"No Diggity" is a 1996 song by American R&B group BLACKstreet featuring Dr. Dre. It reached #1 on the Billboard Hot 100 and #9 in the UK. It ranked at #91 on Rolling Stone and MTV: 100 Greatest Pop Songs. It has sold 1.6 million copies in 1996. It won the 1998 Grammy Award for Best R&B Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocals and was nominated for Best R&B Song.
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Between BLACKstreet's sung verses are rap verses performed by Dre, Teddy Riley and Queen Pen, in that order, as well as backing vocals from Shaquana Elam. The song's melody is lifted from the beginning of "Grandma's Hands" by R&B hitmaker Bill Withers.
A remix of the song was done as a cover to Michael Jackson's Billie Jean.
The song was also sampled in 2001 by German singer Sarah Connor. However, the song was misquoted in her albums liner notes as "No Daggity."
Contrary to popular belief, the introductory lyrics include the verse, "Play on, Playa"- rather than the commonly mistaken, "Play on, playette." In fact, the use of the term "playette" has not been documented in hip-hop culture leading some to question the authority of said amateur lyric websites.
The music video
The video is directed by Hype Williams and features said artists in front of a beachhouse standing in the sand, dancers in a wet road surrounded by black limousines, and a marionette playing the piano sample in a club. It was nominated for Best R&B Video and Best Rap Video on 1997's MTV Video Music Awards. (video on YouTube)
Credits
Published by Donrill Music/Zomba Enterprises, Inc. (ASCAP/Chauncey Black Music for Smokin' Sounds [ASCAP]/Queenpen Music (ASCAP)/Sidi Music (BMI)/Sony Songs Inc./Ain't Nothin' Goin' On But Fuckin' (ASCAP)
Track recorded by George Mayers, John Hanes, Serban Genea and Sean Poland for Future Recording Studios, Virginia Beach, VA. Track mastered by Herb Powers at Hit Factory, New York, NY.
Queen Pen appears courtesy of Funky Mama Productions/Interscope Records. Dr. Dre appears courtesy of Aftermath Entertainment.
Track contains portions of "Grandma's hand" written by Bill Withers and published by Interior Music Corp./Avant Garde Music Publishing, Inc. (BMI); performed by Bill Withers, used courtesy of Sony Music Entertainment
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