21 Seconds

Composition and production

The song uses fairly stripped back production, utilising a 2-step rhythm which was common in UK garage at the time. Lisa Maffia's young daughter, Chelsea, can be heard at the beginning of the track, saying "Ha, ha, ha, whatcha laughin at?"

The song title alludes to the approximate 21 seconds that each of the band members is given to perform their rap. 21 seconds is arrived at as the song's tempo is approximately 140BPM, has a key of G minor, and each rapper has 12 bars of 4 beats (48 beats at 140BPM, when worked out to the nearest integer, rounds to 21 seconds). Megaman said the crew created the track after their label told them to make a track lasting three and a half minutes. He said "so we worked out that with at least 10 or 11 members, that's eight bars each – 21 seconds. It was a simple calculation." Their label manager Shabs Jobanputra said "they literally took a calculator and divided the time by the number of MCs."

Music video

The music video for "21 Seconds" was directed by Max Giwa and Dania Pasquini and was released on 2001. It features members from So Solid Crew performing during the storm in front of fences full of people dancing. It heavily uses special effects such as the storm, clouds, helicopters, lightning, tornado, etc.

The music video received the award for British Video of the Year at the 2002 Brit Awards.

Critical reception

In a 2002 review, Pete Paphides in The Guardian said the track was "a brilliant idea" but that "not a single member of the collective uses their time to say anything remotely insightful." In September 2019, NME included the song in their "25 essential UK garage anthems" list. In a 2020 retrospective review of the single, The Quietus said the track "managed to capture the excitement of clubs and pirate radio, with MCs frantically passing the mic as they try to outdo each other in lyrical prowess, creative aggression bubbling beneath the surface." The same year, The Guardian placed the song at number 48 on their list of "The 100 Greatest UK No 1 Singles".

Commercial performance

"21 Seconds" reached number one on the UK Singles Chart in August 2001, selling 118,135 copies in its opening week and becoming 2001's 19th best-selling single. Its total sales reached 423,000. The single also peaked at number 24 in Ireland.

Track listings

UK CD single

1. "21 Seconds" (original So Solid version)
2. "21 Seconds" (12-inch version)
3. "21 Seconds" (DJ Swiss & Dan Da Man remix vocal)
4. "21 Seconds" (video)

UK 12-inch single :A1. "21 Seconds" (original So Solid version) :A2. "21 Seconds" (12-inch version) :B1. "21 Seconds" (DJ Swiss & Dan Da Man remix vocal) :B2. "21 Seconds" (DJ Swiss & Dan Da Man remix instrumental) UK cassette single

1. "21 Seconds" (original So Solid version)
2. "21 Seconds" (12-inch version)

European CD1

1. "21 Seconds" (Seven Gemini remix)
2. "21 Seconds" (radio edit) – 3:54

European CD2

1. "21 Seconds" (Seven Gemini remix)
2. "21 Seconds" (Seven Gemini remix instrumental)
3. "21 Seconds" (radio edit)
4. "21 Seconds" (Seven Gemini remix video)

Charts

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

Certifications

Release history

Other versions

Romeo reworked "21 Seconds" for car insurance firm Confused.com in 2013. The same year, Preditah reworked the track. On 6 September 2019, So Solid Crew went to the Red Bull Music Studios, London, and remixed "21 Seconds" with Toddla T. They were joined by D Double E, Ms Banks and DJ Q as they added new verses.

References

References

1. Beaumont-Thomas, Ben. (17 October 2017). "So Solid Crew: how we made 21 Seconds". [[The Guardian]].
2. (23 April 2020). "Does Rock ‘N’ Roll Kill Braincells?! – Megaman, So Solid Crew".
3. "What Made the Songs of So Solid Crew So Special?".
4. Jackson, Jamie. (24 April 2005). "Ready to blow". The Guardian.
5. Paphides, Peter. (5 October 2002). "Crew's Control". [[The Guardian]].
6. (16 September 2019). "The best UK garage tracks of all time".
7. "The Quietus | Features | Low Culture | Low Culture 5: So Solid Crew's They Don't Know".
8. (5 June 2020). "The 100 Greatest UK No 1s: 100–1".
9. "All the Number 1s". [[Official Charts Company]].
10. [[So Solid Crew]]. (2001). "21 Seconds". [[Relentless Records]].
11. So Solid Crew. (2001). "21 Seconds". Relentless Records.
12. So Solid Crew. (2001). "21 Seconds". Relentless Records.
13. So Solid Crew. (2001). "21 Seconds". Relentless Records.
14. So Solid Crew. (2001). "21 Seconds". Relentless Records.
15. (25 August 2001). "Eurochart Hot 100 Singles".
16. (May 2020). "Top 10 Dance Singles, Week Ending 23 August 2001". [[GfK Chart-Track]].
17. "The Official UK Singles Chart 2001". [[UKChartsPlus]].
18. Hubner, Miriam. (25 August 2001). "Airborne".
19. (4 August 2001). "New Releases – For Week Starting August 6, 2001: Singles".
20. (22 October 2001). "The ARIA Report: New Releases Singles – Week Commencing 22nd October 2001". [[Australian Recording Industry Association.
21. (23 September 2013). "So Solid Crew's Romeo re-records '21 Seconds' for car insurance advert; watch here".
22. (25 March 2013). "Hear Preditah's cover of So Solid Crew's '21 Seconds'".
23. "So Solid Crew Remix 21 Seconds with D Double E, Ms Banks, Toddla T & DJ Q | Studios Live". [[YouTube]].