Billboard #1 R&B Songs Of 1999 Rankdown (COMPLETE)

[B-Boy]

Brandy and Monica were putting out hits back-to-back. As much as I like "Street Symphony", there were about a couple of songs that Arista could've picked in its place.

"Satisfy You" was driven by the hook and the Club Nouveau/Luniz sample at the time. I didn't realize it then, but looking back Diddy's taking hits from the 80s formula was wearing thin. It's no surprise that it's his only major hit from the album. TIL I learned that Kelly Price did backing vocals. She knows how to blend in with any singer she works with.

Like NSTBH, "We Can't Be Friends" has a church/gospel influence. The chorus melody sounds like something you play during altar call or benediction. I like it, but not on the same level as its predecessor.

"Fortunate" is in the middle of Maxwell's singles. I heard this a lot as a recurrent/gold on the radio.

Faith Evans' uptempo singles outshined "Never Gonna Let You Go" from Keep The Faith.

"What's It Gonna Be" is iconic.

I'm fine with either Shekspere-produced song taking the #1 spot.

[Soulsista]

Welcome back!

The next two songs are tied. They both have #1s, but one has more than the other, so it'll be placed higher. The song leaving us now has a #1, eight bottom 5s, and ten perfect rankings.

SPOILER: Click to show

{R&B Class Of '99}jenglisbe wyckyd #LisaRinna B-Boy .indulgecountry • Господин Умљеновић • singingrulebritannia beyoncelover ilikemilk 🇯🇲 dollybaby 🇯🇲 alexcuse jtd Thee Stallion Ivy Leegue™ Mirago PREDS PRIDE Lukas 312999 CF15 emerald mamooshka Private Dancer samo🦕 rowellfarm490 BB🌕 gonecountry newpower Mayman divasummer SHOOTER

[Soulsista]

5. Bills, Bills, Bills - Destiny's Child

"Bills, Bills, Bills" was the lead single from DC's sophomore album The Writing's On The Wall. Co-written by Kandi Burruss, it became their first song to top the Hot 100. It also received Grammy nominations for Best R&B Vocal Performance By a Duo Or Group and Best R&B Song. The music video was filmed in a beauty salon as a tribute to Tina Knowles, Beyonce's mother.

Apologies to B-Boy...


Stats
Chart Entry: May 22, 1999
Peak Date: July 10, 1999
Weeks At #1: 9
Weeks In Top 10: 12
Weeks On Chart: 24
Hot 100 Peak: #1 (1 week)

Points: 215
Average: 4.83
Standard Deviation: 2.291 (4th highest)

B-Boy - 1
#LisaRinna - 2
.indulgecountry - 2
• Господин Умљеновић • - 2
beyoncelover - 2
🇯🇲 dollybaby 🇯🇲 - 2
Soulsista - 3
BB🌕 - 3
Mayman - 3
Lukas - 4
mamooshka - 4
SHOOTER - 4
singingrulebritannia - 5
alexcuse - 5
Ivy Leegue™ - 5
Mirago - 5
PREDS PRIDE - 5
emerald - 5
Private Dancer - 5
rowellfarm490 - 5
gonecountry - 5
divasummer - 5

jenglisbe - 7
jtd Thee Stallion - 7
312999 - 7
CF15 - 7
newpower - 7
wyckyd - 9
ilikemilk - 9
samo🦕 - 10


The next reveal has the 2nd highest SD. Two people will lose their #1, five others will lose a bottom 5, and five more will get a perfect ranking.

[Soulsista]

4. U Know What's Up - Donell Jones

Chicago native Donell Jones scored his biggest hit with "U Know What's Up". It reached the Top 10 on the Hot 100 and helped his album Where I Wanna Be go platinum. The remix, which was used for the music video, features Left Eye.

Apologies to singingrulebritannia and 312999...


Stats
Chart Entry: August 28, 1999
Peak Date: November 13, 1999
Weeks At #1: 8
Weeks In Top 10: 20
Weeks On Chart: 49
Hot 100 Peak: #7

Points: 215
Average: 4.83
Standard Deviation: 2.465 (2nd highest)

singingrulebritannia - 1
312999 - 1
rowellfarm490 - 2
newpower - 2
wyckyd - 3
B-Boy - 3
🇯🇲 dollybaby 🇯🇲 - 3
Private Dancer - 3
samo🦕 - 3
divasummer - 3
#LisaRinna - 4
alexcuse - 4
PREDS PRIDE - 4
emerald - 4
gonecountry - 4
Soulsista - 5
beyoncelover - 5
jtd Thee Stallion - 5
CF15 - 5
BB🌕 - 5

ilikemilk - 6
Mirago - 6
mamooshka - 6
Mayman - 6
SHOOTER - 6
Ivy Leegue™ - 8
Lukas - 8
jenglisbe - 10
.indulgecountry - 10
• Господин Умљеновић • - 10


Taking the bronze is a song that has seven #1s...and three bottom 5s.

