Out of This Club
{{good article}}
{{Infobox song
| name = Out of This Club
| type = single
| artist = the Pussycat Dolls featuring R. Kelly and Polow da Don
| album = Doll Domination
| released = {{Start date|2008|10|12}}
| studio = The Chocolate Factory (Chicago, Illinois)
| genre = R&B
| length = {{Duration|m=4|s=08}}
| label = Interscope
| writer =
| producer = R. Kelly
| chronology = The Pussycat Dolls
| prev_title = Whatcha Think About That
| prev_year = 2008
| next_title = I Hate This Part
| next_year = 2008
| misc = {{Extra chronology
| artist = R. Kelly
| type = single
| prev_title = Hair Braider
| prev_year = 2008
| title = Out of This Club
| year = 2008
| next_title = I Believe
| next_year = 2008
}}}}
"Out of This Club" is a song by American girl group the Pussycat Dolls from their second studio album, Doll Domination (2008). The song features guest appearances from singer R. Kelly and record producer Polow da Don, who both wrote the song. In the United States, it was serviced to urban contemporary radio stations on October 10, 2008, months after Kelly's acquittal of possessing child pornography in 2002. In the R&B song, lead singer Nicole Scherzinger teases Kelly to get her to settle down with piano melodies and a soft beat. The song received mixed reviews from music critics, who were split towards Kelly's artistry. The song debuted and peaked at number 24 on the US Billboard Bubbling Under R&B/Hip-Hop Singles chart. In 2019, "Out of This Club" was removed from digital and streaming platforms, following new allegations of sexual misconduct and assault towards Kelly.
Production and release
"Out of This Club" was written by its featured artists R. Kelly and Jamal "Polow da Don" Jones, with the former also producing and arranging it.{{Cite AV media notes|title=Doll Domination|year=2008|others=The Pussycat Dolls|type=poster|publisher=Interscope Records}} The song marks the third time The Pussycat Dolls collaborated with the record producer, who previously produced "Buttons" from PCD (2005) and "Whatcha Think About That" of Doll Domination (2008).{{cite magazine|url=https://www.billboard.com/articles/business/1308341/bmi-pop-awards-crowns-polow-da-don-top-songwriter|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210325003623/https://www.billboard.com/articles/business/1308341/bmi-pop-awards-crowns-polow-da-don-top-songwriter|title=BMI Pop Awards Crowns Polow Da Don Top Songwriter|last=Mitchell|first=Gail|archive-date=March 25, 2021|date=May 20, 2008|magazine=Billboard|access-date=March 25, 2021|url-status=live}} The vocals were recorded by Ian Mereness, Abel Garibaldi, Jeff Meeks, and Eric Schlotzer at The Chocolate Factory in Chicago, Illinois. It was mixed by Dave Pensado and Jaycen Joshua, with Kelly providing additional assistance. It was programmed by Mereness, Meeks, and Schlotzer. Guitars were played by Donnie Lyle and Patrick Hayes. Kelly appeared courtesy of Jive Records. In August 2008, Rap-Up first reported that "Out of This Club" would be included in the group's second studio album Doll Domination (2008).{{cite web|url=https://www.rap-up.com/2008/08/12/new-music-pussycat-dolls-f-r-kelly-out-of-this-club/|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080813161050/https://www.rap-up.com/2008/08/12/new-music-pussycat-dolls-f-r-kelly-out-of-this-club/|title=New Music: Pussycat Dolls f/ R. Kelly - 'Out Of This Club'|archive-date=August 13, 2008|date=August 12, 2008|work=Rap-Up|access-date=March 22, 2021|url-status=live}} The song impacted US urban contemporary airplay stations on October 12, 2008,{{cite web|url=http://gfa.radioandrecords.com/publishGFA/GFANextPage.asp?sDate=10/12/2008&Format=5|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120119145809/http://gfa.radioandrecords.com/publishGFA/GFANextPage.asp?sDate=10/12/2008&Format=5|title=®R&R :: Going For Adds™ :: Urban|archive-date=January 19, 2012|work=Radio & Records|access-date=March 18, 2021|url-status=dead}} following the release of the album's second single "Whatcha Think About That".