With its slow, sensual guitar riff and that hypnotic humming, Blackstreet’s “No Diggity” worked its way into my seven-year-old heart. “No Diggity” quickly replaced “Macarena” as my favorite song in the fall of 1996; I loved belting out the infectious — and English-language! — chorus. Neither my parents nor I understood the meaning of said chorus, which explains why they happily bought me the single — on CD, no less — and I effectively began my love affair with hip hop.
Blackstreet’s effortless blend of hard rap and smooth, sexy R&B sets the bar high for today’s genre-bending collaborations; they truly perfected the form. Between the brusque rhymes of Dr. Dre and Teddy Riley’s confident crooning, “No Diggity” feels as fresh and exciting as it did 13 years ago. Its beat still challenges you not to dance, and its bridge still begs for a sing-a-long, be it at summer camp or the bar. Queen Pen says it best in her verse: this track “stays kickin’ game with a capital G.”