[Soulsista]

3. Heartbreak Hotel - Whitney Houston feat. Faith Evans & Kelly Price

"Heartbreak Hotel" was the second single from Whitney's album My Love Is Your Love. Featuring Faith Evans and Kelly Price, it was one of the biggest hits of 1999, peaking inside the Top 5 on the Hot 100 and topping the dance chart. It received Grammy nominations for Best R&B Song and Best R&B Vocal Performance By a Duo Or Group.

Fun fact: this was originally intended for TLC, but they turned it down.

Apologies to • Господин Умљеновић •, Ivy Leegue™, Mirago, Private Dancer, divasummer, and SHOOTER, I share your pain...


Stats
Chart Entry: January 2, 1999
Peak Date: February 13, 1999
Weeks At #1: 7
Weeks In Top 10: 14
Weeks On Chart: 26
Hot 100 Peak: #2

Points: 254
Average: 3.53
Standard Deviation: 2.285 (5th highest)

Soulsista - 1
• Господин Умљеновић • - 1
Ivy Leegue™ - 1
Mirago - 1
Private Dancer - 1
divasummer - 1
SHOOTER - 1
alexcuse - 2
CF15 - 2
mamooshka - 2
jenglisbe - 3
#LisaRinna - 3
.indulgecountry - 3
ilikemilk - 3
PREDS PRIDE - 3
Lukas - 3
B-Boy - 4
singingrulebritannia - 4
jtd Thee Stallion - 4
312999 - 4
rowellfarm490 - 4
BB🌕 - 4
newpower - 4
Mayman - 4
wyckyd - 5

beyoncelover - 6
🇯🇲 dollybaby 🇯🇲 - 6
emerald - 8
samo🦕 - 8
gonecountry - 10

[Soulsista]

vs.




Who will take the crown, TLC or Mariah? The final two is coming up!

SPOILER: Click to show

{R&B Class Of '99}jenglisbe wyckyd #LisaRinna B-Boy .indulgecountry • Господин Умљеновић • singingrulebritannia beyoncelover ilikemilk 🇯🇲 dollybaby 🇯🇲 alexcuse jtd Thee Stallion Ivy Leegue™ Mirago PREDS PRIDE Lukas 312999 CF15 emerald mamooshka Private Dancer samo🦕 rowellfarm490 BB🌕 gonecountry newpower Mayman divasummer SHOOTER

[Soulsista]

But first, some extras. The lead single from his album A Day In The Life peaked at #15 on the R&B chart and features Faith Evans. It was originally recorded and released by Toto.

Georgy Porgy - Eric Benét

---

Next, the second single from their album Room 112. It peaked at #5 R&B and #15 on the Hot 100, and features Lil Zane.

Anywhere - 112

---

Finally, the title track to his 1999 album. It peaked at #7 on the R&B chart and spent 8 weeks at #2 on the Hot 100. It was covered a few months later by Mark Wills, whose version was a Top 5 country hit and peaked in the Top 40 on the Hot 100.

Back At One - Brian McKnight

[312999]

Back At One is amazing. Another song that would have been my number 1 if it was in this particular list.

[PREDS PRIDE]

holy shit I got perfect with 5-3! if I could do the same with the top 2 that would be incredible but both would be deserving winners

[• Господин Умљеновић •]

Back at one is really nice.

In other words, TLC top 2... Bof 😑

[Soulsista]

Here we go, the final two...



2. Heartbreaker - Mariah Carey

"Heartbreaker" was the lead single from her album Rainbow. It was her 14th single to top the Hot 100 and also hit #1 in New Zealand. The original version features Jay-Z and samples "Attack Of The Name Game" by Stacy Lattisaw. The main Desert Storm Remix features Da Brat and Missy Elliott and samples "Ain't No Fun (If The Homies Can't Have None)" by Snoop Dogg. The music video for both versions have Mariah as herself and as a brunette named Bianca Storm.



