21 Questions

Background

When producer Dr. Dre worked with 50 Cent on his debut album, he objected to the song being included on the tracklist. According to 50 Cent:

50 Cent responded saying:

Music video

Directed by Damon Johnson, Dr. Dre and Phillip Atwell in March 2003, the music video for "21 Questions" depicts 50 Cent being arrested and confined to prison, where he tries to keep in touch with his girlfriend, played by Meagan Good. In prison, he is constantly harassed by a rival inmate (Tyson Beckford). The video ends with a continuation of the beginning, showing 50 Cent and his girlfriend watching from their home as the police arrest Beckford instead; the prison scenes are revealed to be a hypothetical scenario imagined by a worried 50 Cent. The video has cameo appearances by Nate Dogg (who provides vocals on the chorus and the outro) and fellow G-Unit members Lloyd Banks and Young Buck as other inmates.

On April 15, 2003, the video debuted on MTV's Total Request Live at number six, reached number one two days later, and stayed on the chart for 50 days. It also reached number two on the MuchMusic video charts.

The music video on YouTube has received over 605 million views as of July 2024.

Remixes

Official remixes of the single includes featured artists among the likes of Nate Dogg, Monica, Free and Lil' Mo, all of whom have either rapped or sung their own verses over the song's instrumentals.

"21 Answers"

• hip hop
• Nick Corrado
• Kevin Risto
• Jimmy Cameron
• Vela M. Cameron "21 Answers" is remix recorded by American singer and rapper Lil' Mo and former 106 & Park co-host Free, as an answer song to "21 Questions." Kevin "Dirty Swift" Risto, one-half of Midi Mafia, originally conceived the idea of creating a female response record; he immediately got in touch with Lil' Mo and added Free as a collaborator. The song subsequently premiered on New York's Hot 97 radio station—resulting in numerous rotations on various radio stations across the United States—and later debuted on the US Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs at number 77. Although the song went on to spend 11 weeks on the chart based solely on airplay, it failed to be included on Lil' Mo's second studio album Meet the Girl Next Door (2003), due to the song not being finalized in time to meet the album's deadline. However, because of Elektra Records' 2004 merging with Atlantic, the song appeared on the 2011 re-release of Meet the Girl Next Door.

Charts

Track listings

• UK CD single

1. "21 Questions" - 3:44
2. "Soldier (Freestyle with G-Unit) - 3:18
3. "21 Questions" (Live from New York) - 4:54
4. "21 Questions" (Music Video) - 3:49

• French CD single

1. "21 Questions" - 3:44
2. "21 Answers" (featuring Monica) - 4:03

Credits and personnel

• Producer: Dirty Swift of Midi Mafia
• Mixed by: Dr. Dre
• Recorded by: Sha Money XL and Maurico "Veto" Iragorri
• Protool edits by: Carlise Young
• Assisted by: Ruben Rivera

Charts

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

Certifications

Release history

Myke Towers version

• Nick Corrado
• Kevin Risto
• Jimmy Cameron
• Vela M. Cameron

In 2020, Puerto Rican rapper/singer Myke Towers released a Spanish version of the song titled "Girl" for his album Easy Money Baby. His version is all in the same rhythm as the original but the message of the lyrics is different. His version entered the charts in the Hispanic market and was certified quintuple platinum in the United States.

Charts

Certifications

References

References

1. "50 Cent Chart History: Billboard Hot 100".
2. Allison Samuels, February 21, 2007. [http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/6959748/site/newsweek/ The Flip Side of 50 Cent] {{webarchive. link. (August 10, 2010 . MSNBC. Retrieved July 7, 2007.)
3. Reid, Shaheem (May 2, 2003). [https://web.archive.org/web/20030608145512/http://www.mtv.com/bands/123/50_cent/news_feature_050203/index2.jhtml 50 Cent: Still Hungry After 4 Million Records]. MTV. Retrieved July 7, 2007.
4. [http://host17.hrwebservices.net/~atrl/trlarchive/db.html TRL Archive Debuts] {{webarchive. link. (January 2, 2008 . ''Popfusion''. Retrieved July 7, 2007.)
5. Universal Urban (April 24, 2007). {{usurped
6. [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cDMhlvbOFaM 50 Cent - 21 Questions (Official Music Video) ft. Nate Dogg].[[YouTube]]
7. Bronson, Fred. (2003). "The Billboard Book of Number One Hits: Updated and Expanded 5th Edition". Watson-Guptill Publications.
8. Jessen, Wade. "Singles Minded > Back and Forth." ''[[Billboard (magazine). Billboard]]''. May 10, 2003: 67. Print.
9. Brown, Jamie Foster. "Lil' Mo has '21 Answers' for 50 Cent." ''[[Sister 2 Sister]]''. September 2003: 27. Print.
10. "Meet The Girl Next Door: Lil' Mo".
11. "Lil' Mo - Chart history".
12. (April 13, 2011). "21 Questions – 50 Cent". AllMusic.
13. "21 Questions".
14. "50 Cent Chart History (Canadian Digital Song Sales)".
15. "Canadian Top 20 in 2003".
16. "ARIA Top 100 Singles for 2003". Australian Recording Industry Association.
17. (2003). "Top 100 Songs of 2003". [[Raidió Teilifís Éireann]].
18. "Top 100–Jaaroverzicht van 2003". Dutch Top 40.
19. "Jaaroverzichten – Single 2003". MegaCharts.
20. "Schweizer Jahreshitparade 2003".
21. "The Official UK Singles Chart 2003". [[UKChartsPlus]].
22. (January 17, 2004). "2003 Urban top 30".
23. "2003 – Billboard Top 100".
24. "Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs – Year-End 2003".
25. (April 4, 2003). "Going for Adds".
26. (May 13, 2003). "21 Questions – 50 Cent". [[Interscope Records]].
27. (June 30, 2003). "New Releases Singles – Week Commencing 30th June 2003". [[Australian Recording Industry Association]].
28. (June 28, 2003). "New Releases – For Week Starting 30 June 2003".
29. (August 19, 2003). "21 questions – 50 Cent – CD single". [[Polydor Records]].
30. [https://galaxymusicpromo.com/myke-towers-lanza-su-tan-esperado-album-inedito-easy-money-baby/ MYKE TOWERS LANZA SU TAN ESPERADO ÁLBUM INÉDITO «EASY MONEY BABY»]
31. [https://estacion40.com.py/myke-towers-samplea-a-50-cent-en-girl/ MYKE TOWERS SAMPLEA A 50 CENT EN “GIRL”]