“It Wasn’t Me,” Shaggy’s duet with Ricardo “RikRok” Ducent from Hot Shot, reached No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 for the chart dated 3 February 2001 and held the spot for a second week, Billboard reported — ending Destiny’s Child’s 11-week reign with “Independent Women Part I.” Produced by Sting International, the track became the defining pop-reggae single of the decade and the engine that eventually drove Hot Shot to the top of the albums chart.
The anthem
The Billboard awards retrospective notes that “It Wasn’t Me” spent two weeks at No. 1 on the Hot 100 in February 2001 — Shaggy’s first American chart-topper as a lead artist. On the same chart frame, his follow-up “Angel” (featuring Rayvon) was the fastest-growing track at radio, jumping to No. 12 as Hot Shot battled Jennifer Lopez’s J.Lo for the No. 1 album position. The Grammy.com artist page lists the song as Shaggy’s sole nomination outside Best Reggae Album: Best Pop Collaboration with Vocals at the 44th Annual Grammy Awards in 2002, where it lost to “Lady Marmalade.”
Legacy
More than two decades later, “It Wasn’t Me” remains among the best-selling singles of the 21st century in the UK and a permanent entry in global pop culture — quoted, parodied and streamed by generations who never bought the CD. The Official Charts biography ranks it the 11th biggest-selling single of the 21st century in Britain. For Shaggy, it was proof that the ma dog growl could carry a comedy narrative straight to the top of the world.
Why it matters
“It Wasn’t Me” made Shaggy the first reggae artist since 1991 to top the American pop singles chart — and gave dancehall its most durable crossover hook since “Boombastic.”
Listen and dig deeper
- Play Hot Shot in the Listen library. Browse Shaggy.
- Previously: Hot Shot tops the Billboard 200 (2001). Next: Order of Distinction, Commander Class (2007).
Sources: Billboard — “Shaggy Makes It Two At No. 1” (Feb 1, 2001); Billboard — “Shaggy’s Reggae Spin on Sinatra Songbook Lands 2023 Grammy Nod”; Grammy.com — Shaggy awards history; Official Charts — Shaggy biography.
Editor's note: This entry is part of the JamaicansMusic online museum — a career timeline assembled from the archive. It is dated to the era it documents; every claim is drawn from the linked sources.