Fun fact: this was originally intended for the Glitter soundtrack, but was added to Rainbow due to the movie being delayed.


Stats
Chart Entry: September 4, 1999
Peak Date: October 9, 1999
Weeks At #1: 2
Weeks In Top 10: 6
Weeks On Chart: 20
Hot 100 Peak: #1 (2 weeks)

Points: 259
Average: 3.37
Standard Deviation: 1.974 (4th lowest)

#LisaRinna - 1
Lukas - 1
emerald - 1
samo🦕 - 1
Mayman - 1
jenglisbe - 2
jtd Thee Stallion - 2
Ivy Leegue™ - 2
PREDS PRIDE - 2
BB🌕 - 2
divasummer - 2

• Господин Умљеновић • - 3
singingrulebritannia - 3
beyoncelover - 3
alexcuse - 3
312999 - 3
mamooshka - 3
rowellfarm490 - 3
gonecountry - 3
newpower - 3
🇯🇲 dollybaby 🇯🇲 - 4
Mirago - 4
Private Dancer - 4
B-Boy - 5

Soulsista - 6
wyckyd - 6
.indulgecountry - 6
ilikemilk - 7
SHOOTER - 7
CF15 - 8

---

And now the #1... only two people had this outside their Top 5! As a result, it has the lowest SD.



1. No Scrubs - TLC

"No Scrubs" was the lead single from TLC's long-awaited third album FanMail. Co-written by Kandi and Tameka "Tiny" Cottle and with Chilli singing lead, it topped the Hot 100 for four weeks. It also won Grammys for Best R&B Vocal Performance By a Duo Or Group and Best R&B Song. It's been covered and sampled numerous times since.

Rap group Sporty Thievz released an answer song weeks later titled "No Pigeons" which you can rank right now in 50 Years Of Hip Hop: The Rankdown Part 6.



Kandi and Tiny had intended to record "No Scrubs" together, but it was given to TLC instead.

Congrats to PREDS PRIDE for a perfect Top 6!


Stats
Chart Entry: February 20, 1999
Peak Date: April 10, 1999
Weeks At #1: 5
Weeks In Top 10: 14
Weeks On Chart: 32
Hot 100 Peak: #1 (4 weeks)

Points: 291
Average: 2.30
Standard Deviation: 1.579 (Lowest)

.indulgecountry - 1
beyoncelover - 1
🇯🇲 dollybaby 🇯🇲 - 1
alexcuse - 1
PREDS PRIDE - 1
CF15 - 1
mamooshka - 1
rowellfarm490 - 1
BB🌕 - 1
gonecountry - 1
newpower - 1

Soulsista - 2
B-Boy - 2
singingrulebritannia - 2
ilikemilk - 2
Mirago - 2
Lukas - 2
312999 - 2
emerald - 2
Private Dancer - 2
samo🦕 - 2
Mayman - 2
jtd Thee Stallion - 3
SHOOTER - 3
wyckyd - 4
Ivy Leegue™ - 4
divasummer - 4
• Господин Умљеновић • - 5

jenglisbe - 6
#LisaRinna - 7


And that concludes the Billboard #1 R&B Songs Of 1999 Rankdown! Thanks to everyone who participated.

The Best Of The '90s Rankdown is coming soon!

[312999]

Wonder if there would be a 2000s series as well. Would love that too.

[.indulgecountry]

Yas @ TLC winning. Such a BOP!

The top 5 was so strong -- minus Donell, that was a sneak.

[beyoncelover]

5. Bills, Bills, Bills - Destiny's Child: Well dangg, this is a bit of a shocker as I really didn't see this song leaving out at 5th place. :'( I ranked this at #2 so I absolutely lovee this song! I wazs really hoping this would have done better and ranked higher - was hoping for at least a Top 3 ranking so I'm sad that didn't happen. Love seeing so many #2s for this. And wow there are lots of #5s for this song too.

4. U Know What's Up - Donell Jones: Interesting how this song has the 2nd highest SD. This song making it to 4th is quite a big surprise. I ranked it 5th so I do love this and am glad to see this rank well. But man, had I known this and #5 would have been tied, I would have dropped this down just one spot, lol.

