Ya Mama

Album: Halfway Between The Gutter And The Stars (2000)
Charted: 30
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Songfacts®:

  • "Ya Mama" is a track by British big beat pioneer Norman Cook, aka Fatboy Slim. It was released as a double A-side single alongside "Song For Shelter," with both tracks appearing on his 2000 album Halfway Between the Gutter and the Stars. The single peaked at #30 on the UK chart.
  • "Ya Mama" was featured in the first installment of the Charlie's Angels film series in 2000. The song is heard during a high-intensity scene where the Angels, played by Cameron Diaz, Drew Barrymore, and Lucy Liu, board Eric Knox' helicopter and reprogram a missile in a bid to save Charlie.
  • The iconic "Push the tempo" line is a vocal sample from American hip-hop producer Doug Lazy's track "Let the Rhythm Pump." Interestingly, Lazy didn't know his sample had been used until he saw Charlie's Angels in theaters, where his wife first recognized it. In 2017, Lazy sold his public performance royalties for "Ya Mama" in an auction on Royalty Exchange, with a final bid of $18,500.

    The track also samples the guitar riff from Colosseum's "The Kettle" and borrows the recurring "Shake what ya mama gave ya" line from Stik-E & the Hoodz's "Shake Whatcha Mama Gave Ya."
  • The official music video for "Ya Mama" was directed by Traktor, the same filmmaking collective behind videos like Basement Jaxx' "Where's Your Head At?" and Madonna's "Die Another Day." The video features a cassette tape that causes anyone who hears it to uncontrollably perform wild, chaotic arm movements. To create these effects, actors were attached to a large pole and shaken to simulate the exaggerated movements.

    Filming took place in Carriacou, Grenada, where a fully constructed market town was dramatically destroyed during the shoot.

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