"Woo Baby"
Single by Pop Smoke featuring Chris Brown
from the album Faith
ReleasedJuly 22, 2021
GenreR&B
Length2:36
Label
Songwriter(s)
Producer(s)
  • Boogz
  • 2300
  • Jess Jackson (addi.)
Pop Smoke singles chronology
"Demeanor"
(2021) 		"Woo Baby"
(2021) 		"Bad Boys"
(2021)
Chris Brown singles chronology
"Angles"
(2021) 		"Woo Baby"
(2021) 		"Nostálgico"
(2021)
Audio video
"Woo Baby" on YouTube

"Woo Baby" is a song by American rapper Pop Smoke, featuring American singer Chris Brown, from the former's posthumous second studio album, Faith (2021). The song was written by the two artists alongside Steven Victor, Brittany "Chi" Choney, Denisa "Blue Jeans" Andrews, Linden Bascom, Ryan Press, and producers BoogzDaBeast (Boogz), 2300, and Jess Jackson, with additional writing credits going to Ne-Yo and Stargate for the sampling of the former's "So Sick".

The song was released to rhythmic contemporary formats in the United States on July 22, 2021, as the third single from the album. Musically, "Woo Baby" is an R&B track that uses trap production. Commercially, it reached number 64 on the US Billboard Hot 100 and number 49 on the Billboard Global 200. The song did better outside of Pop Smoke's native United States, peaking within the top 25 of record charts in New Zealand and Australia.

Background and release

On July 15, 2021, Pop Smoke's manager Haitian-American record executive Steven Victor revealed Faith's track list via his Instagram that included the song with a feature from American R&B singer Chris Brown.[1] Pop Smoke's second posthumous studio album Faith was released via Victor Victor Worldwide and Republic Records on July 16, 2021, with "Woo Baby" as the fifteenth track on Faith.[2] "Woo Baby" impacted American rhythmic contemporary radio as the album's third on July 22, 2021.[3]

Writing and composition

"Woo Baby" was written by Pop Smoke and Brown alongside Victor, Jess Jackson, Ne-Yo, Mikkel Eriksen, Tor Hermansen, Brittany "Chi" Choney, Denisa "Blue Jeans" Andrews, BoogzDaBeast under the moniker of Boogz, Linden Bascom, and Ryan Press.[4] It was produced by Boogz and 2300, with additional production from Jackson.[4] Musically, "Woo Baby" is an R&B[5] song that uses trap production.[6] The track uses an uncredited sample of American singer-songwriter Ne-Yo's 2005 number one hit single "So Sick".[7][8][9]

Reception

A.D. Amorosi, writing for Variety, described "Woo Baby" as a "dusky R&B duet".[5] Preezy Brown of Vibe magazine saw the song as a "bedroom romper" and mentioned that the "collaborative effort with Chris Brown proves [it]".[10] Writing for The Ringer, Micah Peters called Brown's feature on the song "unwelcome[d]".[11] In a negative review, Alphonse Pierre for Pitchfork mentioned he "[felt] dirty" while listening to "Woo Baby" and stated it was "obviously made to fill the radio airwaves with white noise".[8] Keith Nelson Jr. and Austin Williams for Vibe placed the song at number two on their list of "21 Songs That Were Probably Snubbed From Those Other Year-End Lists". Both authors stated that Brown "carries his end of this duet so deftly", and mentioned the song "contains the very best of Pop Smoke's artistry. And out of respect for said artistry, this should probably be the last the world hears of it".[12] In January 2022, "Woo Baby" was ranked at number 61 on Tinder Australia's "Top 100 Dating Anthems" list, which was based on the most popular songs on Australian Tinder profiles throughout 2021.[13]

Following the release of Faith, "Woo Baby" debuted and peaked at number 64 on the US Billboard Hot 100 and number 49 on the Billboard Global 200.[14][15] It further peaked at number 22 on the Billboard Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart.[16] After "Woo Baby" was released as a single, it peaked at number four on the Billboard airplay Rhythmic chart, giving Pop Smoke his fifth and Brown his 47th top-10 hit on the chart, respectively.[17][18] In the UK Singles Chart, the song debuted and peaked at number 54, becoming Pop Smoke's 13th and Brown's 53rd top 75 hit in the United Kingdom, respectively.[19][20][21] Additionally, the song reached number 22 in New Zealand,[22] number 24 in Australia,[23] number 31 in Canada,[24] number 41 in Switzerland,[25] number 58 in the Netherlands,[26] number 81 in Italy,[27] number 95 in France,[28] and number 105 in Portugal.[29]

Credits and personnel

Credits adapted from Tidal.[4]

Charts

Certifications

Region Certification Certified units/sales
United Kingdom (BPI)[34] Silver 200,000‡

‡ Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone.

