It's like That (Run–D.M.C. song)

"It's like That"
Single by Run-D.M.C.
from the album Run-D.M.C.
B-side	"Sucker M.C.'s"
Released	March 12, 1983
Format	Cassette single
Recorded	1983
Genre	Hip hop
Length	4:51
Label	Profile Records
Writer(s)	Darryl McDaniels, Joseph Simmons, Jason Mizell
Producer	Jam Master Jay, Russell Simmons, Larry Smith
Certification	Platinum (BPI)
Run-D.M.C. singles chronology
"It's like That" (1983) "Hard Times" (1983)
The cover of the 1997 Jason Nevins remix Run-D.M.C track listing "Sucker M.C.'s (Krush-Groove 1)" (5) "It's like That" (6) "Wake Up" (7)

"It's like That" is a song by American hip hop group Run-D.M.C. It was first released in 1983 on a cassette backed with the track "Sucker M.C.'s". The release marked the start of Run-D.M.C.'s career and is widely regarded as ushering in a new school of hip hop artists with a street image and an abrasive, minimalist sound that marked them out from their predecessors. Both tracks were collected on the trio's eponymous debut album in 1984. "It's like That" is about life in the area where the group lives (unemployment, prices, death, etc.).

In 2008, it was ranked number 40 on VH1's 100 Greatest Songs of Hip Hop.

Background

In the re-release of the album in 2003, a booklet was included, and a reviewer, Angus Batey, wrote the background information about the album. When he wrote about "It's like That", he quoted:

[Larry] Smith had created one particularly stark backing track that would provide a perfect setting for rap. He was aware of Run's prowess as a writer, having previously paid the teenager $100 for a set of lyrics with the intention of [Kurtis] Blow recording them. One evening, in Smith's home studio in Queens, Run and D persuaded Larry and Russell [Simmons] to let them have a chance to make a demo. Russell agreed; taking Run's $100 rap and extensive additional lines penned by the prolific DMC, Russell doled it out line by line between the two vocalists, who sprayed their lyrics over the stark beat onto tape. 'It's Like That' became the band's debut single, stridently announcing that a new era began.

Remix

In 1997, a remixed version by DJ Jason Nevins was released in Europe, which topped the charts in many countries including the UK chart in 1998 for six weeks, at the same time ending the Spice Girls' run of six number 1 hits. It also topped the chart in Australia, proving to be their only Top 5 hit there. The music video for the remix featured a male and a female breakdance crew battling each other in a breakdance battle in which the females ultimately win. Vanness Wu was also one of the boys in this music video.

Popular culture

The song was featured in the video games GTA: Vice City Stories and Scarface: The World Is Yours. It was also featured in a Fanta commercial where people and objects bounce by drinking the soda given by a DJ while the song plays.

References

Preceded by "My Heart Will Go On" by Céline Dion

UK Singles Chart number-one single March 15, 1998 – April 26, 1998

Succeeded by "All That I Need" by Boyzone