Peak
1
Weeks
31
Score
7,772
Chart Year
2005
The music video for "Hollaback Girl" was directed by Paul Hunter and filmed in the Van Nuys and Reseda neighborhoods of Los Angeles, California.[57] It opens with a scene of Stefani taking a picture of her four Harajuku Girls, when a crowd of students appears. Stefani and the Harajuku Girls then drive down Sherman Way past Magnolia Science Academy to Birmingham High School in a 1961 Chevrolet Impala, accompanied by the crowd.[57][58] Stefani and the group cause a commotion when they disrupt a football game by walking onto the field and when they go to a 99 Cents Only Store and throw cereal and other food products down an aisle. Throughout the video, there are intercut sequences of choreographed dancing filmed in a sound stage, intended to represent Stefani's imagination.[59] Stefani and the Harajuku Girls are outfitted in cheerleading uniforms, accompanied by several Californian spirit groups: the Orange Crush All Stars, a cheerleading squad from Orange County; a marching band from Fountain Valley High School in Fountain Valley; a pep flag team named the Carson High School Flaggies from Carson; and a drill team from Stephen M. White Middle School in Carson.[57] To visualize the song's bridge, the Harajuku Girls spell the word "bananas" with cue cards. The video ends with a close-up frame of Stefani with her arms in the air. The Chevy Impala convertible from the video includes a painting by artist J. Martin.[5] The design includes Stefani as seen on the album cover of Love. Angel. Music. Baby. with the words "Hollaback Girl" in calligraphy. The car was, eventually, sold on eBay.[5] Pharrell, one of the song's co-producers, makes a cameo appearance. The complete version of "Hollaback Girl" featured in the music video was released commercially through CD singles and digital downloads. Some include remixes by Diplo and former No Doubt bandmate Tony Kanal. The video debuted on March 21, 2005, and proved successful on video chart programs.[60] It debuted on MTV's TRL on March 31 at number 10 and remained on the program for a total of 50 days,[61] becoming what Rolling Stone called "a staple of MTV's TRL".[62] The video reached the top of the chart and was retired at number four on June 23, becoming Stefani's first video to retire.[63][64] VH1 listed the video at number five on its Top 40 Videos of 2005,[65] and at the 2005 MTV Video Music Awards, the video received four nominations,[66] but only won the award for Best Choreography.[67] Stefani did not attend the 2006 MTV Video Music Awards, prompting rumors that she was protesting her lack of nominations the previous year, her multiple losses to Kelly Clarkson, and her not having been asked to perform.[68] Stefani denied the rumors, responding, "the only reason I am not attending the MTV Video Music Awards is because I will be recording and spending time with my family."
A "hollaback girl" is one of the lesser cheerleaders who yells in the background. Gwen Stefani is asserting that she is the queen bee on this squad, leading the cheers with the hollaback girls in her service. She was 35 years old when the song was released, but had no trouble playing a high school cheerleader in the video. Marching band instruments like trombones, saxophones and clarinets were used on this track, which ties in with the cheerleader theme. It's the only #1 hit with a prominent tuba ("The Tears of a Clown" uses a bassoon). Stefani (from Rolling Stone, June 16, 2005): "I did the whole record, but I knew I didn't have my attitude song - my 'this is my history, f--k you because you can't erase it' song. I knew I wanted a song like that." Stefani got the idea for the cheerleader theme when she recalled a comment Courtney Love said about her in an issue of Seventeen magazine: "Being famous is just like being in high school. But I'm not interested in being the cheerleader. I'm not interested in being Gwen Stefani. She's the cheerleader, and I'm out in the smoker shed." Pharrell Williams and Chad Hugo produced this track and wrote the song with Stefani. At the time, Williams and Hugo were active in their band N.E.R.D and produced under the moniker The Neptunes. Their energetic hip-hop beats fueled tracks by Britney Spears ("I'm A Slave 4 U"), Nelly ("Hot In Herre") and many others. Report this ad Stefani sneaks in a profanity partway through the song, saying, "This s--t's bananas," before spelling out the word "bananas" multiple times. She masks the full forbidden word every time, but it's clearly what she's saying. On the cover of the single is written, "This s#!