{{cite web|url=https://www.rap-up.com/2008/08/29/new-music-pussycat-dolls-f-missy-elliott-whatcha-think-about-that/|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080901002940/https://www.rap-up.com/2008/08/29/new-music-pussycat-dolls-f-missy-elliott-whatcha-think-about-that/|title=New Music: Pussycat Dolls f/ Missy Elliott – 'Whatcha Think About That'|archive-date=September 1, 2008|date=August 28, 2008|work=Rap-Up|access-date=March 18, 2021|url-status=live}} Its followed Kelly's acquittal of possessing child pornography in 2002 by a couple of months.{{cite web|url=https://www.chicagotribune.com/news/ct-xpm-2008-06-14-0806140185-story.html|title=Why the Jury Acquitted R. Kelly|last1=Clair|first1=Stacy St.|last2=Ataiyero|first2=Kayce T.|date=September 22, 2008|work=Chicago Tribune|access-date=March 22, 2021}}
Composition and reception
{{listen
| filename = Pussycat Dolls - Out of This Club.ogg
| title = "Out of this Club"
| description = A 24-second sample of the "romantic chorus", where Scherzinger "coos and flirts" with Kelly.{{cite magazine|url=https://www.rollingstone.com/reviews/album/23066987/review/23126535/doll_domination|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080920221206/http://www.rollingstone.com/reviews/album/23066987/review/23126535/doll_domination|title=Doll Domination: Pussycat Dolls: Review|last=Hoard|first=Christian|date=October 2, 2008|archive-date=September 20, 2008|access-date=November 28, 2012|magazine=Rolling Stone|url-status=dead}}{{cite web|url=https://archive.nytimes.com/query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage-990CE1DE103DF931A1575AC0A96E9C8B63.html|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180807094706/https://archive.nytimes.com/query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage-990CE1DE103DF931A1575AC0A96E9C8B63.html|title=Critics' Choice; The Pussycat Dolls|last=Pareles|first=Jon|author-link=Jon Pareles|date=September 22, 2008|archive-date=August 7, 2018|work=The New York Times|access-date=March 22, 2021|url-status=live}}
| pos = right
| format = Ogg
}}
Musically, "Out of This Club" is a R&B song that runs for a total of four minutes and eight seconds. Described as a "mid-tempo jam", production is set to 34 beats per minute,{{cite web|url=https://www.umusicpub.com/us/Digital-Music-Library/song/71204/pussycat-dolls-out-of-this-club|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210322030050/https://www.umusicpub.com/us/Digital-Music-Library/song/71204/pussycat-dolls-out-of-this-club|title=Song Details: Out Of This Club By Pussycat Dolls|last1=Kelly|first1=Robert S.|last2=Jones|first2=Jamal F.|archive-date=March 22, 2021|publisher=Universal Music Publishing|access-date=March 22, 2020|url-status=live}} and contains "rudimentary piano melodies" and a "plush beat", which results in the song sounding saccharine, lively, and sassy.{{cite web|url=http://www.slantmagazine.com/music/review/pussycat-dolls-doll-domination/1506|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100413161118/http://www.slantmagazine.com/music/review/pussycat-dolls-doll-domination/1506|title=Pussycat Dolls: Doll Domination - Music Review|last=Cinquemani|first=Sal|date=September 22, 2008|archive-date=April 13, 2010|work=Slant Magazine|access-date=March 22, 2020|url-status=live}}{{cite web|url=http://www.newsday.com/entertainment/music/ny-etdrops5853001sep23a,0,2465322.story|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080923173015/http://www.newsday.com/entertainment/music/ny-etdrops5853001sep23a,0,2465322.story|title=Review: Pussycat Dolls' 'Doll Domination'|last=Gamboa|first=Glenn|date=September 23, 2008|archive-date=September 23, 2008|work=Newsday|access-date=March 22, 2020|url-status=live}} The vocals are "layered on top of one another in a cascading fashion", with the artists using slang terms such as "conversate".