Bump, Bump, Bump
by B2K (featuring Puff Daddy)

Album: Pandemonium! (2002)
Charted: 11 1
Play Video

Songfacts®:

  • This song takes place at a club, where the boys of B2K spot a sexy lady on the dance floor and make a humble request:

    Baby, turn around and let me see that sexy body go bump, bump, bump

    The four members of the group were each about 18 at the time, so we'll assume this is an underage club.

    This bumpin' R&B sound, exemplified by Ashanti, Usher and Missy Elliott, was huge in 2002, and the song went all the way to #1 in America, joining the party.
  • Sean Combs, who had ditched the Puff Daddy name and was calling himself P. Diddy, features on this song, doing a rap to introduce the track and another in the middle. He also appears in the video and helped promote the song, giving it a huge "bump." Most of his appearances around this time were collaborations. Others include "Pass The Courvoisier Part II" with Busta Rhymes and "Shake Ya Tailfeather" with Nelly and Murphy Lee.

    It was B2K's label, Epic Records, which asked Diddy to appear on the track. He had seen the group's video for "Uh Huh" and was impressed, so he came on board.
  • R. Kelly, an R&B superstar and one of the most reliable hitmakers of the '90s and early '00s, wrote this song. It's not his first "bump" song - one of his biggest hits is "Bump N' Grind" from 1993, although that kind of bumpin' happens in the bedroom.
  • "Bump, Bump, Bump" was the first single from B2K's second album, Pandemonium! They were a boy band that formed in Los Angeles and earned a deal with Epic Records in 2001. Epic pushed them hard, putting out their debut album in March 2002 and following up with Pandemonium! in December. In 2003 they worked on the movie You Got Served in acting roles and also did much of the soundtrack. By the time the film was released in 2004, the group had fractured and they broke up. Group member Omarion had some hits as a solo artist, including "O," and did well as an actor with roles on Fat Albert (2004) and Feel The Noise (2007). B2K reunited for a tour in 2019, but it didn't stick.
  • Diddy's rap was written by Varick Smith, who also worked on songs for the Barbershop soundtrack.
  • The music video was co-directed by Erik White and the group's manager, Chris Stokes. White also shot their video for "Uh Huh."

Comments

Be the first to comment...

Editor's Picks

Jim Adkins of Jimmy Eat World

Jim Adkins of Jimmy Eat WorldSongwriter Interviews

Jim talks about the impact of "The Middle" and uses a tree metaphor to describe his songwriting philosophy.

Song Titles That Inspired Movies

Song Titles That Inspired MoviesSong Writing

Famous songs that lent their titles - and in some cases storylines - to movies.

Jim McCarty of The Yardbirds

Jim McCarty of The YardbirdsSongwriter Interviews

The Yardbirds drummer explains how they created their sound and talks about working with their famous guitarists.

Ian Gillan of Deep Purple

Ian Gillan of Deep PurpleSongwriter Interviews

Deep Purple frontman Ian Gillan explains the "few red lights" in "Smoke On The Water" and talks about songs from their 2020 album Whoosh!

Superman in Song

Superman in SongSong Writing

Not everyone can be a superhero, but that hasn't stopped generations of musicians from trying to be Superman.

Rick Astley

Rick AstleySongwriter Interviews

Rick Astley on "Never Gonna Give You Up," "Cry For Help," and his remarkable resurgence that gave him another #1 UK album.