@'s bananas." This part of the song was very popular with listeners, but it drew an adverse reaction from some critics. Jason Damas of PopMatters, for instance, wrote, "Lyrically, this is where Gwen sinks the lowest here, especially on a breakdown where she repeats 'This s--t is bananas/ B-A-N-A-N-A-S!' several times. It's such a ridiculously stupid song laid over an adventurous Timbaland-like beat that it winds up being tons of fun, but it's the point where an awful lot of No Doubt fans might start getting worried." "Hollaback Girl" was big about a year after Apple introduced iTunes, making it possible to download the song for 99 cents. Many did: It became the first song to sell one million legal downloads. It was also the first single to sell more digital downloads than CDs. Stefani tried out for the cheerleading squad in high school but didn't make it - she couldn't do the choreography. She was in the marching band playing piccolo, but says she wasn't very good. Playing the head cheerleader in this song was a way for her to rewrite her high school experience and wear the uniform, which is why she wanted to be a cheerleader. At the beginning of the video, Stefani says, "Get in really close. Aww, super kawaii" as she takes a picture of her backup dancers. "Kawaii" is a Japanese word for "cute." Stefani is a big fan of alternative Japanese popular culture, especially of the crazily dressed teenage girls from the area near Harajuku station in Tokyo. >> Sebastian Bach of Skid Row played Gil, a guitarist in the fictional band Hep Alien, on the TV series Gilmore Girls. In the 2006 episode "Bridesmaids Revisited," he plays this song at a Bar Mitzvah. On the 2006 Family Guy episode "Deep Throats," Brian watches a VH1 special on Gwen Stefani and says, "I don't know what a Hollaback Girl is, but I want her dead." >>
Uh-huh, this my shit All the girls stomp your feet like this Few times I've been around that track So it's not just gonna happen like that 'Cause I ain't no hollaback girl I ain't no hollaback girl A few times I've been around that track So it's not just gonna happen like that 'Cause I ain't no hollaback girl I ain't no hollaback girl Ooh, this my shit, this my shit Ooh, this my shit, this my shit Ooh, this my shit, this my shit Ooh, this my shit, this my shit I heard that you were talking shit And you didn't think that I would hear it People hear you talking like that, getting everybody fired up So I'm ready to attack, gonna lead the pack Gonna get a touchdown, gonna take you out That's right, put your pom-poms down, getting everybody fired up Few times I've been around that track So it's not just gonna happen like that 'Cause I ain't no hollaback girl I ain't no hollaback girl A few times I've been around that track So it's not just gonna happen like that 'Cause I ain't no hollaback girl I ain't no hollaback girl Ooh, this my shit, this my shit Ooh, this my shit, this my shit Ooh, this my shit, this my shit Ooh, this my shit, this my shit So that's right, dude, meet me at the bleachers No principals, no student-teachers Both of us wanna be the winner, but there can only be one So I'm gonna fight, gonna give it my all Gonna make you fall, gonna sock it to you That's right, I'm the last one standing Another one bites the dust Few times I've been around that track So it's not just gonna happen like that 'Cause I ain't no hollaback girl I ain't no hollaback girl A few times I've been around that track So it's not just gonna happen like that 'Cause I ain't no hollaback girl I ain't no hollaback girl Ooh, this my shit, this my shit Ooh, this my shit, this my shit Ooh, this my shit, this my shit Ooh, this my shit, this my shit Let me hear you say, this shit is bananas, B-A-N-A-N-A-S This shit is bananas, B-A-N-A-N-A-S Again this shit is bananas, B-A-N-A-N-A-S This shit is bananas, B-A-N-A-N-A-S Few times I've been around that track So it's not just gonna happen like that 'Cause I ain't no hollaback girl I ain't no hollaback girl A few times I've been around that track So it's not just gonna happen like that 'Cause I ain't no hollaback girl I ain't no hollaback girl Ooh, this my shit, this my shit Ooh, this my shit, this my shit Ooh, this my shit, this my shit Ooh, this my shit, this my shit
| Week | Chart Date | Position | Points |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Apr 2, 2005 | 82 | 44 |
| 2 | Apr 9, 2005 | 57 | 69 |
| 3 | Apr 16, 2005 | 37 | 89 |
| 4 | Apr 23, 2005 | 10 | 116 |
| 5 | Apr 30, 2005 | 3 | 123 |
| 6 | May 7, 2005 | 1 | 125 |
| 7 | May 14, 2005 | 1 | 125 |
| 8 | May 21, 2005 | 1 | 125 |
| 9 | May 28, 2005 | 1 | 125 |
| 10 | Jun 4, 2005 | 2 | 124 |
| 11 | Jun 11, 2005 | 2 | 124 |
| 12 | Jun 18, 2005 | 2 | 124 |
| 13 | Jun 25, 2005 | 2 | 124 |
| 14 | Jul 2, 2005 | 3 | 123 |
| 15 | Jul 9, 2005 | 4 | 122 |
| 16 | Jul 16, 2005 | 2 | 124 |
| 17 | Jul 23, 2005 | 2 | 124 |
| 18 | Jul 30, 2005 | 3 | 123 |
| 19 | Aug 6, 2005 | 6 | 120 |
| 20 | Aug 13, 2005 | 6 | 120 |