Willennium
Encyclopedia
Willennium is Will Smith
's second solo studio album. It was released on the heels of Smith's unprecedented success, Big Willie Style
.
, disappeared from the charts only two months before Willennium after enjoying an almost 2-year chart run and selling over 9 million units in the U.S. After such a huge hit, Willennium was received with big expectations from critics and the general public. The album was released on November 16, 1999, alongside other huge Christmas-seasoned releases. "Willennium" made it to No. 5 with 187,000 sales in its debut week, but was blocked by other big new releases as Korn
's Issues (which debuted at No. 1 with 573,000), Dr. Dre
's Dr. Dre 2001 (No. 2 with 516,000 ) and Celine Dion
's All the Way... A Decade of Song
(No. 3 with 302,000). It was the only time Smith managed to reach the Top 5 of the Billboard 200
list as a solo artist, as Big Willie Style peaked at No. 9. During the following "millennium-themed" weeks, the album stayed in the Top 10, but on its sixth week it fell very quickly from the charts as the Y2K interest had gone and Columbia could not produce new hits (the third single, "Freakin' It" reached only No. 99 in the U.S. and No. 15 in the UK, making it the second Smith single to fail the UK Top 3 as a solo artist after Just Cruisin' failed to make the top 20 in 1997). The album disappeared from the Billboard 200 list on late June 2000 after 26 weeks of charting, reaching only a quarter of Big Willie Styles chart time. UK charting was similar; the album reached No. 10 and spent 30 weeks on the chart compared to the 108 of Big Willie Style. Willennium produced a new string of hit singles. The first, "Wild Wild West
," was originally released earlier in the year as part of the soundtrack to the film Wild Wild West
. Although the film was a critical failure, the song managed to be a huge hit throughout the world, reaching No. 1 in the U.S. on July 24, 1999. The song also reached Top 10 positions worldwide, including a No. 2 peak on the UK charts (where it was blocked by ATB
's "9pm (Till I Come)
". The follow-up single was the hit "Will 2K". The song was specifically created as a party song for New Year's Day
of the new millennium
. It features samples from The Clash
's "Rock the Casbah
" and references Prince's then-timely song "1999
" with the lyrics, "Now we gonna party like it's nineteen...hold up, it is." It also pokes fun at the over-hyped Y2K Bug
. The song only reached No. 25 in the US chart but peaked at No. 2 on the UK charts (this time blocked by Robbie Williams
's big-seller "She's the One/It's Only Us
" Double-A sided single). In the end, Willennium sold 2 million on the U.S. (certified 2xPlatinum by the RIAA on December 17, 1999) and no more than 4 million worldwide, less than a third than its predecessor. "Will 2k" ranked as No. 14 on VH1's list of the 50 Most Awesomely Bad Songs of all-time. Two songs on the album "Uuhhh" and "The Rain" were co-written by the rapper Common.
Singles
Will Smith
Willard Christopher "Will" Smith, Jr. , also known by his stage name The Fresh Prince, is an American actor, producer, and rapper. He has enjoyed success in television, film and music. In April 2007, Newsweek called him the most powerful actor in Hollywood...
's second solo studio album. It was released on the heels of Smith's unprecedented success, Big Willie Style
Big Willie Style
Big Willie Style is the first solo studio album recorded by Will Smith, after spending most of his career as the latter half of DJ Jazzy Jeff & the Fresh Prince...
.
Album information
The blockbuster predecessor album, Big Willie StyleBig Willie Style
Big Willie Style is the first solo studio album recorded by Will Smith, after spending most of his career as the latter half of DJ Jazzy Jeff & the Fresh Prince...
, disappeared from the charts only two months before Willennium after enjoying an almost 2-year chart run and selling over 9 million units in the U.S. After such a huge hit, Willennium was received with big expectations from critics and the general public. The album was released on November 16, 1999, alongside other huge Christmas-seasoned releases. "Willennium" made it to No. 5 with 187,000 sales in its debut week, but was blocked by other big new releases as Korn
Korn
Korn is an American nu metal band from Bakersfield, California, formed in 1993. The current band line up includes four members: Jonathan Davis, James "Munky" Shaffer, Reginald "Fieldy" Arvizu, and Ray Luzier. The band was formed as an expansion of L.A.P.D.The band released their first demo album,...
