Songfacts®:

• This song is narrated by A Tribe Called Quest rapper Q-Tip from a police station. In the song, Q-Tip and fellow ATCQ member Ali Shaheed Muhammad go on a road trip in Q-Tip's mom's car. After paying for a meal at a fast food joint, Q-Tip is distracted by an attractive girl and accidentally forgets his wallet in the restaurant. El Segundo is a city in California.
• "I Left My Wallet in El Segundo" was released as a single from A Tribe Called Quest's debut album, People's Instinctive Travels and the Paths of Rhythm. Reaction to the album was bifurcated between black and white media; The Source gave it a rare five-mic rating, but Rolling Stone deemed it mediocre and granted it three stars, writing, "A Tribe Called Quest tend to mumble in understated monotones that feel self-satisfied, even bored." History shows that The Source was right.
• When the video for this song was shot in Las Vegas, founding member Jarobi White was barely 18. White wasn't allowed to shoot any scenes in any casinos or clubs.
• A character in the TV show Sleeper Cell is a big fan of this song. In the first season of the show, the character sings the song twice, with one of those times onstage at a karaoke bar.
• In the movie The Ladykillers, an elderly landlady repeatedly complains about the ridiculousness of the lyrics to this song.
• A sample from the Fatboy Slim remix of this song was used on Lil' Wayne's 2008 hit song "A Milli."