"Crack a Bottle" is a song by American rapper

Eminem Marshall Bruce Mathers III (born October 17, 1972), known professionally as Eminem (; often stylized as EMINƎM), is an American rapper and record producer. He is credited with popularizing hip hop in middle America and is critically acclai ...

featuring Dr. Dre and

50 Cent Curtis James Jackson III (born July 6, 1975), known professionally as 50 Cent, is an American rapper, actor, and businessman. Born in the South Jamaica neighborhood of Queens, Jackson began pursuing a musical career in 2000, when he produced ...

. The song was released as the

lead single A lead single (also known as a debut single) is the first single to be released from a studio album by an artist or a band, usually before the album itself is released and also occasionally on the same day of the album's release date. Release ...

from Eminem's album ''

Relapse In internal medicine, relapse or recidivism is a recurrence of a past (typically medical) condition. For example, multiple sclerosis and malaria often exhibit peaks of activity and sometimes very long periods of dormancy, followed by relapse or ...

'' (2009). On February 12, 2009, the song broke the first week digital sales record with 418,000 downloads, topping the previous record held by " Live Your Life" by T.I. featuring

Rihanna Robyn Rihanna Fenty ( ; born February 20, 1988) is a Barbadian singer, actress, and businesswoman. Born in Saint Michael and raised in Bridgetown, Barbados, Rihanna auditioned for American record producer Evan Rogers who invited her to t ...

. This record was broken again the following week by " Right Round" by

Flo Rida Tramar Lacel Dillard (born September 16, 1979), better known by his stage name Flo Rida (, ), is an American rapper and singer. His 2007 breakout single "Low" was number one for 10 weeks in the United States and broke the record for digital down ...

. The song won the

Grammy Award The Grammy Awards (stylized as GRAMMY), or simply known as the Grammys, are awards presented by the Recording Academy of the United States to recognize "outstanding" achievements in the music industry. They are regarded by many as the most pre ...

for Best Rap Performance by a Duo or Group in 2010.

Background

"Crack a Bottle" initially gained attention in December 2008, when an unfinished version of the song was initially leaked under the name "Number One" on the mixtape ''4th Quarter Pressure Part 2'', while a final working version was leaked on January 6, 2009. Various media outlets had reported that the recording was to be the first single from Eminem's 2009 album ''

'', however the Italian branch of

Universal Music Group Universal Music Group N.V. (often abbreviated as UMG and referred to as just Universal Music) is a Dutch– American multinational music corporation under Dutch law. UMG's corporate headquarters are located in Hilversum, Netherlands and its ...

, owner of

Interscope Records Interscope Records is an American record label owned by Universal Music Group through its Interscope Geffen A&M imprint. Founded in late 1990 by Jimmy Iovine and Ted Field as a $20 million joint venture with Atlantic Records of Warner Mu ...

, later denied this, stating that "Crack a Bottle" was only a

promotional recording A promotional recording, or promo, or plug copy, is an audio or video recording distributed free, usually in order to promote a recording that is or soon will be commercially available. Promos are normally sent directly to broadcasters, such as ...

. Despite all this, the song was released on February 2, 2009, and made available for paid digital download, with 50 Cent stating that the song will be included on his upcoming album ''

Before I Self Destruct ''Before I Self Destruct'' is the fourth studio album by American rapper 50 Cent, released November 9, 2009 on Shady Records, Aftermath Entertainment, G-Unit Records, Interscope Records and Universal Music Group. The album is his final solo rel ...

''. According to Danielle Harling of ''HipHopDX''—a website dedicated to hip hop music coverage—the song will ultimately be present on both ''Relapse'' and ''Before I Self Destruct'', while in contrast, Daniel Kreps of ''

Rolling Stone ''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner, and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. It was first known for its co ...

Magazine'' stated that it is still unsure which rapper will feature this song on his upcoming album. Despite the confusion, Universal eventually announced that "Crack a Bottle" would be included in ''Relapse'' exclusively, although it did not consider it the album's first single. The song samples "Mais dans la lumière" by

Mike Brant Mike Brant (born Moshe Michael Brand, he, משה מיכאל ברנד, 1 February 1947 – 25 April 1975) was an Israeli singer and songwriter who achieved fame after moving to France. His most successful hit was "Laisse-moi t'aimer" ("Let Me Lov ...