's Issues (which debuted at No. 1 with 573,000), Dr. Dre
Dr. Dre
Andre Romelle Young , primarily known by his stage name Dr. Dre, is an American record producer, rapper, record executive, entrepreneur, and occasional actor. He is the founder and current CEO of Aftermath Entertainment and a former co-owner and artist of Death Row Records...
's Dr. Dre 2001 (No. 2 with 516,000 ) and Celine Dion
Celine Dion
Céline Marie Claudette Dion, , , is a Canadian singer. Born to a large family from Charlemagne, Quebec, Dion emerged as a teen star in the French-speaking world after her manager and future husband René Angélil mortgaged his home to finance her first record...
's All the Way... A Decade of Song
All the Way... A Decade of Song
All the Way… A Decade of Song is the first English greatest hits album by Canadian singer Céline Dion, released on November 12, 1999. It is her 7th English album and 27th in total. All the Way... A Decade of Song was extremely successful, selling over 22 million copies worldwide...
(No. 3 with 302,000). It was the only time Smith managed to reach the Top 5 of the Billboard 200
Billboard 200
The Billboard 200 is a ranking of the 200 highest-selling music albums and EPs in the United States, published weekly by Billboard magazine. It is frequently used to convey the popularity of an artist or groups of artists...
list as a solo artist, as Big Willie Style peaked at No. 9. During the following "millennium-themed" weeks, the album stayed in the Top 10, but on its sixth week it fell very quickly from the charts as the Y2K interest had gone and Columbia could not produce new hits (the third single, "Freakin' It" reached only No. 99 in the U.S. and No. 15 in the UK, making it the second Smith single to fail the UK Top 3 as a solo artist after Just Cruisin' failed to make the top 20 in 1997). The album disappeared from the Billboard 200 list on late June 2000 after 26 weeks of charting, reaching only a quarter of Big Willie Styles chart time. UK charting was similar; the album reached No. 10 and spent 30 weeks on the chart compared to the 108 of Big Willie Style. Willennium produced a new string of hit singles. The first, "Wild Wild West
Wild Wild West (hip hop song)
"Wild Wild West" is the title of a hip hop song written by Will Smith as the theme song for Smith's film of the same name. The song also appears on Smith's 1999 album, Willenium. Will Smith's 1999 release was recorded specifically for Smith's planned summer blockbuster movie, Wild Wild West...
," was originally released earlier in the year as part of the soundtrack to the film Wild Wild West
Wild Wild West
Wild Wild West is a 1999 American steampunk action-comedy film directed by Barry Sonnenfeld, and starring Will Smith, Kevin Kline , Kenneth Branagh and Salma Hayek.Similar to the original TV series it was based on, The Wild Wild West, the film features a large amount of gadgetry...
. Although the film was a critical failure, the song managed to be a huge hit throughout the world, reaching No. 1 in the U.S. on July 24, 1999. The song also reached Top 10 positions worldwide, including a No. 2 peak on the UK charts (where it was blocked by ATB
ATB
ATB may refer to:*The US Reorder tone is often referred to as an ATB, for All Trunks Busy*Active Time Battle system is a feature of role-playing games*Mountain bike is an off-road bicycle...
's "9pm (Till I Come)
9pm (Till I Come)
"9pm " is a song by German trance music producer ATB, released as his debut single from the album Movin' Melodies in 1998. The single entered at number one in the United Kingdom for the week ending July 3, 1999 and stayed there for a fortnight. It was also number one in the Republic of Ireland for...
". The follow-up single was the hit "Will 2K". The song was specifically created as a party song for New Year's Day
New Year's Day
New Year's Day is observed on January 1, the first day of the year on the modern Gregorian calendar as well as the Julian calendar used in ancient Rome...
of the new millennium
Millennium
A millennium is a period of time equal to one thousand years —from the Latin phrase , thousand, and , year—often but not necessarily related numerically to a particular dating system....
. It features samples from The Clash
The Clash
The Clash were an English punk rock band that formed in 1976 as part of the original wave of British punk. Along with punk, their music incorporated elements of reggae, ska, dub, funk, rap, dance, and rockabilly...
