"Where My Girls At?" is a song by American R&B/pop group 702, released by

Motown Motown is an American record label owned by the Universal Music Group. Founded by Berry Gordy, Berry Gordy Jr. as Tamla Records on January 12, 1959, it was incorporated as Motown Record Corporation on April 14, 1960. Its name, a portmanteau ...

as the first single from their self-titled second album, on April 5, 1999 in the United States, followed by a United Kingdom release on July 26, 1999. Often considered the group's

signature song A signature (; from , "to sign") is a depiction of someone's name, nickname, or even a simple "X" or other mark that a person writes on documents as a proof of identity and intent. Signatures are often, but not always, handwritten or styliz ...

, "Where My Girls At?" was an international hit, peaking within the top 30 on the charts in many countries. The song spent thirty weeks in the top 20 on the ''

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 ...

Hot 100 The ''Billboard'' Hot 100, also known as simply the 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), o ...

, giving the group their second top 10 US song; it was the 11 song of the year on the ''Billboard'' 1999 year-end chart. "Where My Girls At?" earned a Lady of Soul Award nomination for "Best R&B/Soul Single – Group, Band or Duo" in 1999. The song was written as a female anthem. Elliott, who co-wrote the song, noted that "Where My Girls At?" was a song that she wanted female listeners to hear and relate to.Missy Elliott on Writing For Aaliyah, Beyonce and Herself
Billboard. Retrieved on April 9, 2024

Background

"Where My Girls At?" is a R&B and dance song, written by

Missy Elliott Melissa Arnette "Missy" Elliott (born July 1, 1971), also known as Misdemeanor, is an American rapper, singer, songwriter, and record producer. She began her musical career as a member of the Contemporary R&B, R&B girl group 4 All the Sistas Arou ...

, Eric Seats, and Rapture Stewart. Elliott initially offered the song to R&B 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 ...

during the recording of their third studio album, '' FanMail'' (1999). While Lisa Lopes of

voted to record the song, her groupmates rejected the song. In a ''Billboard'' interview, Elliott recalled "Lisa ("Left Eye" Lopes) really wanted it, she really wanted that record, but I guess, if it's two against one (what can you do?)". Lopes then tried to secure the song for

Blaque Blaque ( ) is an American girl group; they had songs chart from 1999 to 2004. Outside of the United States and Canada, they are known as Blaque Ivory. Their self-titled debut album ''Blaque'' sold more than 1 million copies and was certified ...

, a female group signed to Lopes' Left Eye Productions. The song was eventually recorded by 702 with Meelah Williams performing the lead vocals. The song became a female anthem due to its lyrics and celebration of women. Elliott recounted "It's almost like church — when you go to church, pastor is saying something (and you're) like, 'I swear up and down that message is for me.' I wanted to create something women could feel like, 'I could relate to this record.'" Group member Meelah Williams addressed critics that questioned if the song was really a female anthem or not. Williams stated, "You really have to listen. What it is, we're asking, 'Where are my true girlfriends that wouldn't do that to me, that would have my back and wouldn't stab me in the back?' So that's basically the purpose of the song, to let girls know that we're down for each other and we're all one."

Music video

The music video for "Where My Girls At?" was directed by

Bille Woodruff Bille Woodruff is a director of film, television and music videos, noted for directing many videos for a number of R&B and hip-hop artists since the mid-1990s. These artists include Joe, for whom Woodruff has directed 9 music videos since 1994, ...

. The video starts outside an apartment complex, zooming in to a window where the members of 702 are walking down a

brutalist Brutalist architecture is an architectural style that emerged during the 1950s in the United Kingdom, among the reconstruction projects of the post-war era. Brutalist buildings are characterised by minimalist constructions that showcase the b ...