, written by Jean Renard, who also received songwriting credits for the song. The same sample is used in the song Preservation by

Aesop Rock Ian Matthias Bavitz (born June 5, 1976), better known by his stage name Aesop Rock, is an American rapper and producer from Long Island, New York. He was at the forefront of the new wave of underground and alternative hip hop acts that emer ...

and

Del tha Funkee Homosapien Teren Delvon Jones (born August 12, 1972), better known by his stage name Del the Funky Homosapien (sometimes stylized as Del tha Funkee Homosapien) or Sir DZL, is an American rapper. Music career 1988–1997: Early life and beginnings Born in O ...

, found on

Wu-Tang Clan Wu-Tang Clan is an American hip hop group formed in Staten Island, New York City, in 1992. Its original members include RZA, GZA, Ol' Dirty Bastard, Method Man, Raekwon, Ghostface Killah, Inspectah Deck, U-God, and Masta Killa. Close a ...

's 2005 album Wu-Tang Meets the Indie Culture. The song is in the key of

C-sharp minor C-sharp minor is a minor scale based on C, with the pitches C, D, E, F, G, A, and B. Its key signature consists of four sharps. The C-sharp natural minor scale is: : Changes needed for the melodic and harmonic versions of the scale ar ...

. American rapper

Jay Rock Johnny Reed McKinzie Jr. (born March 31, 1983), better known by his stage name Jay Rock, is an American rapper, singer and songwriter from Los Angeles. He signed to indie label Top Dawg Entertainment (TDE), in 2005. Under TDE, Rock secured a re ...

released a remix to the song. Rappers Cashis and

Bobby Creekwater Antoine Raimon Rogers, better known by his stage name Bobby Creekwater, is an American rapper from Atlanta who is a former member of Shady Records.

were featured in the official remix of "Crack a Bottle".

Rick Ross William Leonard Roberts II (born January 28, 1976), known professionally as Rick Ross, is an American rapper. Prior to releasing his debut single, "Hustlin'", in 2006, Ross was the subject of a bidding war, receiving offers from Diddy's Bad ...

also released a remix as a diss to

G-Unit G-Unit (short for Guerilla Unit) was an American hip hop group formed by longtime friends and East Coast rappers 50 Cent, Tony Yayo, and Lloyd Banks. After amassing a string of self-released mixtapes in the early 2000s, the group released ...

Critical reception

Billboard A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertis ...

'' gave a positive review of the song: "Although not quite as strong as the

title track A title track is a song that has the same name as the album or film in which it appears. In the Korean music industry, the term is used to describe a promoted song on an album, akin to a single, regardless of the song's title. Title track may a ...

to Eminem's 2004 album ''

Encore An encore is an additional performance given by performers after the planned show has ended, usually in response to extended applause from the audience.Lalange Cochrane, in ''Oxford Companion to Music'', Alison Latham, ed., Oxford University Pr ...

'', the return of Eminem, Dr. Dre and 50 Cent has been anticipated for a long time, and it is sure to put Eminem back atop the marquee. His skills remain some of the best in hip-hop, and the accompanying contributions make the music that little bit more stronger." ''

Magazine'' commented negatively on the song, saying that it is one of the weakest tracks on the album, along the other single " We Made You". The song won at the

52nd Grammy Awards The 52nd Annual Grammy Awards took place on January 31, 2010, at Staples Center in Los Angeles honoring the best in music for the recording year beginning October 1, 2008 through September 30, 2009. Neil Young was honored as the 2010 MusiCares Pe ...

in the

Grammy Award for Best Rap Performance by a Duo or Group The Grammy Award for Best Rap Performance by a Duo or Group was awarded between 1991 and 2011, alongside the Grammy Award for Best Rap Solo Performance. Previously a single award was presented for Best Rap Performance. The award was discontinu ...

category.

