Party and Bullshit
"Party and Bullshit" | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|
Single by The Notorious B.I.G. | ||||
from the album Who's the Man?: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack | ||||
Released | June 29, 1993 | |||
Genre | ||||
Length | 3:43 | |||
Label | ||||
Songwriter(s) | Christopher Wallace | |||
Producer(s) | Easy Mo Bee | |||
The Notorious B.I.G. singles chronology | ||||
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"Party and Bullshit" is a song by the American hip hop artist The Notorious B.I.G., credited as BIG. Released on June 29, 1993, as the fourth single from the soundtrack to the film Who's the Man? (1993), "Party and Bullshit" was the rapper's debut single.
Background
Christopher Wallace, born and raised in Brooklyn, New York City, during the emergence of the hip-hop scene, developed a passion for music at a young age.[1] There, he met the saxophonist Donald Harrison, who introduced him to jazz. Wallace recorded one of his first songs in Harrison’s home studio.[2] However, growing up during the crack epidemic,[3] Wallace decided to focus on selling drugs, while still rapping as a hobby.[4] According to The New York Times, "as a boy he preferred hanging around gamblers and drug dealers to sitting in a classroom". He dropped out of school in the tenth grade.[5] To increase his drug-sale profits,[6][7] he moved to North Carolina, where, at the age of 17, he was arrested and spent nine months in jail.[8]
Upon release from jail, Wallace, known at the time as Biggie Smalls,
Composition
The refrain "party and
Release
"Party and Bullshit" was released on June 29, 1993,
Critical reception
In a contemporary review, Reginald C. Dennis of The Source magazine called the song a "hardcore debut" that "livens things up" on the soundtrack. The journalist praised Biggie's performance, referring to him as "the star of the album".[28] Cheo Hodari Coker, in his book Unbelievable, commended the song, calling it a "fine vehicle for his storytelling skills and playful yet commanding cadence", that creates a colorful depiction of the Brooklyn night life.[22] IGN described it as "considerably rawer" than the rapper's later songs, "showcas[ing] his strong willed cadence and propensity for catchy rhyming verses".[29] Discussing the song, Ekow Eshun of The Independent said he was "mesmerised" after the first listen. "His lyrics turn the vernacular into the spectacular, delivering narrative with breathless ease", stated the journalist.[30]
Legacy
Remixes
In the late 1990s, Puff Daddy had plans to record a
In the following years, several artists remixed "Party and Bullshit". In 2007, the electronic duo
Samples and copyright lawsuit
Numerous artists
In 2016, Abiodun Oyewole, a founding member of the Last Poets, sued the Notorious B.I.G. estate for US$24 million in damages.[40] Oyewole claimed that the use of the phrase "party and bullshit", taken from the spoken word group's 1968 song "When the Revolution Comes", constituted copyright infringement.[41] The list of defendants also included executive producer Puff Daddy, producer Easy Moe Bee, and Rita Ora, along with several producers and songwriters of her song "How We Do (Party)". Initially, the lawsuit listed Busta Rhymes and Eminem, whose track "Calm Down" also sampled "Party and Bullshit", but Oyewole later dropped these claims voluntarily.[42] After several years of legal battles, in 2019, the New York federal judge Robert Katzmann ruled that the use of the phrase in "Party and Bullshit" is within fair use.[43]
Track listing
- Commercial 12-inch vinyl single[44]
-
- Side A
- "Party and Bullshit" (Album Version) – 3:42
- "Party and Bullshit" (Puffy's Dirty) – 4:07
- Side B
- "Party and Bullshit" (Lord's Dirty) – 4:15
- Promotional 12-inch vinyl single[45]
-
- Side A
- "Party and Bullshit" (Radio) – 3:42
- "Party and Bullshit" (Album) – 3:42
- "Party and Bullshit" (Instrumental) – 3:42
- Side B
- "Party and Bullshit" (Club Dirty) – 3:42
- "Party and Bullshit" (Dirty Instrumental) – 3:42
Personnel
Credits are adapted from the single's liner notes.[45]
- Buttnaked Tim Dawg – co-producer
- James Earl Jones, Jr. – co-producer
- Sean "Puffy" Combs – executive producer
- Andre Harrell – executive producer
- Mark Siegal – executive producer
- Toby Emmerich – music supervisor
- Kathy Nelson – music supervisor
- Easy Mo Bee – producer
- Jonnie “Most” Davis - recording/mix engineer
Notes
- ^ Prior to the release of his debut album Ready to Die (1994), he was forced to change his stage name to the Notorious B.I.G. This change was prompted by a lawsuit from Calvin Lockhart, who played the character Biggie Smalls in the movie Let's Do It Again (1975).[9]
References
- ^ Coker 2003, pp. 46–48.
- ^ Coker 2003, p. 49.
- ^ Williams, Todd "Stereo" (October 16, 2019). "Notorious B.I.G.'s 'Ready to Die' Forever Changed the Course of Hip-Hop 25 Years Ago". Billboard. Retrieved March 19, 2024.
- ^ Coker 2003, p. 50.
- ^ Marriott, Michel (March 17, 1997). "The Short Life of a Rap Star, Shadowed by Many Troubles". The New York Times. Retrieved March 19, 2024.
- ^ Coker 2003, p. 78.
- ^ Rodriguez, Jayson (January 13, 2009). "'Notorious' Exclusive Clip: Biggie Is Born". MTV. Retrieved March 19, 2024.
- ^ "Rap Artist Arrested In Assault With Bat". The New York Times. March 24, 1996. Retrieved March 19, 2024.