's "Rock the Casbah
Rock the Casbah
"Rock the Casbah" is a song by the English punk rock band The Clash in 1982. It was released as the third single from their fifth album, Combat Rock. The song reached number eight on the Billboard Hot 100 chart in the U.S. and, along with the track "Mustapha Dance," it also reached number eight on...
" and references Prince's then-timely song "1999
1999 (song)
"1999" is a song by Prince, the title track from his 1982 album of the same name. The song is one of Prince's best-known, and a defining moment in his rise to superstar status....
" with the lyrics, "Now we gonna party like it's nineteen...hold up, it is." It also pokes fun at the over-hyped Y2K Bug
Year 2000 problem
The Year 2000 problem was a problem for both digital and non-digital documentation and data storage situations which resulted from the practice of abbreviating a four-digit year to two digits.In computer programs, the practice of representing the year with two...
. The song only reached No. 25 in the US chart but peaked at No. 2 on the UK charts (this time blocked by Robbie Williams
Robbie Williams
Robert Peter "Robbie" Williams is an English singer-songwriter, vocal coach and occasional actor. He is a member of the pop group Take That. Williams rose to fame in the band's first run in the early- to mid-1990s. After many disagreements with the management and certain group members, Williams...
's big-seller "She's the One/It's Only Us
She's the One/It's Only Us
For the song by Bruce Springsteen see She's the One ."She's the One" is a song by World Party, written by Karl Wallinger, recorded and released on World Party's 1997 album Egyptology. In 1999 it was covered by Robbie Williams and released as a double A-side single with "It's Only Us"...
" Double-A sided single). In the end, Willennium sold 2 million on the U.S. (certified 2xPlatinum by the RIAA on December 17, 1999) and no more than 4 million worldwide, less than a third than its predecessor. "Will 2k" ranked as No. 14 on VH1's list of the 50 Most Awesomely Bad Songs of all-time. Two songs on the album "Uuhhh" and "The Rain" were co-written by the rapper Common.
Track listing
- "I'm Comin'" (featuring Tra-Knox) (Runnells, Brown, Rans, Smith, Moore, Bennett) – 3:54
- "Will 2K" (featuring K-Ci) (Robinson, Smith, Bennett, Henson) – 3:53
- "Freakin' It" (Sawyer, McLeod, Edwards, Rogers, Smith, Barnes, Bennett) – 3:59
- "Da Butta" (featuring Lil' KimLil' KimKimberly Denise Jones , better known by her stage name Lil' Kim, is an American rapper and actress who was a member of the group Junior M.A.F.I.A.....
) (Grey, Hanks, Smith, Jones, Bennett) – 2:58 - "La Fiesta" (Puente, Smith, Haggins, Pelzer, Henson, Lynn) – 4:16
- "Who Am I?" (featuring Tatyana AliTatyana AliTatyana Marisol Ali is an American actress and R&B singer, best known for her childhood role as Ashley Banks on the NBC sitcom The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air...
& MC LyteMC LyteMC Lyte is an American rapper who first gained fame in the late-1980s becoming the first solo female rapper to release a full album with 1988's critically acclaimed Lyte as a Rock.-Early life:...
) (Smith, Jerkins, Daniels, Ali) – 4:02 - "Afro Angel" (Dorough, Smith, Smith, Bennett) – 5:10
- "So Fresh" (featuring DJ Jazzy JeffDJ Jazzy JeffJeffrey Allen Townes , also known as DJ Jazzy Jeff or simply Jazz, is an American hip hop, R&B record producer, turntablist and actor. He is best known for his early career with Will Smith as DJ Jazzy Jeff & The Fresh Prince...
, Biz MarkieBiz MarkieMarcel Theo Hall better known by his stage name, Biz Markie, is an American rapper, beatboxer, DJ, comedian, singer, reality television personality, and commercial spokesperson. He is best known for his single "Just a Friend", an American Top 10 hit in 1989...
& Slick RickSlick RickRichard Walters , better known by his stage name Slick Rick is a Grammy-nominated English-American rapper...
