Where the Hood At?
"Where the Hood At?" is a song by American rapper DMX, released as the lead single from his 2003 studio album Grand Champ. AllMusic stated "The anthemic lead single, 'Where the Hood At,' is precisely modeled after previous DMX rallying calls like 'Ruff Ryders' Anthem', 'What's My Name?', and 'Who We Be.'" Rolling Stone described the song as "an exhilarating dose of fight music."
"Where the Hood At?" | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|
Single by DMX | ||||
from the album Grand Champ | ||||
Released | August 5, 2003[1] | |||
Genre | ||||
Length | 4:46 | |||
Label | ||||
Songwriter(s) | E. Simmons | |||
Producer(s) | Tuneheadz | |||
DMX singles chronology | ||||
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"Where the Hood At?" peaked at #68 on the Billboard Hot 100, and would become the last DMX song to chart on it with DMX as the lead artist, before his death in 2021.
Release
Production
The song was recorded in a studio in Chicago. DMX's close friend Kato was also there while DMX was recording it. When DMX first heard the beat, he immediately came up with the lyrics for what would later be the first line of the chorus for the song, which also became the title of the song.[2]
The clean version does not have the third verse, unlike the explicit version. The producers for the song were the music creation team Tuneheadz. Recorded in 2003, it was one of the first singles to be available as a digital download via Amazon.com.
The song samples "I'll Play the Blues for You" by Albert King. That song was originally sampled by Big Daddy Kane for the song "Young, Gifted and Black". DMX stated that he was "in love with that beat when Kane did it".[2]
Music video
The music video is clean and is set in DMX's neighborhood in Yonkers, New York. There are appearances from rappers Drag-On, Swizz Beatz, Fat Joe and Busta Rhymes. In the second half of the video, a song entitled "A'Yo Kato", produced by Swizz Beatz, was added to pay tribute to his fallen friend.
Track listing
US version
- "Where the Hood At?"
- "Where the Hood At?" (Instrumental)
- "Ruff Ryders' Anthem"
UK version
- "Where the Hood At?"
- "Ruff Ryders' Anthem"
- "Who We Be"
- "Where the Hood At?" (Video CD-ROM)
Charts
Chart (2003-2005) | Position |
---|---|
U.S. Billboard Hot 100[3] | 68 |
U.S. Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Singles & Tracks (Billboard)[4] | 24 |
U.S. Hot Rap Singles (Billboard)[5] | 13 |
UK Singles (Official Charts Company)[6] | 16 |
UK R&B (Official Charts Company)[7] | 4 |
German Singles (Media Control Charts)[8] | 29 |
New Zealand (Recorded Music NZ) | 1 |
Certifications
Region | Certification | Certified units/sales |
---|---|---|
United Kingdom (BPI)[9] | Silver | 200,000‡ |
United States (RIAA)[10] | Platinum | 1,000,000‡ |
‡ Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone. |
References
- "Where That Hood at [US 12"] - DMX | Release Credits". AllMusic.
- DMX Breaks Down His Most Iconic Tracks | GQ
- "DMX – Chart History: Billboard Hot 100". Billboard. Prometheus Global Media. Retrieved May 1, 2014.
- "DMX – Chart History: Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs". Billboard. Prometheus Global Media. Retrieved May 1, 2014.
- "DMX – Chart History: Rap Songs". Billboard. Prometheus Global Media. Retrieved May 1, 2014.
- "DMX – Artist Chart History". Official Charts Company. Retrieved May 1, 2014.
- "Official Hip Hop and R&B Singles Chart Top 40 | Official Charts Company". OfficialCharts.com.
- "Chartverfolgung / DMX / Singles". German Charts. Media Control Charts. Retrieved May 1, 2014.
- "British single certifications – DMX – Where The Hood At". British Phonographic Industry. Retrieved June 2, 2021.
- "American single certifications – DMX – Where the Hood At". Recording Industry Association of America. Retrieved May 30, 2021.