Format 12" vinyl Genre Hip hop Label Arista
Star Trak | Recorded 2001 Length 4:24 | |
Released May 14, 2002 (2002-05-14) | ||
"Grindin'" is the first single from the Virginia Beach rap duo Clipse. The song was produced by The Neptunes, and featured on the Clipse's debut album, Lord Willin'. The song became a summer Top 40 hit, reaching #30 on the Billboard Hot 100 on July 30, 2002.
Arguably the most iconic track of The Neptunes' early-decade influence on hip-hop production, the beat was far more sparse in its percussive drum and woodblock arrangement than most popular hip-hop tracks at the time, predating later sparse Neptunes productions like Snoop Dogg's "Drop It Like It's Hot" that would further capitalize and expand on this style. It bares notable and acknowledged similarity to 1980s hip hop tracks such as Eric B & Rakim's "My Melody".
There were two official remixes released: one featuring new verses by Pusha T and Malice featuring Noreaga, Birdman and Lil Wayne, and the other, a selector remix featuring dancehall artists Sean Paul, Bless and Kardinal Offishall. Both remixes feature the same instrumental but a different verse performed by Pusha T.
Pusha T stated that Pharrell nearly gave the beat to Jay-Z.
The song is featured in the popular video games Saints Row and NBA 2K15. The intro was also used in the 2003 comedy film Malibu's Most Wanted.
Reception
Pitchfork Media ranked the song at number 27 in "The Top 500 of the Tracks of the 2000s". The song was also listed at #84 in Rolling Stone's best songs of the 2000s. Hip-hop writer Shea Serrano listed the song as the most important rap song of 2002 in his book The Rap Yearbook.