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21 Questions

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For the guessing game, see Twenty Questions.

"21 Questions"
Single by 50 Cent featuring Nate Dogg
from the album Get Rich or Die Tryin'
ReleasedMarch 4, 2003 (2003-03-04)
Recorded2002
Genre
Length3:44
Label
Songwriter(s)
Producer(s)Dirty Swift of Midi Mafia H Cube
50 Cent singles chronology
"Magic Stick"
(2003) 		"21 Questions"
(2003) 		"P.I.M.P."
(2003)
Nate Dogg singles chronology
"Get Up"
(2003) 		"21 Questions"
(2003) 		"Gangsta Nation"
(2003)
Music video
"21 Questions" on YouTube

"21 Questions" is a song recorded by American rapper 50 Cent featuring American rapper Nate Dogg. The song was written by Nick Corrado for 50 Cent's commercial debut studio album, Get Rich or Die Tryin' (2003). The song was mixed by Dr. Dre and charted at number one on the US Billboard Hot 100 chart.[1]

Background

When producer Dr. Dre worked with 50 Cent on his debut album, he did not want the song on the album. According to 50 Cent, "Dre was, like, 'How you goin' to be gangsta this and that and then put this sappy love song on?'" 50 Cent responded saying, "I'm two people. I've always had to be two people since I was a kid, to get by. To me that's not diversity, it's necessity."[2] This was the only single from the album to not have a Parental Advisory label on its cover.

Music video

The music video for "21 Questions" was directed by Damon Johnson, Dr. Dre and Phillip Atwell in March 2003.[3] It depicts 50 Cent arrested and confined to prison, where he tries to keep in touch with his girlfriend, played by Meagan Good. In prison, he is constantly harassed by a rival inmate (Tyson Beckford). The video ends with a continuation of the beginning, showing 50 Cent and his girlfriend watching from their home as the police arrest Beckford instead; the prison scenes are revealed to be a hypothetical scenario imagined by a worried 50 Cent. The video has cameo appearances by Nate Dogg and G-Unit members Lloyd Banks and Young Buck as other inmates. Nate Dogg also provides the chorus and the outro.[3] The video concept can also be originated from Nate Dogg's "Never Leave Me Alone".

On April 15, 2003, the video debuted on MTV's Total Request Live at number six, reached number one two days later, and stayed on the chart for 50 days.[3][4] It also reached number two on the MuchMusic video charts.[5]

Remixes

Official remixes of the single includes featured artists among the likes of Nate Dogg, Monica, Free and Lil' Mo, all of whom have either rapped or sung their own verses over the song's instrumentals.

21 Answers

"21 Answers"
Promotional single by Lil' Mo featuring Free
from the album Meet the Girl Next Door
Released2003 (2003)
Recorded2003
Genre
Length4:02
LabelElektra
Songwriter(s)Kevin Risto
Producer(s)Dirty Swift of Midi Mafia

"21 Answers" is a remix by Lil' Mo and former 106 & Park co-host Free, which was released as an 'answer track' to "21 Questions." Kevin "Dirty Swift" Risto, one-half of Midi Mafia, originally penned the idea of creating a female response record; he immediately got in touch with R&B singer Lil' Mo and added former 106 & Park personality Free to the mix.[6] The song then premiered on New York's Hot 97 radio station—resulting in numerous rotations on various radio stations around the country—and later debuted on Billboard Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs at number 77.[7] Although the song went on to spend eleven weeks on the chart based solely on airplay,[8] it failed to see a release on Lil' Mo's sophomore album Meet the Girl Next Door (2003), due to the song not being finalized in time to meet the album's deadline.[7][9] However, because of Elektra Records' 2004 merging with Atlantic, the song appeared on the 2011 re-release of Meet the Girl Next Door.[10]

Charts

Charts (2003) Peak
position
US Billboard Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Airplay[11] 51
US Billboard Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs[8] 50

Track listings

  1. "21 Questions" - 3:44
  2. "Soldier (Freestyle with G-Unit) - 3:18
  3. "21 Questions" (Live from New York) - 4:54
  4. "21 Questions" (Music Video) - 3:49
  • French CD single[13]
  1. "21 Questions" - 3:44
  2. "21 Answers" (featuring Monica) - 4:03

Credits and personnel

  • Producer: Dirty Swift of Midi Mafia
  • Mixed by: Dr. Dre
  • Recorded by: Sha Money XL and Maurico "Veto" Iragorri
  • Protool edits by: Carlise Young
  • Assisted by: Ruben Rivera

Charts

Chart (2003) Peak
position
Australia (ARIA)[14] 4
Austria (Ö3 Austria Top 40)[15] 39
Belgium (Ultratop 50 Flanders)[16] 37
Belgium (Ultratop 50 Wallonia)[17] 36
Canada (Canadian Singles Chart)[18] 5
Denmark (Tracklisten)[19] 18
Finland (Suomen virallinen lista)[20] 20
France (SNEP)[21] 58
Invalid chart entered Germany2 35
Hungary (Dance Top 40)[22] 15
Ireland (IRMA)[23] 11
Netherlands (Dutch Top 40)[24] 8
New Zealand (Recorded Music NZ)[25] 8
Norway (VG-lista)[26] 15
Sweden (Sverigetopplistan)[27] 34
Switzerland (Schweizer Hitparade)[28] 14
UK Hip Hop/R&B (OCC)[29] 2
UK Singles (OCC)[30] 6
US Billboard Hot 100[31] 1
US Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs (Billboard)[32] 1
US Pop Airplay (Billboard)[33] 6
US Hot Rap Songs (Billboard)[34] 1

Certifications

Region Certification Certified units/sales
Australia (ARIA)[35] Platinum 70,000^
United Kingdom (BPI)[36] Gold 400,000‡
United States (RIAA)[37] Gold 500,000^

^ Shipments figures based on certification alone.
‡ Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone.

