Buena left the girl group Sugababes in December 2005, shortly after the birth of her daughter. She began working on her debut solo album after signing with Island Records. "B Boy Baby" resulted from sessions with British producer Salaam Remi, famous for his work with Amy Winehouse, Nas, and Fugees. It borrows lyrical and melodic passages from "Be My Baby" by The Ronettes, with the sampled chorus sung by Winehouse.
Reception
Sharon Mawer of Allmusic wrote, "Buena raps the verses on "B Boy Baby" before launching into a chorus consisting of a slowed down version of the Ronettes/Phil Spector '60s masterpiece which even Amy Winehouse couldn't save from dreary boredom."[1]Popjustice's Peter Robinson hoped that Winehouse's appearance on the "almost universally disapproved-of" song could help Buena's fledgling solo career "turn around."[2] The single was ultimately a commercial failure, charting at number 73 on the UK Singles Chart. However, promotion for the single did see Real Girl return to the UK Albums Chart, re-entering the lower end of the charts at number 88 and rising to number 83. "B Boy Baby" has since been used in various adverts on UK television.
Music video
The video premiered on 4Music on 4 December 2007.[3] It was filmed in Millennium Square, Bristol, and features "The Physical Jerks" – a group of break dancers. Amy Winehouse was supposed to appear in the video, however, she was ultimately unable to.
^"ČNS IFPI" (in Czech). Hitparáda – Radio Top 100 Oficiální. IFPI Czech Republic. Note: Select 23. týden 2008 in the date selector. Retrieved 6 September 2018.