{{cite web|url=https://www.ign.com/articles/2008/09/23/pussycat-dolls-doll-domination-review|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191017123650/https://www.ign.com/articles/2008/09/23/pussycat-dolls-doll-domination-review|title=Review: Pussycat Dolls' 'Doll Domination'|last=D.|first=Spence|date=September 23, 2008|archive-date=October 17, 2019|publisher=IGN|access-date=March 22, 2020|url-status=live}} Lyrically, Nicole Scherzinger pleads Kelly "to settle down after a wild life" and prefers to make love outside the club. According to Joey Guerra from the Houston Chronicle, Scherzinger is tired of the "seedy stripper life", while Kelly is a sugar daddy who is fed-up of the party lifestyle,{{cite web|url=https://www.chron.com/entertainment/music/article/Fall-brings-fresh-crop-of-music-from-female-acts-1753179.php|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121019161415/https://www.chron.com/entertainment/music/article/Fall-brings-fresh-crop-of-music-from-female-acts-1753179.php|title=Fall brings fresh crop of music from female acts|last=Guerra|first=Joey|date=September 23, 2008|archive-date=October 19, 2012|work=Houston Chronicle|access-date=March 25, 2020|url-status=live}} which is exemplified by the lyrics, "I drank enough / I danced enough / I partied enough / I sweated enough".{{cite web|url=http://www.blender.com/2008/08/listen-r-kelly-hooks-up-with-legal-ladies/|archive-url=https://archive.today/20130121010501/http://www.blender.com/2008/08/listen-r-kelly-hooks-up-with-legal-ladies/|title=Listen: R. Kelly Hooks Up With Legal Ladies|date=August 12, 2008|archive-date=January 21, 2013|work=Blender|access-date=March 25, 2020|url-status=dead}} Critics have noted that "Out of This Club" is a possible sequel to Usher's "Love In This Club" (2008). Polow da Don's rap line, "If you ain't got no money, take your broke ass home" is sampled from Fergie's "Glamorous" (2007), which he had previously produced.
Guerra called "Out of This Club" "oddly appealing".
Nic Oliver of musicOMH complimented Kelly as a writer and producer, commenting he is doing a "fine job on the slow jam".{{cite web|url=http://www.musicomh.com/albums/pussycat-dolls-2_0908.htm|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080923002940/http://www.musicomh.com/albums/pussycat-dolls-2_0908.htm|title=Pussycat Dolls - Doll Domination - album reviews|last=Oliver|first=Nic|archive-date=September 23, 2008|work=musicOMH|access-date=September 5, 2020}} Christian Hoard of Rolling Stone was also complimentary of the production, describing it as "catchy" and he noted down the collaborators as "worth the money". IGN's Spence D. lacked expectations for Kelly, characterizing the song as a "standard sex you up fare". However, he did compliment the vocal stylings for "[sounding] cool". On the contrary, Sal Cinquemani of Slant Magazine derided Kelly's songwriting as "bottom-notch". Rashod Ollison of The Baltimore Sun labelled Kelly's appearance as "phoned-in", adding he "[does] nothing to elevate the calculated [track]".{{cite web|url=https://www.baltimoresun.com/news/bs-xpm-2008-09-23-0809220121-story.html|archive-url=https://archive.today/20210323012551/https://www.baltimoresun.com/news/bs-xpm-2008-09-23-0809220121-story.html|title=Pussycat Dolls|last=Ollison|first=Rashod D.