Music video

During an interview for MTV, 50 Cent originally told that there were plans to make an animated music video for "Crack a Bottle", which was to be shot along with a music video for 50 Cent's song " I Get It In". On February 25, Eminem's manager Paul Rosenberg posted on his blog a still frame from the music video illustrating a homeless person holding a bottle wrapped in a brown bag. According to Rosenberg, it is directed by Syndrome and was planned to be released within a couple of weeks. The music video was playing on TV in Eminem's music video " 3 a.m.", which has been directed by Syndrome as well. On May 7, 2009, an unfinished version of the video was released via TheRelapse.com, featuring

's verse and chorus. Later during the same day, 50 Cent's rapped verse of the video was released via ThisIs50.com as well. This was added to the unfinished video on therelapse.com. A month later, on June 7, 2009, Cashis posted a link on

Twitter Twitter is an online social media and social networking service owned and operated by American company Twitter, Inc., on which users post and interact with 280-character-long messages known as "tweets". Registered users can post, like, and ...

to the full video in which he makes a cameo appearance. The music video portrays each rappers' style; Eminem's chaotic style, Dr. Dre's West Coast style, and 50 Cent's more club oriented style. None of the performers are featured in the video. On August 1, 2022, the official music video was released on YouTube after 13 years.

Awards and nominations

Track listing

;Digital download ;Promotional CD single

Chart performance

Since its release, "Crack a Bottle" has charted mainly in the United States, entering various charts including the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 and

Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs The Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart ranks the most popular R&B and hip hop songs in the United States and is published weekly by '' Billboard''. Rankings are based on a measure of radio airplay, sales data, and streaming activity. The chart had 100 ...

. The song peaked in the top ten on the

Hot Rap Tracks Hot Rap Songs (formerly known as Hot Rap Tracks and Hot Rap Singles) is a chart released weekly by '' Billboard'' in the United States. It lists the 25 most popular hip-hop/rap songs, calculated weekly by airplay on rhythmic and urban radio sta ...

, reaching number four. After spending three consecutive weeks at number seventy-eight on the Hot 100, on ''

s edition of February 21, 2009, "Crack a Bottle" reached the number one position on the Hot 100 due to sales of 418,000 downloads, becoming the fourth-biggest jump to the top of the Hot 100 in the chart's history. "Crack a Bottle" is Eminem's second song to peak the top the

Billboard Hot 100 The ''Billboard'' Hot 100 is the music industry standard record chart in the United States for songs, published weekly by ''Billboard'' magazine. Chart rankings are based on sales (physical and digital), radio play, and online streaming ...

since "

Lose Yourself "Lose Yourself" is a song by American rapper Eminem from the soundtrack to the 2002 motion picture '' 8 Mile''. The song was composed and produced by Eminem, longtime collaborator Jeff Bass, one half of the production duo Bass Brothers and Lu ...

", which it peaked number one in 2002 and 2003 for twelve weeks. With this song, Dr. Dre reached the top of the Hot 100 for a third time while this is 50 Cent's fourth. The song has also entered in various European national charts, including the

Irish Singles Chart The Irish Singles Chart is the Republic of Ireland's music industry standard singles popularity chart issued weekly by the Irish Recorded Music Association (IRMA) and compiled on their behalf by the Official Charts Company. Chart rankings are b ...

and

UK Singles Chart The UK Singles Chart (currently titled Official Singles Chart, with the upper section more commonly known as the Official UK Top 40) is compiled by the Official Charts Company (OCC), on behalf of the British record industry, listing the top-s ...

, and also debuted at number one on the Canadian Hot 100, which was the first number one debut on the chart.

Charts

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

Certifications

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Crack A Bottle 2009 singles Eminem songs Dr. Dre songs 50 Cent songs Billboard Hot 100 number-one singles Canadian Hot 100 number-one singles Songs written by Eminem Songs written by Dr. Dre Songs written by 50 Cent Songs written by Mark Batson Song recordings produced by Dr. Dre Songs about alcohol Shady Records singles Aftermath Entertainment singles Interscope Records singles 2009 songs Songs written by Jean Renard (songwriter) Songs written by Dawaun Parker