Wanksta
| "Wanksta" | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
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| Single by 50 Cent | ||||
| from the album No Mercy, No Fear, Music from and Inspired by the Motion Picture 8 Mile and Get Rich or Die Tryin' | ||||
| Released | November 5, 2002 | |||
| Recorded | 2001 | |||
| Genre | ||||
| Length | 3:44 | |||
| Label | ||||
| Songwriter(s) |
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| Producer(s) |
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| 50 Cent singles chronology | ||||
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| Music video | ||||
| "Wanksta" on YouTube | ||||
"Wanksta" is a song by American rapper 50 Cent which was released on November 5, 2002, as the third single from the soundtrack to the film 8 Mile (2002). The track, produced by Sha Money XL and John "J-Praize" Freeman, peaked at #13 on the US Billboard Hot 100 and #3 on Billboard's Hot Rap Songs chart. The song was initially released on 50 Cent's mixtape No Mercy, No Fear, released in August 2002.
Background
[edit]"Wanksta" was 50 Cent's first single to chart after signing to Eminem's and Dr. Dre's labels, Shady Records and Aftermath Entertainment, respectively, as well as his first single to be released since "Thug Love", with Destiny’s Child, in 1999. Originally appearing on his 2002 mixtape, No Mercy, No Fear, "Wanksta" received widespread radio play, and was eventually added to the 8 Mile motion picture soundtrack later that same year. It was subsequently added as a bonus track on his 2003 debut album, Get Rich or Die Tryin'.
"Wanksta" was sampled by Murder Inc. Records artist Black Child on his 50 Cent diss track "You Da Wanksta" (2002).[1] In 2003, Eminem recorded a remix of the song, with lyrics aimed at Ja Rule, editing the instrumental to sound higher-pitched and in a different key. The remix appeared on the rapper's CD-single box-set, The Singles.[2] Also in 2003, vocal trio Blaque recorded an R&B/hip-pop version of "Wanksta", produced by Missy Elliott, calling their track "No Ganksta".[3] The chorus of Blaque's version is, more or less, the same as the original, but sung from a female perspective: "[You] Said you a gangsta, but you never pop nothin'; said you a wanksta, and you need to stop frontin'. Go to the dealership, but you never cop nothin'. Been hustlin' a long time, but you ain't got nothin'."[4]
In 2004, the instrumental track of "Wanksta" was used for "Crackin", a song by Psychopathic Rydas.[5][6]
50 cent opens the beginning of "Wanksta" with the words "I got a lot of livin' to do before I die and I ain't got no time to waste; let's make it", sampled from the intro to Nina Simone's 1968 recording "Do What You Gotta Do".[7]
Etymology
[edit]The title is generally accepted as a portmanteau referring to a "self-obsessed, show-off person". The precise origin is debatable, however, most theories suggest it to be a blend of "gangsta" and "wannabe".[8] The term had previously been used on the 1999 track "Q.B.G." from The Tunnel, a collaborative album by American DJs Funkmaster Flex and Big Kap. Regarding any similarity to the British insult "wanker", 50 Cent has consistently and explicitly stated that the two words are not related:[9]
Jake Arnott: And another claim to fame: you introduced the word 'wanksta' into the language with your track 'Wanksta'. That word sort of means something in England — does it mean the same in America?
50 Cent: Nah, nah! 'Wanksta's like... we use that terminology to mean a fake gangster. When people told me about the word 'wanker'...
50 Cent was, apparently, unaware of the origins of this established slang term.
The song's lyrics were believed to be directed towards his long time nemesis, Ja Rule; however, 50 Cent disputed this himself in a MuchMusic interview, stating that, while the song itself was not directed at Ja, he was a good "example of a wanksta".[10]
Charts
[edit]
Weekly charts[edit]
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Year-end charts[edit]
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Certifications
[edit]| Region | Certification | Certified units/sales |
|---|---|---|
| United States (RIAA)[17] | Platinum | 1,000,000‡ |
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‡ Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone. | ||
References
[edit]- ^ "The Real Wanksta".
- ^ "Eminem cover of 50 Cent's Wanksta - WhoSampled". WhoSampled.
- ^ "Blaque No Ganksta". World News.
- ^ YouTube, ILuvBlackIvory (22 February 2022). "Blaque - No Ganksta (Wanksta)(Album Version)(2003)".
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link) - ^ "MemphisRap.com - New Music, Videos, Hip-Hop News, Events, Pop Culture".
- ^ "Psychopathic Rydas's Crackin sample of 50 Cent's Wanksta - WhoSampled". WhoSampled.
- ^ Archived at Ghostarchive and the Wayback Machine: "Nina Simone - Do What You Gotta Do". YouTube.
- ^ Maciej, Widawski (2015-03-05). African American slang : a linguistic description. Cambridge, United Kingdom. ISBN 9781107074170. OCLC 885547585.
{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link) - ^ Jake Arnott. (October 19, 2003) "Jake Arnott and 50 Cent". The Guardian Observer. Accessed July 11, 2008
- ^ Unknown author. (February 11, 2003) "Fifty Cent: Ja Rule is a Wanksta". MuchMusic. Accessed August 1, 2007.
- ^ "50 Cent Chart History (Hot 100)". Billboard. Retrieved May 23, 2020.
- ^ "50 Cent Chart History (Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs)". Billboard. Retrieved May 23, 2020.
- ^ "50 Cent Chart History (Hot Rap Songs)". Billboard. Retrieved May 23, 2020.
- ^ "50 Cent Chart History (Rhythmic)". Billboard. Retrieved November 28, 2023.
- ^ "Billboard Top 100 – 2003". billboardtop100of.com. Retrieved May 23, 2020.
- ^ "Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs – Year-End 2003". Billboard. 2 January 2013. Retrieved May 23, 2020.
- ^ "American single certifications – 50 Cent – Wanksta". Recording Industry Association of America. Retrieved October 26, 2022.