Release history

Release dates and formats for "Woo Baby"
Region Date Format(s) Label(s) Ref.
United States July 22, 2021 Rhythmic contemporary radio
[3]

References

  1. ^ Kreps, Daniel (July 15, 2021). "Kanye West, Dua Lipa, Pusha T Feature on New Pop Smoke Posthumous LP". Rolling Stone. Archived from the original on August 31, 2021. Retrieved August 27, 2021.
  2. ^ Breihan, Tom (July 16, 2021). "Stream Pop Smoke's New Album Faith Feat. Kanye West, Dua Lipa, Pusha T, & More". Stereogum. Archived from the original on July 16, 2021. Retrieved July 16, 2021.
  3. ^ a b "Top 40 Rhythmic Crossover Radio Music News, Charts, Top Songs, Stations". All Access. Archived from the original on July 23, 2021. Retrieved November 23, 2021.
  4. ^ a b c "Credits / Faith (Deluxe) / Pop Smoke". Tidal. Retrieved December 3, 2021.
  5. ^ a b Amorosi, A.D. (July 16, 2021). "Pop Smoke's Second Posthumous Album, 'Faith,' Brings in More Guests and a Broader Palette: Album Review". Variety. Archived from the original on July 30, 2021. Retrieved August 4, 2021.
  6. ^ MoorWood, Victoria (December 28, 2021). "2021 In Review: 8 Trends That Defined R&B". Grammy Awards. Retrieved December 31, 2021.
  7. ^ High, Kemet (July 26, 2021). "Pop Smoke's Most Essential Songs You Need to Hear". XXL. Retrieved November 23, 2021.
  8. ^ a b Pierre, Alphonse (July 21, 2021). "Pop Smoke: Faith Album Review". Pitchfork. Archived from the original on July 21, 2021. Retrieved July 21, 2021.
  9. ^ "Pop Smoke's 'Woo Baby' Featuring Chris Brown - Watch Now!". Billboard. July 26, 2021. Retrieved January 25, 2022.
  10. ^ Brown, Preezy (July 16, 2021). "New Music Friday: Pop Smoke, Blxst, Tink, Rubi Rose, Trippie Redd, Logic". Vibe. Retrieved December 3, 2021.
  11. ^ Peters, Micah (July 22, 2021). "The Ideal Posthumous Album Doesn't Exist". The Ringer. Archived from the original on August 2, 2021. Retrieved July 30, 2021.
  12. ^ Nelson Jr., Keith; Williams, Austin (December 21, 2021). "21 Songs That Were Probably Snubbed From Those Other Year-End Lists". Vibe. Retrieved December 25, 2021.
  13. ^ Lowther, Amber (January 19, 2022). "Tinder Has Released The Top 100 Dating Anthems For Aussies". Hit Network. Retrieved April 7, 2022.
  14. ^ a b "Pop Smoke Chart History (Hot 100)". Billboard. Retrieved July 27, 2021.
  15. ^ a b "Pop Smoke Chart History (Global 200)". Billboard. Retrieved July 27, 2021.
  16. ^ a b "Pop Smoke Chart History (Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs)". Billboard. Retrieved July 27, 2021.
  17. ^ a b "Pop Smoke Chart History (Rhythmic)". Billboard. Retrieved August 2, 2021.
  18. ^ "Chris Brown Chart History (Rhythmic Airplay)". Billboard. Retrieved November 19, 2021.
  19. ^ a b "Official Singles Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved July 23, 2021.
  20. ^ "Pop Smoke | full Official Chart History". Official Charts Company. Archived from the original on November 7, 2021. Retrieved November 18, 2021.
  21. ^ "Chris Brown | full Official Chart History". Official Charts Company. Retrieved November 18, 2021.
  22. ^ a b "NZ Singles Chart". Recorded Music NZ. August 3, 2020. Retrieved August 3, 2020.
  23. ^ a b "Pop Smoke feat. Chris Brown – Woo Baby". ARIA Top 50 Singles. Retrieved August 28, 2021.
  24. ^ a b "Pop Smoke Chart History (Canadian Hot 100)". Billboard. Retrieved July 27, 2021.
  25. ^ a b "Pop Smoke feat. Chris Brown – Woo Baby". Swiss Singles Chart. Retrieved July 26, 2021.
  26. ^ a b "Pop Smoke feat. Chris Brown – Woo Baby" (in Dutch). Single Top 100. Retrieved August 28, 2021.
  27. ^ a b "Top Digital - Classifica settimanale WK 15 (dal 2015-04-06 al 2015-04-12)". Federazione Industria Musicale Italiana. Retrieved September 25, 2015.
  28. ^ a b "Pop Smoke feat. Chris Brown – Woo Baby" (in French). Les classement single. Retrieved August 28, 2021.
  29. ^ a b "Pop Smoke feat. Chris Brown – Woo Baby". AFP Top 100 Singles. Retrieved July 29, 2021.
  30. ^ "IFPI Charts". IFPI Greece. Archived from the original on August 11, 2021. Retrieved January 27, 2024.
  31. ^ "Official Hip Hop and R&B Singles Chart Top 40". Official Charts Company. Retrieved July 23, 2021.
  32. ^ "Pop Smoke Chart History (Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Airplay)". Billboard. Retrieved December 19, 2023.
  33. ^ "Rhythmic Songs – Year-End 2021". Billboard. Retrieved December 2, 2021.
  34. ^ "British single certifications – Pop Smoke – Woo Bany". British Phonographic Industry. Retrieved May 18, 2023.
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