-styled corridor wearing all-black leather attire. Behind them is a group of men wearing the same color, later standing against the wall while the ladies walk past them during the chorus. After the first chorus, the group members are all in different Y2K styled settings. Kameelah is seen in a chrome, light blue room wearing a dark grey blazer with digital signs reading the song's title behind her. LeMisha is seen wearing all black and donning a white tiger-printed cowboy hat in a red and orange colored room with a pyrotechnic behind her. Irish is in a blue cafe area decorated with futuristic furniture and textures wearing an all silver gown with fur accents. Following the bridge, the ladies are now in a big brutalist-styled room, each standing on top of platforms. They are all wearing black and silver polka-dotted outfits as background dancers surround them donning red from head to toe. The video first premiered on BET on the week ending March 21, 1999. It later began airing on The Box and

MTV MTV (an initialism of Music Television) is an American cable television television channel, channel and the flagship property of the MTV Entertainment Group sub-division of the Paramount Media Networks division of Paramount Global. Launched on ...

on the weeks ending March 28, 1999, and April 18, 1999 respectively.

Live performances

The song was performed during several televised shows including ''

Showtime at the Apollo ''Showtime at the Apollo'' (formerly ''It's Showtime at the Apollo'' and ''Apollo Live'') is an American variety show that first aired in syndication from September 12, 1987, to May 24, 2008. In 2018, the series returned on Fox with Steve Harve ...

'' and '' Soul Train''. In June 1999, 702 performed the song on the British TV chart show ''

Top of the Pops ''Top of the Pops'' (''TOTP'') is a British record chart television programme, made by the BBC and broadcast weekly between 1January 1964 and 30 July 2006. The programme was the world's longest-running weekly music show. For most of its histo ...

'', which aired on

BBC One BBC One is a British free-to-air public broadcast television channel owned and operated by the BBC. It is the corporation's oldest and flagship channel, and is known for broadcasting mainstream programming, which includes BBC News television b ...

in the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Northwestern Europe, off the coast of European mainland, the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...

. In May 2023, 702 performed "Where My Girls At?" in tribute to Missy Elliott at the Black Music Honors.Black Music Honors Paid Tribute to the Past and Present
BET. Retrieved on April 6, 2024 The performance was their first televised performance as duo, without member Irish Grinstead who was on medical leave.

Legacy

"Where My Girls At?" (1999) was ranked number 46 on ''Billboard'''s list of "100 Greatest Girl Group Songs of All Time",100 Greatest Girl Group Songs of All Time: Critics' Picks
Billboard. Retrieved on April 9, 2024 ranked number 72 on their "The 99 Greatest Songs of 1999" list,The 99 Greatest Songs of 1999: Critics' Picks
Billboard. Retrieved on April 9, 2024 and was also included on their "Greatest of All Time Top Songs of the 90s" list at number 70.

Accolades

Track listings

US CD # "Where My Girls At?" (radio edit) – 2:47 # "Where My Girls At?" (instrumental) – 4:02 # "Make Time" (snippet) – 1:06 # "Tell Your Girl" (snippet) – 1:03 # "Gotta Leave" (snippet) – 1:13 # "You'll Just Never Know" (snippet) – 1:11 US 12-inch vinyl :A1. "Where My Girls At?" (radio edit) – 2:47 :A2. "Where My Girls At?" (instrumental) – 4:02 :B1. "Where My Girls At?" (radio edit) – 2:47 :B2. "Where My Girls At?" ( TV track) – 4:02 UK 12-inch vinyl :A1. "Where My Girls At?" (album version) – 2:47 :A2. "Where My Girls At?" (Allstar remix) – 3:40 :B1. "Where My Girls At?" (Fanatic remix) – 3:44 :B2. "Where My Girls At?" (Fanatic Rock mix) – 3:45 European CD # "Where My Girls At?" (Allstar remix) – 3:40 # "Where My Girls At?" (Fanatic remix) – 3:44

Chart performance

"Where My Girls At?" peaked at No. 4 on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 on June 19, 1999. It peaked at No. 3 on the

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 ...

charts and at No. 1 on the Rhythmic Top 40 chart. The single remained in the Top 20 on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 chart for more than 30 weeks.

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

Certifications

Release history

References

{{Authority control 1999 singles 1999 songs 702 (group) songs Motown singles Music videos directed by Bille Woodruff Song recordings produced by Keybeats Songs written by Keybeats Songs written by Missy Elliott