50 Fun Facts About 2000s R&B

Which Nelly and Kelly Rowland duet has a video where Rowland types a text message into a spreadsheet?

Dilemma shows Kelly Rowland texting from a spreadsheet on a Nokia Communicator. She later admitted she had no idea what Microsoft Excel was, and Excel's official account replied.

Which singer took Umbrella to number one after Britney Spears's label rejected the song on her behalf?

Rihanna made Umbrella her signature hit after Jive Records turned the demo down for Britney Spears, saying Spears already had enough songs to record.

Which Oscar-winning actor is the featured singer on the number-one hits Slow Jamz and Gold Digger?

Jamie Foxx scored his first number-one single with Slow Jamz in 2004. Gold Digger, built on a Ray Charles sample, topped the Hot 100 the following year.

Which Destiny's Child hit was inspired by a radio station's joke about members leaving the group?

Survivor answered a radio joke that likened Destiny's Child to the TV contest after three members had left the group.

Which singer's Try Again became the first song to top the Hot 100 on radio airplay alone?

Aaliyah recorded Try Again for the soundtrack of Romeo Must Die, the 2000 action film that also gave her a first movie role.

Which 1970s hit did Christina Aguilera, Lil' Kim, Mýa and Pink remake for the Moulin Rouge! soundtrack?

Lady Marmalade spent five weeks at number one in 2001, making the song a Hot 100 chart-topper for the second time after Labelle's original.

Which Mariah Carey ballad spent 14 weeks at number one and became Billboard's song of the decade?

We Belong Together led the comeback album The Emancipation of Mimi and entered the Hot 100 at a lowly number 81 before climbing to the top.

Which 2000s hitmaker took his stage name from the hardships of growing up in Tallahassee, Florida?

T-Pain is short for Tallahassee Pain. He turned pitch correction into a creative tool, pushing its settings to extremes for an electronic vocal sound.

Which Beyoncé single is driven by a horn sample from the Chi-Lites' Are You My Woman (Tell Me So)?

Crazy in Love won over a doubtful Beyoncé, who at first found producer Rich Harrison's bold horn sample somewhat old-fashioned.

Which Destiny's Child hit, built on a Stevie Nicks riff, has a title now in the Oxford English Dictionary?

Bootylicious samples Edge of Seventeen, and Stevie Nicks appears in the video playing the riff herself. The slang word entered the dictionary in 2004.

Which singer went from a Coca-Cola commercial to starring in Baby Boy and the Fast & Furious films?

Tyrese auditioned for the 1994 Coca-Cola advert at his high school music teacher's suggestion, years before Baby Boy gave him a first starring role.

Which Usher album sold 1.1 million copies in its first US week, then a record for an R&B artist?

Confessions matched in one week the combined first-week sales of Usher's four previous releases, and it went on to sell more than 10 million copies in the US.

Which Beyoncé hit has a black-and-white video with choreography inspired by a 1969 Bob Fosse routine?

Single Ladies borrows from Mexican Breakfast, a Bob Fosse number that his wife Gwen Verdon danced with two other women on The Ed Sullivan Show.

Which Beyoncé hit about dumping an unfaithful boyfriend did Ne-Yo first write as a country song?

Irreplaceable began with Ne-Yo imagining country singers Shania Twain and Faith Hill, and he wrote the words from a man's point of view.

Which Alicia Keys debut single won Song of the Year at the 2002 Grammy Awards?

Fallin' also took Best R&B Song that night and held number one on the Hot 100 for six weeks, finishing 2001 as the year's second-biggest single.

Which Dru Hill frontman went solo with the album Unleash the Dragon and its novelty hit Thong Song?

Sisqó actually charted higher with the ballad Incomplete, which reached number one while Thong Song peaked at number three.

Which singer finished seventh on American Idol, then won an Oscar for the 2006 musical Dreamgirls?

Jennifer Hudson played Effie White in Dreamgirls, and her self-titled debut album later won the Grammy for Best R&B Album.

Which X Factor winner reached number one in over 35 countries with the single Bleeding Love?

Leona Lewis was offered Bleeding Love after Jesse McCartney, who wrote it with Ryan Tedder for his own album, saw his label turn the song down.

Which Murder Inc. rapper wrote and guested on Jennifer Lopez's remixed I'm Real and Ain't It Funny?

Ja Rule's Murder Remix of I'm Real was the number-one song in the United States on the day of the September 11 attacks.

Which Mary J. Blige hit is built on the theme music from the soap opera The Young and the Restless?

No More Drama exists because producer Jimmy Jam, a big soap opera fan, had always wanted to do something with the tune also known as Nadia's Theme.

Which singer's All for You was added to every pop, rhythmic and urban radio format in its first week?

Janet Jackson was the first artist to manage that radio sweep, and All for You went on to hold number one for seven weeks, the longest reign of 2001.

Which producer of Usher's Yeah! coined the label crunk&B for the song's hybrid sound?

Lil Jon also features on the track alongside Ludacris, and it led the Hot 100 for 12 straight weeks until Usher's own Burn replaced it.

Which Ordinary People singer first played piano on Lauryn Hill's Everything Is Everything?

John Legend became the first artist signed to Kanye West's GOOD Music, and his debut album Get Lifted won the Grammy for Best R&B Album.

Which singer built his 2005 hit Lonely on a high-pitched sample of Bobby Vinton's Mr. Lonely?

Akon shares the writing credit on Lonely with Bobby Vinton and Gene Allan, the two men behind the 1962 original.

Which Virginia producer made Justin Timberlake's Cry Me a River and Nelly Furtado's Promiscuous?

