Beyonce has had a gazillion hits with Destiny's Child and without. Her third solo album has apparently delivered a bunch more. She's risen to the level of interntational superstar, which gives any new single automatic advantage, but she hasn't put out much junk. She hits again and again with extremely hooky tracks with lyrics that have broad appeal.

Single Ladies (Put a Ring On It) by Beyonce
Songwriters: Thaddis “Kuk” Harrell, Beyonce Knowles, Terius “The Dream” Nash, Christopher Stewart

From her album: I Am . . . Sasha Fierce

Facts
#1 Billboard Hot 100
#1 Hot R&B/Hip Hop Songs
#1 Hot Digital Tracks
Tempo: 97 BPM
Title: appears in the chorus
Structure: Verse/Chorus/Verse/Chorus/Bridge/Chorus


[INTRO]
All the single ladies (7x)
Now put your hands up

This is a neat way to begin a dance song, basically calling out to your audience to get their attention. But more than that, this helps the listener identify with the singer . . . provided you’re a single lady.

Notice that it’s a call and response with Beyonce calling the single ladies and them responding. Cool!

[VERSE 1]
Up in the club
We just broke up
I’m doing my own little thing
You decided to dip
But now you wanna trip
Cause another brother noticed me
I’m up on him
He up on me
Don’t pay him any attention
Cause I cried my tears
For three good years
You can’t be mad at me

So the lyric here is filling us in on the story. Basically, she’s in the club with a guy, dancing very close, when her ex-flame sees and gets all upset about it. (They did just break up). Then she says, hey, it took me three painful years to realize you weren’t serious and so you don’t have any right to be upset now that I’m with someone else. Great! I supposed that’s a pretty universal idea and one that all the single ladies can identify with.

Rhyme is used throughout the song, but not consistently. I don’t think this matters because the power of the song comes from the force of the rhythm and it’s contrast with the melody. The words at the end of the lines tend to be short to support the rhythmic essence of the song.

Interesting production on this track. A kick drum pattern with clapping on the 8th notes and various noises to fill in. The vocal has no pitched accompaniment in the verse. This song is about rhythm and it’s great.

[Chorus]
Cause if you liked it then you should have put a ring on it
If you liked it then you shoulda put a ring on it
Don’t be mad once you see that he wants it
If you liked it then you shoulda put a ring on it
whoa oh ooh oh oh ooh oh oh ooh oh oh oh
whoa oh ooh oh oh ooh oh oh ooh oh oh oh
Cause if you liked it then you should have put a ring on it
If you liked it then you shoulda put a ring on it
Don’t be mad once you see that he wants it
If you liked it then you shoulda put a ring on it

The chorus basically says very clearly what her opinion is. If you liked it then you should have put a ring on it. You should have made the commitment, but don’t be upset when you see someone else wants me. It’s a double chorus separated by all the whoa oh ohs. The second half of the chorus adds some very interesting harmony vocals that just kill.

The underlying rhythm stays the same throughout this chorus, so the contrast comes from the vocal melody and is intensified by the doubling of Beyonce’s voice. There are also some big synth pad/string lines that provide a very tense bass line. They could have been rock guitar power chords.

There is a lot of repetition here, but they knew that repeating the chorus twice would get really old if they didn’t relieve the ears in between. The whoa oh ohs give us some thing very hooky to listen to and kind of reset our ears to hear the chorus repeated, plus they reward us with an increase in intensity through production technique.


I got gloss on my lips
A man on my hips
Hold me tighter than my Dereon jeans
Acting up
Drink in my cup
I could care less what you think
I need no permission
Did I mention
Don’t pay him any attention
Cause you had your turn
But now you gonna learn
What it really feels like to miss me

This verse is pretty clear. It does move the song forward nicely, because she’s sort of goes from a defensive mode in verse 1 to an offensive mode. Meaning, now she’s going to tell him how it is. She’s got this new guy, she’s drinking and having fun, and furthermore, now he can really see what he’s missing and she’s kind of happy he’s seeing all this.

There is more rhyme in this verse, particularly interesting is the permission, mention and attention rhymes.


[CHORUS]
Cause if you liked it then you should have put a ring on it
If you liked it then you shoulda put a ring on it
Don’t be mad once you see that he wants it
If you liked it then you shoulda put a ring on it
whoa oh ooh oh oh ooh oh oh ooh oh oh oh
whoa oh ooh oh oh ooh oh oh ooh oh oh oh
Cause if you liked it then you should have put a ring on it
If you liked it then you shoulda put a ring on it
Don’t be mad once you see that he want it
If you liked it then you shoulda put a ring on it
whoa oh ooh oh oh ooh oh oh ooh oh oh oh
whoa oh ooh oh oh ooh oh oh ooh oh oh oh

[BRIDGE]
Don’t treat me to these things of the world
I’m not that kind of girl
Your love is what I prefer, what I deserve
Is a man that makes me, then takes me
And delivers me to a destiny, to infinity and beyond
Pull me into your arms
Say I’m the one you own
If you don’t, you’ll be alone
And like a ghost I’ll be gone

She’s saying that material things aren’t important, but love is. And she deserves someone who will take her to a destiny of love that is infinite. It’s kind of funny that she uses the Buzz Lightyear slogan in this song: "to infinite and beyond!"

Then she says pull me into your arms and tell me that I’m the one or I’m gone.

The bridge keeps the same rhythmic pattern with the drums. But the melody is new with that big “don’t!” at the beginning. And it grows in intensity as the lines start to come fast and furious: "makes me and takes me and delivers me to infinity and beyond" . . . and you might expect the song to go right back into the chorus then, but instead, they wind the energy level down!

The wind down begins with “pull me into your arms” and continues through “like ghost I’ll be gone.” On the last line even the drums stop momentarily, framing the seriousness of her ultimatum. Great stuff.

But the producer know this is an R&B track! They need that wind down as a breather before going back into the “all the single ladies” breakdown. Energy back up!


[BREAKDOWN
All the single ladies x7
Now put your hands up

This breakdown that revisits the intro is not something I would have thought up. But it brings back that call and response thing again and I could see this playing really well live or in the club.

[CHORUS]
Cause if you liked it then you should have put a ring on it
If you liked it then you shoulda put a ring on it
Don’t be mad once you see that he wants it
If you liked it then you shoulda put a ring on it
whoa oh ooh oh oh ooh oh oh ooh oh oh oh
whoa oh ooh oh oh ooh oh oh ooh oh oh oh
Cause if you liked it then you should have put a ring on it
If you liked it then you shoulda put a ring on it
Don’t be mad once you see that he wants it
If you liked it then you shoulda put a ring on it

Beyonce has been very successful tapping into themes that her audience really identifies with. But more than that, she works with producers that know how to build a track that pops right out of the radio.  This song is successful because of that combination. It doesn't hurt that Beyonce has the star power to get people interested in new singles!

The standard for lyrics is different for this format, so things like rhyme, and even clear lyrical meaning isn't as critical. That said, this song is pretty easy to understand, despite some small lyrical weaknesses in the bridge. From the same team that gave us Rihanna's megahit "Umbrella" is it a suprise this went to #1?

What do you think?