Silentó “Watch Me (Whip/Nae Nae)” charted

Watch Me (Whip/Nae Nae) Silentó

Writer(s): Ricky Hawk, Timothy Mingo (see lyrics here) Released: May 7, 2015 First Charted: March 14, 2015 Peak: 3 US, 110 ST, 17 RR, 2 RB, 19 UK, 11 CN, 9 AU, 11 DF (Click for codes to charts.) Sales (in millions): 6.0 US, 0.4 UK, 7.04 world (includes US + UK) Airplay/Streaming (in millions): -- radio, 2305.43 video, 373.35 streaming

Awards: Click on award for more details.

About the Song: Rapper Richard Lamar Hawk (aka “Silentó”) was born in 1998 in Stone Mountain, Georgia. His only chart entry on the Billboard Hot 100 is his debut single, “Watch Me (Whip/Nae Nae),” which was released when he was just 17 years old. He released four mixtapes from 2018 to 2021 but never put out an official studio album. In 2021 he was indicted in the shooting death of his cousin. Songfacts.com called the song “the soundtrack to the biggest dance craze of 2015.” SF The song became a viral video because of the popularity of the accompanying dance – actually two dances. The Whip involved keeping one’s arms straight and swinging them in front of one’s face as if driving a car. The Nae Nae is a similar move, but involving an open hand. The latter is based on the character Sheneneh played by Martin Lawrence in his 1990s’ TV series Martin. When she got upset, she made exaggerated “talk to the hand” gestures, which the dance move replicates. SF The video shows Silentó in a high school gym dancing with cheerleaders, fans, and others. Much of the success of the video can be attributed to DanceOn, a digital media company which tapped 50 creators to make instructional videos on how to dance to “Watch Me.” The videos garnered more than a quarter million views in less than three months. WK The success of the video pushed the song to #3 on the Billboard Hot 100 and it topped the streaming chart for 10 weeks. Critics, however, weren’t complimentary. Complex.com called “Watch Me” “one of the most annoying things to ever exist.” WK RapRadar.com’s Elliott Wilson rated it the second worst single, saying “Give me silence, Silento.” RR Resources: DMDB encyclopedia entry for Silentó RR Rapradar.com (1/8/2016). “15 Worst Singles” by Elliott Wilson SF Songfacts WK Wikipedia First posted 8/15/2023.

 

Pharrell Williams hit #1 in the U.S. with “Happy”

Happy Pharrell Williams

Writer(s): Pharrell Williams (see lyrics here) Released: November 21, 2013 First Charted: January 18, 2014 Peak: 110 US, 18 BA, 111 DG, 14 ST, 13 RR, 16 AC, 16 A40, 14 AA, 112 RB, 14 UK, 110 CN, 112 AU, 1 DF (Click for codes to charts.) Sales (in millions): 11.0 US, 2.63 UK, 15.12 world (includes US + UK) Airplay/Streaming (in millions): -- radio, 2446.02 video, 1219.47 streaming

Awards: Click on award for more details.

About the Song: 2013 was a remarkable year for Pharrell Williams. He aided Robin Thicke in landing at #1 for 12 weeks atop the pop charts with “Blurred Lines” and gave Daft Punk an assist on their #2 hit “Get Lucky,” which took home a Grammy for Record of the Year. Thanks to Pharrell’s work on the latter, ecstatic record label managers encouraged him to record a solo album, something he hadn’t done since 2006’s In My Mind. Things kicked off with “Happy,” a song which Pharrell contributed to the Despicable Me 2 soundtrack and served as the first single for his 2014 album G I R L. The single was launched with a website, 24hoursofhappy.com which was billed as the world’s first 24-hour music video. The song is played repeatedly with people in Los Angeles dancing and miming along with the song. Pharrell appeared in the first segement of each hour. The song, which Williams had originally written for Cee-Lo Green, became the year’s most inescapable hit, spending 10 weeks atop the U.S. pop charts and hitting #1 in 23 other countries. With 12 million in worldwide sales, “Happy” ranks as one of the 100 best-selling songs of all time. The song also garnered an Academy Award nomination for Best Original Song. The standard four-minute video has garnered more than 500 million views on YouTube, making it one of the top 100 most-watched music videos in history. His falsetto on the song earned favorable comparisons from critics to Curtis Mayfield. Music journalist Paul Tingen called “Happy” a “mid-tempo soul song in a faux-Motown style” WK while Rolling Stone critic Jody Rosen called it a “standout” with a “sprightly neo-soul funk groove.” WK Huw Woodward, critic from Renowned for Sound, described the song as a “happy affair with a cheerful beat and exuberant vocal that would indicate that the…singer is finding a lot of lightheared fun…in both music and life.” WK Contactmusic.com’s Holly Williams described the “unbelievably catchy” song as “the kind…that makes you want to dance and sing along.” WK Resources: DMDB Encyclopedia entry for Pharrell Williams SF Songfacts WK Wikipedia.org Last updated 7/24/2023.

