Lauryn Hill’s “Doo Wop (That Thing)” Turned 28 — and Made Billboard History
Artwork: Ruffhouse / Columbia Records
Past Blast Musique! Miss Lauryn Hill gave us one hell of a solo introduction when “Doo Wop (That Thing)” was first sent to U.S. radio on August 10, 1998 — 28 years ago this week.
The track led the way into The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill, released later that month, and eventually pulled off something no debut single had done before: it entered the Billboard Hot 100 at No. 1.
“Doo Wop (That Thing)” debuted on top of the Hot 100 dated November 14, 1998 and held the No. 1 spot for two weeks. For Hill, who was already famous through the Fugees, it was her first charting solo single — and an immediate declaration that her own chapter was not going to play small.
Lauryn Hill Wrote, Produced and Took the Song Straight to No. 1
Hill wrote and produced “Doo Wop (That Thing)” herself, folding hip-hop, R&B, soul and old-school doo-wop into a song that could warn everybody about getting caught up in that thing while still making the whole sermon impossible not to move to.
The production also reaches backward. “Doo Wop” samples The 5th Dimension’s 1971 recording “Together Let’s Find Love,” helping connect Hill’s late-’90s sound to an earlier generation of soul without turning the record into a nostalgia exercise.
Then came Grammy night. At the 41st Annual Grammy Awards, “Doo Wop (That Thing)” won Best R&B Song and Best Female R&B Vocal Performance, two of the five awards Hill took home that night.
And 28 years later, it still sounds like an entrance. Not a warm-up. Not a tentative solo experiment. Lauryn walked in, sang, rapped, produced the damn thing and landed at No. 1.
Revisit Lauryn Hill’s “Doo Wop (That Thing)” Era
From The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill to the “Doo Wop (That Thing)” single, the artwork is as instantly tied to Hill’s 1998 solo breakthrough as the music itself.
Artwork: Ruffhouse / Columbia Records
Artwork: Ruffhouse / Columbia Records
Watch Our “Doo Wop (That Thing)” Past Blast
Twenty-eight years later, Lauryn Hill’s solo debut still knows exactly how to make an entrance. Press play below.
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Sources: Billboard, Recording Academy, Apple Music.