- ^ Penrose, Nerisha (June 20, 2017). "JAY-Z & More Rappers Who Have Changed Their Names Over the Years". Billboard. Retrieved March 19, 2024.
- ^ Breihan, Tom (May 4, 2022). "The Number Ones: The Notorious B.I.G.'s "Hypnotize"". Stereogum. Retrieved March 19, 2024.
- ^ Coker 2003, pp. 53–54.
- ^ Coker 2003, p. 54.
- ^ a b Coker 2003, p. 55.
- ^ Swash, Rosie (June 12, 2011). "Sean Combs founds Bad Boy and releases Biggie's debut". The Guardian. Retrieved March 19, 2024.
- ^ Coker 2003, p. 76, 78–79.
- ^ Coker 2003, p. 80.
- ^ a b Coker 2003, p. 304.
- ^ "10/3 NYC-DUB GABRIEL & UMAR BIN HASSAN (LAST POETS) W/ FRANCOIS K. - msg#00011". OSDIR. Retrieved 2010-12-30.[dead link]
- ^ a b Diep, Eric (June 29, 2013). "Today In Hip-Hop: The Notorious B.I.G.'s "Party And Bullshit" Released 20 Years Ago". XXL. Retrieved March 13, 2024.
- Complex. Retrieved March 13, 2024.
- ^ Michel 2005, p. 219.
- ^ a b Coker 2003, p. 305.
- ^ a b Westlake, Wyatt (July 3, 2023). "The Notorious B.I.G.'s Debut Single "Party & Bullsh*t" Turns 30". HotNewHipHop. Retrieved March 13, 2024.
- ^ Draper 2012, p. 226.
- ^ Breihan 2022.
- ^ a b Ro 2001, p. 38.
- Fernando, S. H. Jr. (June 1, 1995). "The B.I.G. Payback". Rolling Stone. No. 709. p. 24. Retrieved March 14, 2024.
- ^ Dennis, Reginald C. (May 1993). "Record Report: Who's the Man? Soundtrack". The Source. No. 44. New York. pp. 69–70.
- ^ D., Spence (January 17, 2009). "Notorious – Music Inspired By The Motion Picture". IGN. Retrieved March 16, 2024.
- Newspapers.com.
- ^ Ro 2001, p. 167.
- ^ Greene, Jayson (March 9, 2017). "The Notorious B.I.G.: Born Again". Pitchfork. Retrieved March 14, 2024.
- ^ Herzog, Kenneth. "Remixes, Vol. 2 – Ratatat". AllMusic. Retrieved March 14, 2024.
- ^ Lilah, Rose (October 31, 2013). "Party N Bullshit". HotNewHipHop. Retrieved March 14, 2024.
- Complex. September 27, 2012. Retrieved March 14, 2024.
- ^ Gonik, Michael (November 15, 2013). "Notorious B.I.G. - "Hypnotize" [Led Zeppelin Remix] + Rare UK TV Diary Ca. 1995". Okayplayer. Archived from the original on September 10, 2015. Retrieved March 14, 2024.
- ^ Vincent, James (December 7, 2015). "Star Wars mashed with Biggie Smalls has a force all its own". The Verge. Retrieved March 14, 2024.
- ^ Katz, Jessie (December 7, 2015). "'Star Wars' and Notorious B.I.G. Join Forces in Epic Mash-Up". Billboard. Retrieved March 14, 2024.
- ^ "Playlist". Spin. Vol. 19, no. 11. November 2003. p. 115. Retrieved March 14, 2024 – via Google Books.
- ^ Ani, Ivie (March 12, 2018). "The Last Poets Copyright Lawsuit Against The Notorious B.I.G. Estate Has Been Dismissed". Okayplayer. Archived from the original on December 5, 2021. Retrieved March 14, 2024.
- ^ Eustice, Kyle (September 6, 2019). "The Notorious B.I.G. Wins "Party & Bullshit" Lawsuit". HipHopDX. Retrieved March 14, 2024.
- ^ Rys, Dan (March 9, 2018). "Copyright Lawsuit Against Rita Ora, Notorious B.I.G. Estate Dismissed". Billboard. Retrieved March 14, 2024.
- ^ Rosenbaum, Claudia (September 5, 2019). "'Party and Bulls–t': NY Judge Rules Phrase Is Fair Use in Notorious B.I.G., Rita Ora Songs". Billboard. Archived from the original on May 19, 2022. Retrieved March 15, 2024.
- ^ BIG (1993). Party and Bullshit (liner notes). Uptown Records. UPT12 54686.
- ^ a b BIG (1993). Party and Bullshit (liner notes). Uptown Records. UPT8P 2605.
Works cited
- ISBN 0-307-23662-5 – via Internet Archive.
- ISBN 0-609-80835-4 – via Internet Archive.
- Ro, Ronin (2001). Bad Boy: The Influence of Sean "Puffy" Combs on the Music Industry. New York: ISBN 0-7434-2823-4 – via Internet Archive.
- Breihan, Tom (2022). "Chapter 15: Puff Daddy – "Can't Nobody Hold Me Down" (Featuring Mase)". The Number Ones: Twenty Chart-Topping Hits That Reveal the History of Pop Music. New York: ISBN 978-0-306-82655-9.
- Draper, Jason (2012). "The Notorious B.I.G.". Only the Good Die Young: Robert Johnson, Brian Jones & Amy Winehouse: The Rollercoaster Ride of Rock ’n’ Roll Suicide. London: ISBN 978-0-85775-394-6 – via Internet Archive.
External links
- "Party and Bullshit" at Discogs (list of releases)