Nuthin' but a 'G' Thang

"Nuthin' but a 'G' Thang"
Single by Dr. Dre featuring Snoop Dogg
from the album The Chronic
Released	January 12, 1993
Format	12" single
Recorded	1992
Genre	Hip hop, G-Funk, West Coast hip hop, gangsta rap
Length	3:58
Label	Death Row 53816
Writer(s)	Andre Young, Calvin Broadus
Producer	Dr. Dre
Certification	Platinum
Dr. Dre chronology
"Deep Cover" (1992) "Nuthin' but a 'G' Thang" (1993) "Fuck wit Dre Day (And Everybody's Celebratin')" (1993)
Snoop Doggy Dogg chronology "Deep Cover" (1992) "Nuthin' but a 'G' Thang" (1993) "Fuck wit Dre Day (And Everybody's Celebratin')" (1993) Audio sample file info · help The Chronic track listing "The Chronic" (intro) "Fuck wit Dre Day (And Everybody's Celebratin')" "Let Me Ride" "The Day the Niggaz Took Over" "Nuthin' but a 'G' Thang" "Deeez Nuuuts" "Lil Ghetto Boy" "A Nigga Witta Gun" "Rat-Tat-Tat-Tat" "The $20 Sack Pyramid" (skit) "Lyrical Gangbang" "High Powered" "The Doctor's Office" (skit) "Stranded on Death Row" "The Roach" (The Chronic Outro) "Bitches Ain't Shit"

"Nuthin' but a 'G' Thang" is a 1993 hit song by American gangsta rapper Dr. Dre, from his debut solo album, The Chronic. It features rapper Snoop Doggy Dogg and is the first single from the album. "Nuthin' but a 'G' Thang" reached number two on the Billboard Hot 100 (Informer by Snow topped the charts when the song went to its highest peak on the week of March 20, 1993),^[1] outperforming The Chronic's other singles "Fuck wit Dre Day (and Everybody's Celebratin')" (number 8) and "Let Me Ride" (number 34). The single also reached number one on Billboard's Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Singles & Tracks chart. It was also a hit in the UK, where it reached number 31. The Song was selected by the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame as one of the 500 songs that shaped rock and roll.^[2]. It is considered to be one of the greatest hip hop songs ever recorded.

The song samples "I Want'a Do Something Freaky to You" by Leon Haywood.

In 2011 XXL Magazine ranked Nuthin' but a 'G' Thang as the Greatest Hip-Hop song of the 1990's.

Background

The song's music video was MTV's third most requested video of 1993. On MTV, the music video was heavily cut; a full-length version of the video exists with uncut footage (e.g., drug references and a scene where a woman's bikini top was yanked open).

• Notarized: BET's Top 100 Videos of The 20th Century: number five
• On MTV's 100 Greatest Music Videos Ever Made it was listed at number thirty-two in 1999.^[3]
• In April 2005 MTV2 and XXL's 25 Greatest West Coast Videos number two.
• 2001 VH1: 100 Greatest Videos: number eighty
• 2003 VH1: 100 Best Songs of the Past 25 Years: number thirty-one ^[4]
• 2007 VH1: Best 100 songs of the 90's : 13th
• 2008 VH1: Best 100 Hip Hop Songs of all Time : 3rd
• Voted #14 in the Top 100 Rap Songs.^[5]

The vocals are shared by Dre and Snoop Doggy Dogg (who has sole songwriting credit), who drop in trademark references to Long Beach and Compton in California. The song contains samples from Leon Haywood's "I Want'a Do Something Freaky to You", B-Side Wins Again by Public Enemy and "Uphill (Peace of Mind)" by Kid Dynamite. On the inside cover of The Chronic album under "Credits" Leon Haywood's name is incorrectly cited as "L. Hayward"

"Nuthin' but a 'G' Thang" is listed in The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame's 500 Songs that Shaped Rock and Roll. It's Dre's only song on Rolling Stone's list of the 500 Greatest Songs of All Time (ranked number 419), not counting two other songs that feature Dre as producer and on vocals, N.W.A.'s "Fuck tha Police" and 2Pac's "California Love". Q magazine listed it as the 24th greatest hip-hop song of all time.^[6] AcclaimedMusic.net lists it as the 131st best song of all time, the best song of 1992, and as the sixth best hip-hop/rap song of all time.^[7] Number 3 on VH1's 100 Greatest Songs of Hip Hop. In September 2010 Pitchfork Media included the song at number 3 on their Top 200 Tracks of the 90s.^[8]

Track Listing

• 1. Nuthin' But A "G" Thang (Radio Mix) 3.56
  2. Nuthin' But A "G" Thang (LP Version) 3:58
  3. Nuthin' But A "G" Thang (Instrumental) 4:06
  4. A Nigga Witta Gun (LP Version) 3.56
  5. Nuthin' But A "G" Thang (Club Mix) 4.38
  6. Nuthin But A "G" Thang (Freestyle Remix) 4:11

In popular culture

• The song is on the soundtrack of the popular video game, Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas from the rap radio station, Radio Los Santos.
• In the 2004 movie Without a Paddle, the 3 main characters sing this song while driving.
• This song was used as the entrance song for Drew McFedries at UFC 98.
• In Robot Chicken, Dr. Dre addresses Bugs Bunny by saying, "Ain't nothing but a 'G' thang baby".
• It was sampled by Justin Timberlake and Jimmy Fallon on Late Night With Jimmy Fallon.^[9]

