"Clap Back" is a song by American rapper

Ja Rule Jeffrey Bruce Atkins (born February 29, 1976), better known by his stage name Ja Rule (), is an American rapper, singer, and actor. Born and raised in New York City, Ja Rule became known for blending gangsta rap with pop rap, pop and contempo ...

, released as the only single from his fifth studio album, ''

Blood in My Eye ''Blood in My Eye'' is the fifth studio album by American rapper Ja Rule, released on November 4, 2003, by Murder Inc., Island Def Jam Music Group and Def Jam. The album was originally planned to be released as a mixtape. The release took place ...

'' (2003). It was produced by American producer Scott Storch, who helped write the song along with Ja Rule and

Irv Gotti Irving Domingo Lorenzo Jr. (June 26, 1970 – February 5, 2025), professionally known as Irv Gotti or DJ Irv, was an American record producer and music executive. Gotti started off as a New York hip-hop DJ in the 1980s, then becoming an A&R t ...

. In the United States, the song was released along with "The Crown" (featuring

Sizzla Miguel Orlando Collins (born 17 April 1976), known by his stage name Sizzla Kalonji or Sizzla, is a Jamaican reggae musician. He is one of the most commercially and critically successful contemporary reggae artists and is noted for his high num ...

) from ''Blood in My Eye'', and in the UK the song was released alongside " Murder Reigns" (titled "Reigns"), the final single from Ja Rule's previous studio album '' The Last Temptation'' (2002). The song is a

diss track A diss track, diss record or diss song (an abbreviation of ''disrespect'' or ''disparage'') is a song whose primary purpose is to verbally attack someone else, usually another artist. Diss tracks are often the result of an existing, escalating feu ...

directed at

50 Cent Curtis James Jackson III (born July 6, 1975), known professionally as 50 Cent, is an American rapper, actor, and television producer. Born in Queens, a borough of New York City, Jackson began pursuing a musical career in 1996. In 1999–2000, ...

and

Eminem Marshall Bruce Mathers III (born October 17, 1972), known professionally as Eminem, is an American rapper, songwriter, and record producer. Regarded as one of the greatest and most influential rappers of all time, he is credited with popula ...

, with lines such as "Like Bush and Saddam, I'm-a find out where Em Laden's hiding and bomb him first", "And God gave me his blessings to handle my business, All these

wanksta "Wanksta" is a song by American rapper 50 Cent, released on November 5, 2002, as the third single from the soundtrack to the film '' 8 Mile'' (2002). The single, produced by Sha Money XL and John "J-Praize" Freeman, reached number 13 on the U ...

snitches, let the nina blow kisses, If she some how misses, he gon' meet the mistress, And 'Clap that boy' like Birdman and Clipse". Another line, "Fuck the Dog, beware of Rule, 'cause I'm the problem", was also interpreted as being aimed at DMX.. The song is the origin of the popular slang 'clap back' in street lingo, meaning to respond or retaliate to personal attack or criticism.

Video

The video features a snippet of "The Crown" in the beginning and then switches to "Clap Back".

Benzino Raymond Scott (born July 18, 1965), better known by his stage name Benzino or Ray Benzino, is an American urban media proprietor, television personality, rapper and record producer. Benzino produced records (as part of the production team Hang ...

Hussein Fatal Bruce Edward Washington Jr. (April 3, 1973July 10, 2015), better known by his stage name Hussein Fatal or sometimes as Fatal Hussein, was an American rapper, best known for his collaborative work with Tupac Shakur as a member of the rap group Ou ...

and various

Murder Inc Murder, Inc. (Murder, Incorporated) was an organized crime group active from 1929 to 1941 that acted as the enforcement arm of the National Crime Syndicatea closely connected criminal organization that included Italian-American Mafia, the Jewish ...

artists appear.

Track listing

US CD single # "Clap Back" (radio edit) – 4:16 # "Clap Back" (album version) – 4:57 # "The Crown" (featuring

; radio edit) – 3:45 # "Clap Back" (video) – 5:33

Charts

References

2003 singles 2003 songs Ja Rule songs Def Jam Recordings singles Gangsta rap songs Diss tracks Song recordings produced by Scott Storch Songs written by Ja Rule Songs written by Scott Storch {{2000s-hiphop-song-stub