) (Smith, Townes, Hall, Henson) - 4:15 - "Pump Me Up" (Davis, Barrier, Griffen, Parker, Smith, Townes) – 4:04
- "Can You Feel Me?" (featuring EveEve (rapper)Eve Jihan Jeffers , is an American rapper, songwriter, record producer and actress. Her first three albums have reached a total of over 8 million albums sold worldwide. She has also achieved success in fashion as she started a clothing line titled "Fetish." She won a Grammy Award in 2002 for the...
) (Jackson, Smith, Jeffers, Henson) – 3:44 - "Potnas" / "Interlude" (Smith, Hutchins, Smith, Bennett) – 6:08
- "No More" (featuring Breeze) (Larsen, Smith) – 3:25
- "Uuhhh" (featuring Kel Spencer) (Hakwins, Lewis, Smith, Bennett, Townes, Henson, Lynn) – 3:29
- "Wild Wild West" (featuring Dru HillDru HillDru Hill is an American singing group, most popular during the late 1990s, whose repertoire included R&B, soul, and gospel music. Founded in Baltimore, Maryland, and active since 1992, Dru Hill recorded seven Top 40 hits, and is best known for the R&B #1 hits "In My Bed", "Never Make a Promise", ...
and Kool Moe DeeKool Moe DeeMohandas Dewese , better known as Kool Moe Dee, is an American Hip Hop MC prominent in the late 1970s through the early 1990s. He was born in Manhattan, New York...
) (Wonder, Smith, Fusari, DeWese) – 4:28 - "The Rain" (featuring Jill ScottJill ScottJill Scott is an American soul and R&B singer-songwriter, poet, and actress. In 2007, Scott made her cinematic debut in the films Hounddog and in Tyler Perry's feature film, Why Did I Get Married? That year, her third studio album, The Real Thing: Words and Sounds Vol. 3, was released on...
) (Williams, Neale, Smith, Lynn, Scott, Townes) – 4:48
Charts
Album| Year | Chart | Position |
|---|---|---|
| 1999 | The Billboard 200 | 5 |
| 1999 | Top Canadian Albums | 6 |
| 1999 | Top Internet Albums | 6 |
| 1999 | Top Internet Albums | 15 |
| 1999 | Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums | 8 |
| 1999 | UK Top 75 Albums | 10 |
Singles
| Year | Single | Chart | Position |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1999 | "Wild Wild West" | Canadian Singles Chart | 2 |
| 1999 | "Wild Wild West" | Hot Latin Tracks | 39 |
| 1999 | "Wild Wild West" | Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Singles & Tracks | 3 |
| 1999 | "Wild Wild West" | Hot Rap Singles | 1 |
| 1999 | "Wild Wild West" | Latin Pop Airplay | 20 |
| 1999 | "Wild Wild West" | Latin Tropical/Salsa Airplay | 14 |
| 1999 | "Wild Wild West" | Rhythmic Top 40 | 4 |
| 1999 | "Wild Wild West" | The Billboard Hot 100 | 1 |
| 1999 | "Wild Wild West" | Top 40 Mainstream | 4 |
| 1999 | "Wild Wild West" | Top 40 Tracks | 4 |
| 1999 | "Will 2K" | Canadian Singles Chart | 12 |
| 1999 | "Will 2K" | Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Singles & Tracks | 66 |
| 1999 | "Will 2K" | Hot Rap Singles | 35 |
| 1999 | "Will 2K" | Rhythmic Top 40 | 14 |
| 1999 | "Will 2K" | The Billboard Hot 100 | 25 |
| 1999 | "Will 2K" | Top 40 Mainstream | 13 |
| 1999 | "Will 2K" | Top 40 Tracks | 18 |
| 2000 | "Freakin' It" | Hot Rap Singles | 20 |
| 2000 | "Freakin' It" | Hot Dance Music/Maxi-Singles Sales | 4 |
| 2000 | "Freakin' It" | Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Singles & Tracks | 77 |
| 2000 | "Freakin' It" | Rhythmic Top 40 | 35 |
| 2000 | "Freakin' It" | The Billboard Hot 100 | 99 |
| 2000 | "Freakin' It" | Top 40 Mainstream | 40 |