Derivative versions

• Kris Kross heavily sampled Nuthin' but a 'G' Thang on their 1993 single I'm Real.
• Snoop Dogg's first single from "Da Game Is to Be Sold, Not to Be Told" was a sequel to the song entitled, "Still a G Thang."
• Dr. Dre and Snoop Dogg retooled "Nuthin' but a 'G' Thang" into the titular theme of their 2001 comedy film The Wash.
• The song "I Need a G" by Dani Stevenson featuring Snoop Dogg used the same sample as "Nuthin' but a 'G' Thang."
• Twista used the same Leon Haywood sample for the song "Mobsta's Anthem" from his 1997 album Adrenaline Rush.
• Young Dro's video for his 2006 single "Shoulder Lean" references "Nuthin' but a 'G' Thang."
• "Get It Up" by Silkk the Shocker uses the reworked chorus of "Nuthin' but a 'G' Thang."
• Ja Rule's "Livin' It Up" contains a sample of "Nuthin' but a 'G' Thang".^[10] It was nominated for a Grammy Award.^[11]
• Mims's "This Is Why I'm Hot" contains a short sample of the song sampled in "Nuthin' but a 'G' Thang."
• Juelz Santana has made a song over the beat entitled "Secret", which can be heard at his official MySpace.
• There also is a radio edit, where most of the profanity is removed by changes in lyrics.
• There is now a 2009 UK version created by new age old skool, Seb Good Feat. WhiPrap sensation "Jonny Boi"
• The song was sometimes played in concert as an instrumental by rock group Red Hot Chili Peppers during their Californication tour.
• The song was parodied by The Fringemunks to recap Fringe episode 2.04, "Momentum Deferred."^[12]
• That Handsome Devil has performed a live cover of this song.
• Funny or Die posted a parody in January 2011 called "Nuthin' But A Glee Thang", about the TV series Glee co-written by Glee castmember Heather Morris and co-starring Sofia Vergara, Riki Lindhome and Ashley Lendzion and features Glee castmates Matthew Morrison, Cory Monteith, Harry Shum, Jr. & Naya Rivera.^[13]

Music video

The music video (directed by Andre Young)^[14] depicts Dr. Dre coming into Long Beach, California to pick up Snoop Dogg and go to a block party. They arrive at the party where they perform the first verses outside, while a barbecue cookout and a game of volleyball goes on. A female player's bikini top is pulled down, exposing her breasts. For the next verses they go inside the house where the party is taking place. A small sequence of events shows a snobbish female party-goer humiliated by being sprayed with shaken-up malt liquor. The video ends with Dre dropping Snoop off back at his house, with Snoop staggering up the driveway. The MTV edit censors nudity, drug paraphernalia (Warren G with a blunt), copyrighted logos (White Sox ball cap), and screen text.

Charts

Peak positions Year Chart Position 1993 U.S. Billboard Hot 100 2 1993 Hot Rap Singles 1 1993 Hot R&B Singles & Tracks 1 1993 Rhythmic Top 40 2 1993 Hot Dance Music/Club Play 22 1993 Hot Dance Music/Maxi-Singles Sales 3 1994 UK Top 75 Singles 31

End of year charts End of year chart (1993) Position U.S. Billboard Hot 100[15] 11 End of decade charts Chart (1990–1999) Position U.S. Billboard Hot 100[16] 95

References

1. ^ http://www.billboard.com/#/charts/hot-100?chartDate=1993-03-20
2. ^ http://rockhall.com/exhibits/500-songs-that-shaped-rock-and/
3. ^ Rock On The Net: MTV: 100 Greatest Music Videos Ever Made
4. ^ Rock On The Net: Dr. Dre
5. ^ Top 100 Rap Songs
6. ^ * * * Q Mag: 150 Rock Lists * * *
7. ^ Acclaimed Music
8. ^ Pitchfork Top 200 Tracks of the 90s
9. ^ Kung, Michelle (September 30, 2010). "Justin Timberlake and Jimmy Fallon's ‘History of Rap' Duet: The Full Set List". The Wall Street Journal. http://blogs.wsj.com/speakeasy/2010/09/30/justin-timberlake-jimmy-fallon-duet-on-history-of-rap/. 
10. ^ Friday After Next (2002) - Soundtracks
11. ^ GRAMMY.com
12. ^ Fringemunks Web site
13. ^ http://www.funnyordie.com/videos/a73c447356/nuthin-but-a-glee-thang-with-heather-morris-matthew-morrison-sofia-vergara?playlist=featured_videos
14. ^ http://www.mvdbase.com/video.php?id=9030
15. ^ "Billboard Top 100 - 1993". http://longboredsurfer.com/charts.php?year=1993. Retrieved 2010-08-27. 
16. ^ Geoff Mayfield (December 25, 1999). 1999 The Year in Music Totally '90s: Diary of a Decade - The listing of Top Pop Albums of the '90s & Hot 100 Singles of the '90s. Billboard. http://books.google.co.kr/books?id=9w0EAAAAMBAJ&lpg=PP1&lr&rview=1&pg=RA1-PA4#v=onepage&q&f=false. Retrieved October 15, 2010. 

External links

• Music video for "Nuthin' but a 'G' Thang" on YouTube

See also

• R&B number-one hits of 1993 (USA)