This Is How We Do It

For other uses, see This Is How We Do It (disambiguation).

"This Is How We Do It"
Single by Montell Jordan
from the album This Is How We Do It
ReleasedFebruary 6, 1995
Genre
Length
  • 4:37 (album version)
  • 3:59 (radio edit)
  • 3:39 (without rap)
Label
Songwriter(s)
Producer(s)
  • Montell Jordan
  • Oji Pierce
Montell Jordan singles chronology
"This Is How We Do It"
(1995) 		"Somethin' 4 da Honeyz"
(1995)
Music video
"This Is How We Do It" on YouTube

"This Is How We Do It" is the debut single of American singer-songwriter Montell Jordan. It was released by Def Jam Recordings on February 6, 1995, as the lead single from his debut studio album of the same name (1995). The single was Def Jam's first R&B release, and is Jordan's signature song.[4][5]

The song is a tribute to South Central Los Angeles party culture in the hip hop soul style popular at the time.[2][4] It features Jordan singing over an enhanced Teddy Riley drumbeat sample of Slick Rick's "Children's Story" which in turn has an added interpolation of the bass of Bob James' "Nautilus".[3] "This Is How We Do It" peaked at number one on the US Billboard Hot 100 on April 15, 1995, rising from number six the previous week and displacing Madonna's "Take a Bow" from the top spot. It remained at number one for seven consecutive weeks. It was also number one for seven weeks on the R&B singles chart.[6] The single sold one million copies domestically and received platinum certification from the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA).[7][8] The accompanying music video for "This Is How We Do It" was directed by Hype Williams.[9][10]

The song earned Jordan a Grammy Award nomination for Best Male R&B Vocal Performance at the 38th Annual Grammy Awards. The same year, the song was named Best R&B 12-inch at the International Dance Music Awards in Miami.[11]

  1. ^ "Vibe". Vibe Vixen. January 2002. p. 124. ISSN 1070-4701.
  2. ^ a b Gardner, Elysa (1999). "Hip-Hop Soul". In Light, Alan (ed.). The Vibe History of Hip-Hop (1st ed.). Three Rivers Press. pp. 307–317.
  3. ^ a b Ernest Baker; Alysa Lechner; David Drake; Insanul Ahmed; Tannis Spencer (March 19, 2013). "The 50 Best R&B Songs That Flipped Rap Beats". Complex. Archived from the original on July 29, 2014. Retrieved July 23, 2014.
  4. ^ a b Reynolds, J.R. (June 3, 1995). "Is Hip-Hop's Growing Dominance of R&B an Evolutionary Step, Or Is It Displacing Traditional Soul Music Altogether?". Billboard. Vol. 107, no. 22. p. 2.
  5. ^ "The 53 Best R&B Songs of the '90s". Pitchfork. November 3, 2022.
  6. ^ Whitburn, Joel (2004). Top R&B/Hip-Hop Singles: 1942-2004. Record Research. p. 310.
  7. ^ "Best-Selling Records of 1995". Billboard Communications. Vol. 108, no. 3. January 20, 1996. p. 56. ISSN 0006-2510. Archived from the original on September 5, 2015. Retrieved May 5, 2015.
  8. ^ "American certifications – Jordan, Montell – This Is How We Do It". Recording Industry Association of America.
  9. ^ "This Is How We Do It (1995) by Montell Jordan". IMVDb. Retrieved January 13, 2024.
  10. ^ "Montell Jordan: This Is How We Do It". IMDb. Retrieved January 13, 2024.
  11. ^ "Euro-focused Miami Gets Thumbs Up" (PDF). Music Week, in Record Mirror (Dance Update Supplemental Insert). March 30, 1996. p. 1. Archived (PDF) from the original on August 28, 2021. Retrieved August 17, 2021.