Timbaland also performs on Promiscuous as the featured rapper, and the flirtatious duet became Nelly Furtado's first number-one single in the US.

Which singer of the 2002 debut Foolish was the first woman to hold the Hot 100's top two spots at once?

Ashanti built Foolish on a sample of DeBarge's Stay with Me, the same 1983 groove The Notorious B.I.G. had used for One More Chance.

Which singer was dubbed the First Lady of Crunk&B when her debut single Goodies topped the Hot 100?

Ciara recorded Goodies as an answer song to Petey Pablo's Freek-a-Leek, and Pablo himself raps on it. It stayed at number one for seven weeks.

Which singer spent nine weeks at number one with Let Me Love You, co-written by a then-unknown Ne-Yo?

Mario spent about two weeks in Miami working with the song's producer, and it held the top of the Hot 100 from January to February 2005.

Which duet reunited Usher with Alicia Keys in 2004 and stayed on top of the Hot 100 for six weeks?

My Boo followed a remix of If I Ain't Got You that had first paired the two singers, and it became Usher's seventh number one.

Which Ne-Yo number one is about a man tired of radio love songs that remind him of a breakup?

So Sick was the second single from Ne-Yo's debut album In My Own Words, and it reached number one in both the US and the UK.

Which Virginia Beach duo produced Kelis's Milkshake and most of Justin Timberlake's album Justified?

The Neptunes are Pharrell Williams and Chad Hugo, who met at a summer camp for gifted students where Williams played drums and Hugo tenor saxophone.

Which American Idol winner saw her first single, I Believe, debut at number one on the Hot 100 in 2004?

Fantasia won the show's third season at 19, helped by a celebrated performance of the Porgy and Bess standard Summertime.

Which neo soul album recorded at Electric Lady Studios includes the single Untitled (How Does It Feel)?

Voodoo debuted at number one for D'Angelo and won the Grammy for Best R&B Album, while the single's video brought him mainstream attention and controversy.

Which Philadelphia spoken-word poet co-wrote The Roots' You Got Me before releasing her own debut album?

Jill Scott earned a writing credit on You Got Me, though it was Erykah Badu who shared the 2000 Grammy with The Roots for the recording.

Which neo soul singer got seven Grammy nominations in 2002 for her debut Acoustic Soul, yet won none?

India.Arie lost five of those seven categories to Alicia Keys, then closed the ceremony by performing her single Video.

Which 2004 dance-battle film starred Omarion and his B2K bandmates alongside singer Marques Houston?

You Got Served was written and directed by Chris Stokes, the performers' own business manager, and it earned $51 million on an $8 million budget.

Which Southampton singer broke through on Artful Dodger's Re-Rewind before his album Born to Do It?

Craig David first held only a development deal, which his label upgraded to an album contract on the day its co-owner heard the song 7 Days.

Which London singer teamed with Kanye West on American Boy, a will.i.am production that won a Grammy?

Estelle recorded American Boy for her second album Shine, singing over the instrumental of will.i.am's own earlier song Impatient.

Which Moesha star reunited with producer Rodney Jerkins for the 2002 album Full Moon?

Brandy made Full Moon after a three-year break from music, recording in Miami in 2001, the year her sitcom aired its finale.

Which veteran executive, ousted from Arista, founded J Records in 2000 and launched Alicia Keys?

Clive Davis started J Records with $150 million from BMG, and Alicia Keys's debut album Songs in A Minor went on to sell over 12 million copies worldwide.

Which So So Def founder, the man behind Kris Kross's Jump, co-wrote and co-produced Usher's Burn?

Jermaine Dupri first found the spotlight as a boy in 1982, climbing on stage to dance with Diana Ross at a concert his father had coordinated.

Which BET music video countdown show launched in 2000 with A.J. Calloway and Free as its first hosts?

106 & Park took its title from the East Harlem corner of East 106th Street and Park Avenue, where its original studio stood.

Which Dr. Dre production gave Mary J. Blige her first Hot 100 number one, staying there six weeks?

Family Affair began as an instrumental Dr. Dre built in the studio in September 2000 with a bass player and a keyboard player.

Which Lost Without U singer was the first white male artist to top the R&B chart since George Michael?

Robin Thicke wrote Lost Without U on tour while troubled by his first album's lack of commercial success. It reached number one on the R&B chart in February 2007.

Which neo soul singer ended an eight-year hiatus in 2009 with the album BLACKsummers'night?

Maxwell's comeback album topped the Billboard 200 and won two Grammys, and its single Pretty Wings was nominated for Song of the Year.

Which singer's go-go-influenced hit 1 Thing is built on a breakdown from a 1970 recording by The Meters?

Amerie wrote 1 Thing with producer Rich Harrison, who built the beat around a ten-second exchange between The Meters' drummer and guitarist.

Which singer's Hit 'Em Up Style urges women to take revenge on cheating men by spending all their money?

Blu Cantrell took the Dallas Austin-produced song to number two on the Hot 100 in July 2001 and earned a Grammy nomination for it.

Which girl group, formed on MTV's Making the Band 3, debuted its first two albums at number one?

Danity Kane was signed to Bad Boy Records by Sean Combs, who removed two of its members in the 2008 finale of Making the Band 4.

Which Oakland singer's platinum debut The Way It Is led BET to build a reality series around her life?

Keyshia Cole sold over a million copies of the album in the United States, helped by the singles I Should Have Cheated and Love.

Which girl group sang No More (Baby I'ma Do Right) before two members joined The Cheetah Girls?

3LW stands for 3 Little Women. Adrienne Bailon and Kiely Williams starred in the 2003 Disney Channel film, and 3LW's releases went on hold as that project grew into a real group.