Today, Ciara and Vevo debut a new installment of Footnotes, taking viewers behind the scenes of “Goodies”, the record-breaking #1 hit on the Billboard Hot 100. The song topped the Hot 100 chart for seven weeks and became the longest running #1 debut single by a female artist at the time. The episode celebrates the 20th anniversary of the song that was released on September 28th, 2004.
The episode reveals that Ciara and Sean Garrett first wrote “Goodies” as a fun twist on the children’s song “Who Took the Cookie?” but Lil Jon hated the original title, “Cookies.” After Lil Jon said the song needed a rewrite, a quick change from “Cookies” to “Goodies” turned the track “from trash to smash.” Ciara adds that she was unaware at the time, but that the song almost went to Britney Spears.
Additionally, the episode mentions that while in high school Ciara was already writing for R&B stars Blu Cantrell, Mya, and Fantasia and boldly predicted that she’d have her own #1 hit song within a year of graduating. Sure enough, “Goodies” topped the charts, and after just five days working with producer Jazze Pha, she scored a record deal. Her debut album featured big names like Lil Jon and Missy Elliott and made Ciara one of the first queens of crunk&B.