Pop Shots – A Look At The Charts … From 24 Years Ago

Welcome to your weekly dose of pop world musings. Covering all things pop culture, this week I’m hopping into my time machine again, this time setting the coordinates for 24 years ago this week.

Touching down in July of 1999, it was the summer before my senior year of college, and a plethora of genres were becoming huge. We had the Latin pop explosion, with Jennifer Lopez at #1 this week with “If You Had My Love,” and Ricky Martin with two songs on the chart, including the one that really started it all, “Livin’ La Vida Loca.”

The Latin pop explosion would become so big, in fact, that a year after this famed boxer Oscar De La Hoya would release an album.

Yeah, maybe that wasn’t such a great idea.

We also had the TRL explosion, which brought back boy bands, and teen pop idols, both of which were receiving heavy airplay at this time.

Southern hip-hop was firmly on the map, and in our ears, as well, along with … well, damned near everything else! The Billboard Hot 100 from this week back in 1999 was filled with so many great songs, from so many different genres of music, that I actually had a difficult time paring this column down to just 15 tunes.

So let’s get into this look at Billboard chart history! Of course, since this is Pop Shots, you know everything is seasoned with a little bit of attitude.

4. Ricky Martin – Livin’ La Vida Loca

 

If we were to point a giant arrow to the beginning of the Latin pop explosion (it was not a Latin music explosion, because that would’ve included a whole lot of genres that we didn’t hear at this time) it would be directed right at “Livin’ La Vida Loca.”

Nearly a quarter century later, the Ricky Martin classic is still a fun, feel-good tune that only the most dour can resist.

The former Menudo member was also at #47 this week with “The Cup of Life,” which was the anthem for the 1998 FIFA World Cup.

6. Backstreet Boys – I Want It That Way

 

In 1999 the TRL era was in full swing – having debuted in the fall of the previous year – and one of the songs that most represents this era is “I Want It That Way.” With its insanely catchy chorus that sticks in your head for weeks at a time – it’s probably stuck in your head right now just from reading the song title – it’s one of the many feathers in producer/songwriter Max Martin’s cap.

11. TLC – No Scrubs

 

TLC had two songs on the chart this week back in ’99, as in addition to “No Scrubs” being at #11, “Unpretty” was at #65. Of the two, I chose to highlight “No Scrubs” because it sparked one of the greatest reply tracks of all-time, and you have to know the original to understand the reply, which we’ll be getting to in just a bit.

12. Christina Aguilera – Genie In A Bottle

 

One of the pop princesses of TRL, Christina Aguilera debuted with this suggestive pop gem. I feel ancient when I hear it on the oldies station, but I always turn it up.

13. Smash Mouth – All Star

 

I’m not sure how, but Smash Mouth’s “All Star” went from being a song that was fun, to a song that people made fun of, to being a beloved hit of the era. Its roundabout trajectory to classic status shows that, in the end, fun will always win.

14. Sporty Thievz – No Pigeons

 

As promised, here’s the humorous reply to TLC’s “No Scrubs.”

With “No Pigeons,” Sporty Thievz introduced the term “pigeon” into our lexicon, and while this song didn’t last as long as “No Scrubs,” for many it’s just as memorable.

15. Sixpence None the Richer – Kiss Me

 

Boosted by being the theme song for the teen rom-com She’s All That, “Kiss Me” became a hit pretty much everyone loves.

A lot of folks consider Sixpence None the Richer a one hit wonder, but their follow up single, a cover of The La’s “There She Goes,” reached #32 on the Billboard Hot 100, and received a ton of airplay on both radio, and MTV.

Even if you still feel “Kiss Me” is their only true hit, it’s a heck of a hit to have.

25. Sugar Ray – Every Morning

 

The first of two Sugar Ray songs on this chart, with “Someday” coming in later at #52, “Every Morning” was one of a string of songs from the former metal band that embraced the breezy California pop-rock round that made them famous. It started with “Fly,” and Mark McGrath and crew smartly rode that wave through the late ‘90s into the 2000s, and up through a number of nostalgia tours in the 2010s. You know what, it still sounds great today!

39. Ja Rule – Holla Holla

 

With his ability to be both aggressive, and make himself compatible with R&B, and pop artists, Ja Rule had the kind of career that made his haters seethe.

His debut single, “Holla Holla,” had a litany of hip-hop lovers shouting “It’s Murda!” although, fast-forwarding to 2017, Fyre Festival concert goers probably felt that way about the conditions they found themselves in.

40. Citizen King – Better Days (and the Bottom Drops Out)

 

Citizen King should’ve had more hits. I say this having only heard this one Citizen King song, but if I ever see their album while going through used CDs I’ll pick it up, because “Better Days (and the Bottom Drops Out)” is so good that it makes them a one hit wonder I’m genuinely curious to hear more from.

42. Blessid Union of Souls – Hey Leonardo (She Likes Me for Me)

 

An irresistibly happy tune about a guy who’s in love with the fact that his girl loves him for who he is, faults and all, Blessid Union of Souls’ pop culture reference filled “Hey Leonardo (She Likes Me for Me)” was ever-present in 1999. The chorus was an earworm you actually liked having stuck in your head, and pretty much everything about the song makes you smile.

Although they haven’t had a hit since, Blessid Union of Souls are still making music, having released an album as recently as 2021.

51. Lit – My Own Worst Enemy

 

“My Own Worst Enemy” is a song I feel a great connection with because it was spun at least twice a night whenever I’d hit the bars my senior year of college.

I think most of us have had at least one or two times when we could relate to the lyrics about finding out you made some bad decisions while on the sauce, making it a perfect song to crank up, and sing along to, even – or perhaps especially – all these years later.

75. Orgy – Blue Monday

 

An industrial rock cover of a New Order classic, Orgy’s spin on “Blue Monday” is the rare cover that measures up to the original, perhaps because it’s so radically different.

The song is off Orgy’s debut album, Candyass, which is a worthy addition to anyone’s collection of ‘90s music.

78. Juvenile – Back That Azz Up

 

“Cash Money Records taking over for the ’99, and the 2000!”

As soon as you heard that intro you KNEW the party was about to get wild.

I cannot begin to express how crazy things became when a DJ threw on “Back That Azz Up.” All I can say is it inspired a lotta folks to live up to the song’s title.

98. The Offspring – Why Don’t You Get A Job?

 

The Offspring at their hilarious best, “Why Don’t You Get A Job?” takes aim at lazy significant others. While I’m sure the fun police would write negative thinkpieces about it today, the song’s opening salvo of “My friend’s got a girlfriend, man, he hates that bitch” still inspires legions of listeners to shout along to the very end.

That’s all for this edition of Pop Shots, but come back next Monday for more shots on all things pop.