Songoftheday 12/06/24 - Houston bust straight through I see me I see you, you're body's calling I'm gonna blow yo back...

 

 

"I Like That" - Houston featuring Chingy, Nate Dogg, and I-20

from the album It's Already Written (2004)

Billboard Hot 100 peak: #11 (three weeks)

Weeks in the Top-40: 16

 

Today's song comes from R&B singer Houston (Summers IV), who grew up in Los Angeles, and went to a music-centric high school before eventually being signed by Capitol Records. In the spring of 2004, Houston (recording just under his first name) released his first single from his upcoming debut album It's Already Written. "I Like That", written by Summers with producers Alonzo Lee and Shamar Daugherty, aka the Trak Stars, as well as hired hand Mischke Butler (who co-wrote songs for the Spice Girls and Britney Spears), as well as the two featured rappers and one featured singer on the track. Chingy was red hot at the time for his trio of top ten pop hits ("Right Thurr", "Holidae In", and "One Call Away"), while Nate Dogg had sang on a slew of seminal G-Funk hits as well as his own solo work, and most recently had been a featured guest on Westside Connection's Top-40 hit "Gangsta Nation" in 2003. Even newcomer I-20 had appeared on Ludacris' top ten pop hit "Move B***h" in the autumn of 2002. The lyrics have Houston (who just was turning 21, mind) apparently at a strip club flush with cash, commanding the women to "work" for their tips. Dogg acts as his singing sideman, while Chingy and to a more extent I-20 throw in short interludes to the affair. The production from the Trak Stars is punchy but repetitive, and overpowered Houston's vocals, while Chingy seems to be the only one to shine past the groove. I-20's short verse isn't bad, but in total this is another time-killer at the strip club while people were waiting for the epic jam (cue up "Yeah!"), but it's clear that that he set the stage for what Chris Brown would be starting out with down the road...

"I Like That" spent three weeks right outside the top ten on Billboard magazine's Hot 100 in August of 2004, while actually only getting to #14 on their R&B/Hip-Hop Singles chart, but did climb to #6 on the Rap Songs list. On the radio, the song peaked at #9 on the Mainstream Top-40 chart, #12 on the Mainstream R&B/Hip-Hop list, and #3 on the dance/R&B-oriented Rhythmic format. Internationally, the single did decently for an American hip-hop track, making the top ten in New Zealand (#4) and Switzerland (#5), and reaching the top 40 in the United Kingdom (#11), Australia (#12), Norway (#14), Belgium (#14 Wallonia/#26 Flanders), Canada (#15 airplay), the Netherlands (#17), Denmark (#17), Germany (#18), Italy (#28), France (#29), Hungary (#38), and Ireland (#39). The It's Already Written album, released in August as the single was cresting, came in at #14 on the Billboard 200 sales tally, and #6 on the R&B Albums list, going on to sell over a half million copies.

Houston's second single, "Ain't Nothing Wrong", was a pleasant if not especially groundbreaking slow jam in the style of 90's soul groups like Silk, but it didn't grab a new audience or keep much of the old, stopping at #70 on Billboard's R&B chart and not coming close to the Hot 100, though it scored a second British top-40 hit at #33.

Sadly, Houston fell into addiction as his fortunes faded and the business abandoned him, and while on tour tried to unalive himself, ending up mutilating his eye in a drug-fueled frenzy. After recovering, he's stayed away from the music scene. 

I-20, aka Bobby Sandimanie, put out one album, Self-Explanatory, in the fall of 2004, which went to #42 on the Billboard 200 sales tally, and #5 on the R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart. It's only hit single "Break Bread" which featured "bigger" rappers Ludacris and Bone Crusher, stalled at #78 on Billboard's R&B/Hip-Hop Singles chart. 

Nate Dogg will be back together as a featured artist, and Chingy will be back multiple times as a lead.

(4/10)

(Click below to see the rest of the post)

Here's Houston with I-20 and Chingy performing live for BET...

and lastly, Houston with a cameo from Nate Dogg on the Pepsi Smash show...

Tomorrow I'll roll out my top hits of this week, then on Monday we have a British R&B trio combing the tabloids.