Bug a Boo (song)

"Bug a Boo" is a song recorded by American group Destiny's Child for their second studio album The Writing's on the Wall (1999). It was written by group members Beyoncé Knowles, LeToya Luckett, LaTavia Roberson and Kelly Rowland along with Kandi Burruss and Kevin "She'kspere" Briggs, featuring production by the latter. The song uses interpolations of the 1978 song "Child's Anthem" by Toto.

"Bug a Boo" was released as the second single from The Writing's on the Wall on July 7, 1999 by Columbia Records. "Bug a Boo" peaked at number 33 on the Billboard Hot 100. Outside of the United States, "Bug a Boo" peaked within the top ten of the charts in the Netherlands and the United Kingdom, and peaked within the top 30 of the charts in Australia.

Background

"Bug a Boo" is a song that Kandi Burruss and Kevin Briggs worked with Destiny's Child with for their second album. When Burruss and Briggs were brainstorming song ideas to the group, "Bug a Boo" was one of the first songs to be discussed and created. The group initially did not like it as Burruss stated that they were unsure on how they could sing over the track as it seemed like an instrumental that you would rap over.

Commercial performance

"Bug a Boo" debuted at No. 87 on the Billboard Hot 100 on September 25, 1999, and peaked at No. 33 before descending the chart. It spent a total of 20 weeks on the chart. Following the huge success of "Bills, Bills, Bills", "Bug a Boo" was a commercial disappointment. It performed better on Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs, reaching No. 15, but remains one of only three Destiny's Child's singles not to reach the top ten on that chart. The Refugee Camp Remix version of the song refers to its commercial failure, with the opening lyrics saying the group was doing "it right the second time".

In the Netherlands, "Bug a Boo" peaked at number six on the Dutch Single Top 100, spending 15 weeks on the chart.

In the United Kingdom, "Bug a Boo" debuted and peaked at number nine on the UK Singles Chart on October 24, 1999 – for the week ending date October 30, 1999 – becoming Destiny's Child's third top ten song in Britain, following "No, No, No" in March 1998 and "Bills, Bills, Bills" in July 1999.

In Australia, "Bug a Boo" peaked at number 26 on the ARIA Singles Chart, becoming the fourth and final song from "The Writing's on the Wall" to chart there.

Music video

The video was directed by Darren Grant on August 18, 1999. It was the group's final music video to feature former members LaTavia Roberson and LeToya Luckett.

In the video, the group are walking down Melrose Avenue in Los Angeles, CA. Four men are driving a red car, trying to attract their attention, but the girls of Destiny's Child are uninterested. The girls accidentally run into a men's locker room where they see basketball star Kobe Bryant getting ready for a game. In the next shot, the group are wearing gold cheerleader outfits doing a routine cheer with Wyclef Jean as bandleader. The marching scene was filmed at Fairfax High School. The marching band in the video were actual members of the UCLA Marching Band. By the end of the video, the group members meet up with the four men from earlier. They all drive away in the red car, laughing.

A second version of the video was produced for the "Refugee Camp Remix" with additional footage from the same session. The original music video is featured on the video compilation The Platinum's on the Wall, whereas the video for the "Refugee Camp Remix" was never released to any disc.

The music video for "Bug a Boo" premiered on BET the week ending September 12, 1999. It later made its debut on MTV the following week ending September 19, 1999. Beyoncé's gold two piece outfit from the shoot is on display at the Hard Rock Cafe restaurant in San Francisco, California.

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Release history