"Ms. Jackson" is released

Why it matters

"Ms. Jackson" came out October 24, 2000, as the second single from Stankonia. Big Boi and Andre 3000 produced (with David Sheats). Andre 3000 wrote the bulk of the song as an open apology to the mother of the singer Erykah Badu, with whom he had had a child and a long-running relationship that had recently ended. The song spent one week at #1 on the Billboard Hot 100, which was OutKast's first chart-topping single. The hook is one of the most-recognizable rap-and-pop hooks of the entire decade. Andre's verse is a remarkable piece of writing: a direct, personal, slightly contrite apology to his ex's mother that does not duck the conflict and does not over-explain it. Big Boi's verse is a different register, more general, more universal. The combination of personal specificity (Andre) and broader appeal (Big) is part of why the song crossed over the way it did. The song won the Best Rap Performance by a Duo or Group Grammy in 2002. You can play it at any function in the world and the chorus will be sung back to you. Twenty-six years now. It still works.