3 One-Hit Wonder Rap Songs and Why They’re Still Hot

In every genre there are one-hit wonders. Including the competitive musical style of hip-hop. For every Jay-Z and Snoop Dogg, there are others working to make their way in the world of hip-hop music and while they might not be able to boast a dozen No. 1 hit albums, some do break through for a song here or there that impacts the zeitgeist.

Here below, we wanted to explore three such examples. A trio of tracks from rappers that have become hits—and, well, the artists’ only major releases. No shame in that, of course. Indeed, these are three one-hit wonder rap songs and why they’re still hot.

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“Rebirth of Slick (Cool Like Dat)” by Digable Planets from Reachin’ (A New Refutation of Time and Space) (1992)

One of the coolest groups in rap music history, it’s almost unfair to call Digable Planets a one-hit wonder because they were never really out for commercial success. Instead, they wanted to write songs that bridged chill jazz music with the burgeoning form of hip-hop. And they achieved that in spades thanks to this track, which hit No. 15 on the Billboard Hot 100 and won a Grammy Award for Best Rap Performance by a Duo or Group. Today, the trio’s frontman Ishmael Butler is a mainstay in Seattle and he continues to produce genre-bending music with his group Shabazz Palaces. On this tune, he raps,

We like the breeze flow straight out of our lids
Them they got moved by these hard-rock Brooklyn kids
Us floor rush when the DJ’s booming classics
You, dig the crew on the fattest hip-hop records
He touch the kinks and sinks into the sounds
She frequents the fattest joints caught underground

“Whoomp! (There It Is)” by Tag Team from Whoomp! (There It Is) (1993)

A catchy, lively song that is meant to get people out of their chairs and onto the dance floor, this bombastic tune was released on the 1993 album of the same name by the group Tag Team. Today, the tune, which hit No. 2 on the Billboard Hot 100, can be heard in stadiums all over the country when the home team wants to get its crowd up and moving. And on it, Tag Team raps on the hook,

Whoomp, there it is!
Whoomp, there it is!
Whoomp, there it is!
Whoomp, there it is!
Whoomp, there it is!
Whoomp, there it is!
Whoomp, there it is!
Whoomp, there it is!

“Party Like a Rockstar” by Shop Boyz from Rockstar Mentality (2007)

Another song meant to enliven its audience, this song bridges rap with some buzzy delivery. The droning chorus plays on the trope that to be a rock star is the greatest, most liberating and freeing state. So, Shop Boyz used that idea and turned it into an entire song. Want to go crazy? Well, then just party like a rock star! Indeed, they rap on this tune, which hit No. 2 on the Billboard Hot 100,

I’m on a money makin’ mission but I party like a rockstar (Okay)
I’m flyin’ down 20 lookin’ good in my hot car (Okay)
You know them h–s be at my show, grabbin’ where my chain go
I’m tryna rap and hold my pants, but this ho won’t let my thang go
I yuu like I yuu, ’cause you know them h–s be tryin’ that
Oh don’t you know I f–k with fine dimes that look like Pamela
They fine and they hot, bruh, when I’m in the spot, bruh (Yeah, yeah, yeah)
I party like a rockstar

Photo by Aaron J. Thornton/Getty Images for BET