Soulja Boy Tell’Em “Crank That (Soulja Boy)” hit #1 for 1st of 7 weeks

Crank That (Soulja Boy) Soulja Boy Tell’em

Writer(s): DeAndre Way (see lyrics here) Released: May 2, 2007 First Charted: June 30, 2007 Peak: 17 US, 8 RR, 13 BA, 15 DG, 3 RB, 2 UK, 3 AU, 5 CN, 14 DF (Click for codes to charts.) Sales (in millions): 5.08 US, 0.6 UK, 5.81 world (includes US + UK) Airplay/Streaming (in millions): 0.2 radio, 528.99 video, 467.81 streaming

Awards: Click on award for more details.

About the Song: Rapper DeAndre Way, better known as Soulja Boy Tell ‘Em, was born in Chicago in 1990. Before he’d even turned fifteen, he started posting MP3s to SoundClick, “a briefly popular social-media platform that allowed listeners to post their own songs.” BR He had a knack for “catchy and memorable” BR novelty songs and soon gravitated to other social-media programs like MySpace and YouTube in their relative infancy. He was also among the first to write his own Wikipedia bio, “boasting of his…not-yet-existent buzz.” BR He understood that “virality wasn’t merely a component of success in an Internet era; it was the entire story.” BR At 15 years old, he wrote “Crank That (Soulja Boy),” another “entry in the age-old dance-craze tradition.” BR Part of the song’s charm came in Soulja Boy’s “strange way with words.” AMG The lyrics about bragging and dancing included such memorable lines as “Why me crank that Robocob?” sit[ting] next to nonsensical called-out dance instructions.” AMG He told HipHoxDX.com that he created the song in just an hour on the computer, using the Fruity Loops computer system. SF The song is notable for its looping steel pan riff. WK Steel drums originated from the West Indian islands of Trinidad and Tobago, generally being made from 55 gallon oil drums. SF The Beach Boys’ 1988 #1 hit “Kokomo” also used the instrument. SF In 2007, it “became a kind of Internet-underground sensation” BR with teens posting videos of themselves doing the dance. A rap producer named Collipark signed Soulja Boy to his label and they made a video that told “a stylized version of the whole origin story.” BR The video, directed by Dale Resteghini, featured Chris Brown, Bow Wow, and other notable rappers and R&B performers. BET ranked it the top video of 2007. WK Various parodies of the video have been made featuring Michael Jackson, Barney, and others. WK The song debuted on the Billboard Hot 100 the same day Way turned 17. It went on to top the charts for 7 weeks, making Soulja Boy the youngest artist to write and produce his own chart-topper. BR It became the biggest pop hit of the year HT the most downloaded song of the year SF and, with four million + in sales, was the third most downloaded song in the U.S. all-time. WK Resources: DMDB encyclopedia entry for Soulja Boy Tell’em AMG All Music Guide BR Tom Breihan (2022). The Number Ones. Hachete Books: New York, NY. Pages 263-76. SF Songfacts HT Joel Whitburn (2009). Top Pop Singles 1955-2008 (12th edition). Menomonee Falls, WI; Record Research, Inc. Page 1340. WK Wikipedia First posted 6/30/2012; last updated 6/24/2023.