References

  1. ^ "50 Cent Chart History: Billboard Hot 100". Billboard. Retrieved July 13, 2018.
  2. ^ Allison Samuels, February 21, 2007. The Flip Side of 50 Cent Archived August 10, 2010, at the Wayback Machine. MSNBC. Accessed July 7, 2007.
  3. ^ a b c Reid, Shaheem (May 2, 2003). 50 Cent: Still Hungry After 4 Million Records. MTV. Accessed July 7, 2007.
  4. ^ TRL Archive Debuts Archived January 2, 2008, at the Wayback Machine. Popfusion. Accessed July 7, 2007.
  5. ^ Universal Urban (April 24, 2007). 50 Cent's new album, Curtis, takes Hip-Hop to the bank Archived July 6, 2007, at the Wayback Machine. Accessed July 7, 2007.
  6. ^ Bronson, Fred (2003), The Billboard Book of Number One Hits: Updated and Expanded 5th Edition, Watson-Guptill Publications, p. 932, ISBN 0-8230-7677-6
  7. ^ a b Jessen, Wade. "Singles Minded > Back and Forth." Billboard. May 10, 2003: 67. Print.
  8. ^ a b "Lil' Mo - Chart history". Billboard. Billboard.biz. Retrieved May 22, 2013.
  9. ^ Brown, Jamie Foster. "Lil' Mo has '21 Answers' for 50 Cent." Sister 2 Sister. September 2003: 27. Print.
  10. ^ "Meet The Girl Next Door: Lil' Mo". Amazon. Amazon.com. Retrieved May 22, 2013. {{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |work= (help)
  11. ^ "Lil' Mo - Chart history". Billboard. Billboard.biz. Retrieved May 22, 2013.
  12. ^ "21 Questions – 50 Cent". allmusic. April 13, 2011. Retrieved April 14, 2011.
  13. ^ "21 Questions". Retrieved July 13, 2018 – via Amazon.
  14. ^ "50 Cent – 21 Questions". ARIA Top 50 Singles. Retrieved January 3, 2012.
  15. ^ "50 Cent – 21 Questions" (in German). Ö3 Austria Top 40. Retrieved January 3, 2012.
  16. ^ "50 Cent – 21 Questions" (in Dutch). Ultratop 50. Retrieved January 3, 2012.
  17. ^ "50 Cent – 21 Questions" (in French). Ultratop 50. Retrieved January 3, 2012.
  18. ^ "50 Cent > Charts & Awards > Billboard Singles". Allmusic. Rovi Corporation. Retrieved January 3, 2012.
  19. ^ "50 Cent – 21 Questions". Tracklisten. Retrieved January 3, 2012.
  20. ^ "50 Cent: 21 Questions" (in Finnish). Musiikkituottajat. Retrieved January 3, 2012.
  21. ^ "50 Cent – 21 Questions" (in French). Les classement single. Retrieved January 3, 2012.
  22. ^ "Archívum – Slágerlisták – MAHASZ" (in Hungarian). Dance Top 40 lista. Magyar Hanglemezkiadók Szövetsége.
  23. ^ "Chart Track: Week 27, 2003". Irish Singles Chart. Retrieved January 3, 2012.
  24. ^ "Nederlandse Top 40 – week 31, 2003" (in Dutch). Dutch Top 40. Retrieved January 3, 2012.
  25. ^ "50 Cent – 21 Questions". Top 40 Singles. Retrieved January 3, 2012.
  26. ^ "50 Cent – 21 Questions". VG-lista. Retrieved January 3, 2012.
  27. ^ "50 Cent – 21 Questions". Singles Top 100. Retrieved January 3, 2012.
  28. ^ "50 Cent – 21 Questions". Swiss Singles Chart. Retrieved January 3, 2012.
  29. ^ "Official Hip Hop and R&B Singles Chart Top 40". Official Charts Company. Retrieved January 3, 2012.
  30. ^ "Official Singles Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved January 3, 2012.
  31. ^ "50 Cent Chart History (Hot 100)". Billboard. Retrieved January 3, 2012.
  32. ^ "50 Cent Chart History (Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs)". Billboard. Retrieved January 3, 2012.
  33. ^ "50 Cent Chart History (Pop Songs)". Billboard. Retrieved January 3, 2012.
  34. ^ "50 Cent Chart History (Hot Rap Songs)". Billboard. Retrieved January 3, 2012.
  35. ^ "ARIA Charts – Accreditations – 2003 Singles" (PDF). Australian Recording Industry Association.
  36. ^ "British single certifications – 50 Cent – 21 Questions". British Phonographic Industry. Select singles in the Format field. Select Gold in the Certification field. Type 21 Questions in the "Search BPI Awards" field and then press Enter.
  37. ^ "American single certifications – 50 Cent – 21 Questions". Recording Industry Association of America.
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