"What About Your Friends" is a song by American group

TLC TLC may refer to: Arts and entertainment Television * ''TLC'' (TV series), a 2002 British situational comedy television series that aired on BBC2 * TLC (TV network), formerly the Learning Channel, an American cable TV network ** TLC (Asia), an A ...

, released as the third single from their debut album, '' Ooooooohhh... On the TLC Tip'' (1992). It was released on August 21, 1992, and reached number seven on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100, becoming the group's third consecutive top-10 single. A

remix A remix, also sometimes called reorchestration or rework, is a piece of media which has been altered or contorted from its original state by adding, removing, or changing pieces of the item. A song, piece of artwork, book, poem, or photograph ca ...

to the single, titled "What About Your Friends (Extended Mix)" includes the first ever appearance by the

Atlanta Atlanta ( ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of municipalities in Georgia (U.S. state), most populous city in the U.S. state of Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia. It is the county seat, seat of Fulton County, Georg ...

hip-hop duo

Outkast Outkast (sometimes written as OutKast) was an American hip-hop duo formed in Atlanta, Georgia, in 1992, consisting of Big Boi (Antwan Patton) and André 3000 (André Benjamin, formerly known as Dré). Widely regarded as one of the greatest an ...

Composition

"What About Your Friends" was written by

Dallas Austin Dallas L. Austin (born December 29, 1970) is an American songwriter, record producer, and film producer from Columbus, Georgia. Biography Early life During a 2019 interview with DJ Vlad, Dallas Austin detailed previously unknown or unconfir ...

and

member Lisa "Left Eye" Lopes, and features lead vocals by T-Boz and Chilli. The song samples "Blues & Pants" by

James Brown James Joseph Brown (May 3, 1933 – December 25, 2006) was an American singer, songwriter, dancer, musician, and record producer. The central progenitor of funk music and a major figure of 20th-century music, he is referred to by Honorific nick ...

Critical reception

Daryl McIntosh from Albumism noted that "What About Your Friends" "calls into question the topic of loyalty and true friendship, making you evaluate the character of those within your inner circle."

Music video

The main performance scenes of the

music video A music video is a video that integrates a song or an album with imagery that is produced for promotion (marketing), promotional or musical artistic purposes. Modern music videos are primarily made and used as a music marketing device intended to ...

for "What About Your Friends" was directed by Lionel C. Martin, and features the girls walking in an alley surrounded by backup dancers, underneath a bridge, on an outside staircase, on an apartment roof, in a slushie bar and wearing graffiti clothes in front of a graffiti-covered wall. Two versions of the video were made: one focuses on more of the performance shots of the girls and scenes of them infiltrating a stylish fashion show, while the other features scenes of a party in a big park where the girls are being very happy, dancing and having fun with their friends and some family members; including a scene of them reprising their roles as hillbillies from the " Ain't 2 Proud 2 Beg" video at the end.

Jermaine Dupri Jermaine Dupri Mauldin (born September 23, 1972) is an American rapper and record producer. Raised in Atlanta, Georgia as the son of Columbia Records executive Michael Mauldin, he began his career in music at the age of nine. He discovered th ...

makes a cameo appearance.

Commercial performance

The song reached number seven on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100, becoming the group's third consecutive top ten single, and reached No. 2 on the Hot R&B Singles chart, behind "

Games A game is a Structure, structured type of play (activity), play usually undertaken for entertainment or fun, and sometimes used as an Educational game, educational tool. Many games are also considered to be Work (human activity), work (such as p ...

" by Chuckii Booker. The single was certified gold by the

RIAA The Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) is a trade organization that represents the music recording industry in the United States. Its members consist of record labels and distributors that the RIAA says "create, manufacture, and/o ...

. In the United Kingdom, "What About Your Friends" peaked at No. 59.

Charts

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

Certifications

Release history

References

{{Authority control 1992 singles 1992 songs Arista Records singles LaFace Records singles Song recordings produced by Dallas Austin Songs written by Dallas Austin Songs written by Lisa Lopes TLC (group) songs