs Young Buck songs Music videos directed by Chris Robinson (director) Songs written by 50 Cent Songs written by Denaun Porter Songs written by Snoop Dogg Songs written by Lloyd Banks Songs written by Young Buck Song recordings produced by Denaun Porter Shady Records singles Aftermath Entertainment singles Interscope Records singles Universal Music Group singles Songs about procurers