|archive-date=March 23, 2021|date=September 23, 2008|work=The Baltimore Sun|access-date=March 25, 2021}} Jaime Gill of Yahoo! Music lambasted "Out Of This Club", pinpointing it as the nadir of Doll Domination. He continued: "This could have been a spiky female riposte to the 'let's have sex in this nitespot toilet' genre pioneered by Nelly, Usher and [Kelly], but Scherzinger is no Madonna nor Pink, and rather than making Kelly spill his Cristal with nerves, she simpers and drools like Jessica Simpson on Rohypnol."{{cite web|url=http://uk.launch.yahoo.com/080924/33/21zwb.html|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081001164527/http://uk.launch.yahoo.com/080924/33/21zwb.html|title=Pussycat Dolls Doll Domination Album Review|last=Gill|first=Jamie|archive-date=October 1, 2008|publisher=Yahoo! Music|access-date=March 22, 2021}} Commercially, "Out Of This Club" entered and peaked at number 24 on the US Billboard Bubbling Under R&B/Hip-Hop Singles, a component chart which represented the 25 songs that failed to make an impact on the US Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart.{{cite magazine|url=https://www.billboard.com/music/the-pussycat-dolls/chart-history/RBU/|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191215200625/https://www.billboard.com/music/the-pussycat-dolls/chart-history/RBU/|title=The Pussycat Dolls - Chart History: Bubbling Under R&B/Hip-Hop Songs|archive-date=December 15, 2019|magazine=Billboard|access-date=March 22, 2021}}
Removal from album and sale
In January 2019, the television documentary Surviving R. Kelly exposed new allegations of sexual misconduct and assault. In response, the Pussycat Dolls asked their former label, Interscope Records to remove the song from all streaming platforms, meaning neither artist could profit from the song.{{cite web|url=https://www.vulture.com/2019/01/chance-ciara-pussycat-dolls-removing-r-kelly-collabs.html|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190608031635/https://www.vulture.com/2019/01/chance-ciara-pussycat-dolls-removing-r-kelly-collabs.html|title=Chance the Rapper, Ciara, Pussycat Dolls Reportedly Removing R. Kelly Collabs|last=Lockett|first=Dee|date=January 15, 2019|archive-date=June 8, 2019|publisher=Vulture|access-date=March 22, 2021|url-status=live}} Beginning April 2019, the song was also excluded from subsequent CD pressings of Doll Domination.{{cite web|url=https://www.bol.com/nl/p/n/9200000107049792/|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210322045437/https://www.bol.com/nl/p/n/9200000107049792/|title=Doll Domination (No R.Kelly Version), The Pussycat Dolls|archive-date=March 22, 2021|publisher=Bol.com|access-date=March 22, 2021|url-status=live}} During an interview with Heat magazine, member Kimberly Wyatt explained that the collaboration was out of the group's hands: "When it came to the music, and when it came to R. Kelly, that was completely out of my hands. I had nothing to do with the song or the choice. I never met the man, I was never in the studio with him. If I had had more power I probably would have made it a bit different."{{cite web|url=https://heatworld.com/celebrity/news/kimberly-wyatt-pussycat-dolls-r-kelly/|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210322042844/https://heatworld.com/celebrity/news/kimberly-wyatt-pussycat-dolls-r-kelly/|title=Exclusive: The Pussycat Dolls' Kimberly Wyatt speaks out about working with R. Kelly|last=Smith|first=Carl|date=January 18, 2019|archive-date=March 22, 2021|work=Heat|access-date=March 22, 2021|url-status=live}}
Chart
class="wikitable plainrowheaders" style="text-align:center;"
|+Chart performance for "Out of This Club" |
scope="col"| Chart (2008)
!scope="col"| Peak |
---|
scope="row"| US Bubbling Under R&B/Hip-Hop Singles (Billboard)
| 24 |
References
{{reflist|2}}
{{The Pussycat Dolls}}
{{R. Kelly singles}}
Category:The Pussycat Dolls songs
Category:Interscope Records singles
Category:Songs written by R. Kelly
Category:Songs written by Polow da Don