3. Heartbreak Hotel - Whitney Houston feat. Faith Evans & Kelly Price: Oooh okay, this is a great, strong powerhouse of a song. All three ladies really bring it on this song. I get this ranking so high. I do love it and enough so to give it a #6. But... I just don't love it nearly as much as my Top 5. I was hoping for this to show up before the other two songs but at the same time I am happy it didn't win, lol. [/competitive] Wow interesting how this song was originally for TLC. I really can't picture them on this song.

I'm very pleased with this Top 2! It's my #1 vs. #3, so I'm hoping my #1 can take it. But I wouldn't be mad if my #3 wins.

Oooh of today's extras, I absolutely love "Anywhere" by 112 and "Back at One" by Brian McKnight.

2. Heartbreaker - Mariah Carey: Oooh yesss, now I absolutely love this song from Mariah. But with this being my #3, I was rooting against this song and for it not to win so yay for that happening, lol. But still, this song is so fun, catchy and I absolutely love it. The video is really fun and hilarious too. I also really love the remix version too. Nice that this song got a lot of #1, #2 and #3 ranks. Glad it made it this far!

1. No Scrubs - TLC: Yesss, I absolutely LOVE "No Scrubs." This is such a catchy, memorable, iconic song and one of my favorites from TLC. I love the sound of it and what all three ladies bring to the song. The music video is fantastic and I adore it too. Woww it's so incredible how this song got 11 #1 rankings and 11 #2 rankings but it totally deserves it! :o And nice that this only got two rankings outside of the Top 5, which aren't bad rankings either.

This was yet another fun and fantastic rankdown to be apart of! Thanks for hosting it as always, Soulsista! Looking forward to the The Best Of The '90s Rankdown!

Like 312999 mentioned, I would be here for a 2000s version to happen too.

[#LisaRinna]

HEARTBREAKER WAS ROBBED!

[🇯🇲 dollybaby 🇯🇲]

Yaaaaas at TLC winning!!! No Scrubs has always been my forever anthem. It would have been even more perfect if Bill's, Bill's, Bill's made it to #2, but I'm happy Donell Jones is in the the top five. I always get nostalgia feels when listening to "You Know What's Up".

[Mayman]

Great top 2, would've liked to see Heartbreaker take it though - I love the remix especially. Thanks for hosting!!

[Ivy Leegue™]

Love Heartbreaker, obv, but Heartbreak Hotel>>>>>>>. Anyway, another great rankdown!!

[Soulsista]

Perfect Rankings:

#LisaRinna - 7
PREDS PRIDE - 6
Soulsista / singingrulebritannia / alexcuse - 5
.indulgecountry / Mirago / emerald / mamooshka / rowellfarm490 / BB🌕 - 4
jenglisbe / jtd Thee Stallion / Ivy Leegue™ / Lukas / Private Dancer / CF15 / beyoncelover / gonecountry - 3
B-Boy / ilikemilk / newpower / Mayman / divasummer - 2
312999 / SHOOTER / wyckyd / • Господин Умљеновић • / 🇯🇲 dollybaby 🇯🇲 - 1
samo🦕 - 0


I'll leave you with two final extras. The breakthrough single for this Missouri-born rapper peaked at #10 on the rap chart, #18 on the R&B chart, and #36 on the Hot 100. It won a Grammy for Best Rap Solo Performance.

My Name Is - Eminem

---

Next, the debut single for this actress/dancer/former Fly Girl from The Bronx. Produced by Rodney "Darkchild" Jerkins, it topped the Hot 100 for 5 weeks and peaked at #6 for R&B (#45 R&B airplay). It also hit #1 in seven other countries.

If You Had My Love - Jennifer Lopez


It was later revealed that Darkchild had written a similar-sounding song for Chanté Moore titled "If I Gave Love". According to Chanté, Darkchild essentially re-wrote "If I Gave Love" with the same arrangement after Puffy heard her song and requested it. "If I Gave Love" was intended to be released as a single, but was scrapped.

[#LisaRinna]

Jan 9, 2024 17:22:07 GMT -5 Soulsista said:

Perfect Rankings:

#LisaRinna - 7

[CF15]

Predictable but excellent winner. Happy it pulled through. Iconic hit from TLC's strong catalogue. Thanks for hosting, Soulsista !

[beyoncelover]

Yayy I'm pretty happy with 3 perfect rankings!

Oooh I had no idea that "My Name Is" and "If You Had My Love" were on the R&B/Hip-Hop charts, well... okay I had to have known the Eminem song was there but didn't know Jennifer's was there. I really love both of those songs a lot!