The accompanying music video for "Bills, Bills, Bills", directed by Darren Grant, was filmed in a beauty salon as a tribute to Beyoncé's mother Tina Knowles. In 2021, the song resurged in popularity on streaming platforms, as well as TikTok, where it became the most popular "comeback" track in the United States and the United Kingdom that year.[4][5]
Background and composition
"Bills, Bills, Bills" is one of the five tracks that Destiny's Child worked with Kandi Burruss and Kevin "She'kspere" Briggs on their sophomore album that would help create their signature sound.[6] Burruss stated that the idea for the song came to them when they were in a store and Briggs began beat-boxing the beat in his head.[7] Burruss also claimed that the lyrics, specifically the verses for the song, were inspired by her recent relationship with Brandon Casey of Jagged Edge, who was ironically LaTavia Roberson's current boyfriend.[8] The group members expanded on writing lyrics for the song after the concept was presented to them.[8]
Musically, the song is a sassy, playful, and jittery R&B track with slinky instrumentation led by harpsichord-synthesizers.[9][10] The track is described to have a quirky melody and descriptive lyrics that draw attention to listeners because of the story the group members are singing.[11]
Release
In the United States, "Bills, Bills, Bills" was serviced to urban and rhythmic contemporary radio stations on May 31, 1999, and June 1, 1999, respectively.[12][13][14] The single was then released physically in the United States on CD, maxi-CD, 12-inch vinyl, and cassette.[15] In the United Kingdom, the song was issued on July 12, 1999, as a cassette and two maxi-CDs.[16] Germany and France soon followed with maxi-CDs for the song being released on July 16, and July 26, respectively.[17][18] The track was later sent to US contemporary hit radio on July 20, 1999.[19]
Commercial performance
In the United States, "Bills, Bills, Bills" debuted at number 84 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart and climbed to number one five weeks later, dethroning Jennifer Lopez's debut single "If You Had My Love" from the top spot.[20][21] It was Destiny's Child's first song to peak at number one on the Billboard Hot 100 and was the ninth-best-selling single of 1999 in the United States.[21][22] "Bills, Bills, Bills" also reached number one on the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs for nine consecutive weeks.[23] In the United Kingdom, "Bills, Bills, Bills" peaked at number six on the UK Singles Chart.[24]
Music video
The video, filmed in May 1999, takes place in a hair salon, inspired by Tina Knowles, Beyoncé's mother and the group's fashion stylist at the time. The video starts with Beyoncé arguing with her boyfriend and being fed up with him asking for her car keys. Destiny's Child are seen doing hair styling on clients. The members then do some choreography with salon chairs in light pink ensembles. In another setting, Destiny's Child are wearing black and white, zebra-like patterned outfits while so-called "broke", "tired", and "good for nothin'" men are seen in rooms behind them. The final setting for the video takes place in front a wall of glass block windows. Here, the members are wearing shiny blue outfits. The video is edited when the members are singing to the camera to make them move jittery to the beat. The video made its premiere on music video stations such as BET, MTV, and The Box on the week ending June 13, 1999.[25]
* Sales figures based on certification alone. ^ Shipments figures based on certification alone. ‡ Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone.
Release history
Release dates and formats for "Bills, Bills, Bills"
Sporty Thievz, the same group that wrote "No Pigeons" as an answer song to TLC's "No Scrubs", wrote a response to "Bills, Bills, Bills" entitled "No Billz (Why, Why, Why)." Sporty Thievz were also featured on "I Can't Go For That", a re-recorded remix of "Bills, Bills, Bills" with new lyrics, produced by the Trackmasters, along with a rapper called Jazz.
The song was also performed a cappella by the fictional Dalton Academy Warblers group on the American musical television series Glee in the eleventh episode of the second season, entitled The Sue Sylvester Shuffle.
^St. Asaph, Katherine. "Destiny's Child: The Writing's on the Wall". Pitchfork. Retrieved June 17, 2022. Originally brought in for just one track, Burruss and Briggs not only ended up with five tracks but crafted its most recognizable sound...
^ abBiakolo, Kovie (July 8, 2021). "Kandi Burruss Shares the Funny Story Behind Writing Destiny Child's 'Bills, Bills, Bills'". Glamour. Retrieved June 17, 2022. When I got with the girls at the studio, we were singing them the idea. I had the melody of how I felt like the verse should go, and we came together for the lyrics. ... I use a lot of my past relationships as inspiration. The relationship I had been in prior to [writing the song], I took inspiration from it...though I didn't tell them that.
^"The 99 Greatest Songs of 1999: Critics' Picks". Billboard. April 8, 2019. Retrieved June 17, 2022. Briggs and Burruss specialized in telling off deadbeat men through playful R&B songs in 1999 ... 'Bills' was the sassy, harpsichord-synth-led first single
^"The Top 200 Tracks of the 1990s: 200-151 – Page 5". Pitchfork. August 30, 2010. Retrieved June 17, 2022. 'Bills Bills Bills' wasn't the first great piece of jittery post-Timbaland R&B, but it was the first to offer a performance that mirrored the hyper-finesse of the style's insectile stop-start surfaces.
^Bills, Bills, Bills (US cassette single sleeve). Destiny's Child. Columbia Records. 1999. 38T 79175.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
^Bills, Bills, Bills (US maxi-CD single liner notes). Destiny's Child. Columbia Records. 1999. 44K 79176.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
^Bills, Bills, Bills (US 12-inch single vinyl disc). Destiny's Child. Columbia Records. 1999. 44 79176.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
^Bills, Bills, Bills (Australian CD single liner notes). Destiny's Child. Columbia Records. 1999. 667754 2.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
^Bills, Bills, Bills (UK CD1 liner notes). Destiny's Child. Columbia Records. 1999. 667690 2.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
^Bills, Bills, Bills (UK CD2 liner notes). Destiny's Child. Columbia Records. 1999. 667690 2.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
^Bills, Bills, Bills (UK cassette single sleeve). Destiny's Child. Columbia Records. 1999. 667690 4.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
^Bills, Bills, Bills (European CD1 liner notes). Destiny's Child. Columbia Records. 1999. COL 667287 1.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
^Bills, Bills, Bills (European CD2 liner notes). Destiny's Child. Columbia Records. 1999. COL 667287 2.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
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