If I Can't

"If I Can't"
Single by 50 Cent
from the album Get Rich or Die Tryin'
Released September 16, 2003 (U.S.)
February, 23, 2004 (UK)
Recorded 2002
Genre Hip hop, gangsta rap
Length 3:16
Label Shady, Aftermath, Interscope Records
Songwriter(s) 50 Cent
Producer(s) Dr. Dre (Also mixed) , Mike Elizondo (co.) (Also keyboards, guitar, & bass)
50 Cent singles chronology
"P.I.M.P."
(2003)		 "If I Can't"
(2003)		 "Let Me In"
(2004)

"If I Can't" is a song by American hip-hop artist 50 Cent, released as the fourth and final single from his debut album, Get Rich or Die Tryin' (2003). The song is one of four on the album to be produced by hip-hop producer Dr. Dre, with co-production from frequent collaborator Mike Elizondo. Musically, the song describes how 50 Cent believes that "if I [he] can't do it [referring to anything], it can't be done".

Upon its release, the song was a reasonable commercial success. However, it did not match the commercial success of the album's three previous singles, only peaking at number 76 on the Billboard Hot 100 in the United States, where the three previous singles had all peaked within the top three. Nevertheless, it did peak in the upper regions of several national charts - most successfully in the United Kingdom, where it peaked at number ten after being released as a double A-side with the G-Unit single "Poppin' Them Thangs".

Background

"Before my album Get Rich or Die Tryin' came out, there was a big debate about what the first single should be. Jimmy Iovine thought it should be the one that Dr. Dre produced, 'If I Can't'. But Em wanted 'In da Club'. In the end they were deadlocked, so they asked me and I told them, real quiet, 'In da Club'." – 50 Cent[1]

Released in 2003, it reached #76 in the USA, becoming 50 Cent's sixth Hot 100 entry, but nonetheless his weakest charting single at that time. It also peaked at #10 in the United Kingdom as a double A-side with "Poppin' Them Thangs" (G-Unit). The song was written by 50 Cent and produced by Dr. Dre, with co-production from keyboardist Mike Elizondo.

Music video

At the start there is a white male introducing 50 Cent; it then consists of video footage of 50 Cent in different concerts and documentaries. All of the members of G-Unit are seen in the video. It is very similar to Eminem's music video for his 2002 song "Sing for the Moment".

Track listing

  • UK CD single[2]
  1. "If I Can't" - 3:16
  2. "Poppin' Them Thangs" (with G-Unit) - 3:45
  3. "In Da Club" (Live in New York) - 4:52
  4. "If I Can't" (Music Video) - 3:24
  5. "Poppin' Them Things" (Music Video) - 3:48
  • German CD single[3]
  1. "If I Can't" - 3:16
  2. "Poppin' Them Things" (with G-Unit) - 3:45
  • Australian CD single[4]
  1. "If I Can't" - 3:16
  2. "In Da Club" (Live in New York) - 4:52
  3. "What Up Gangsta" (Live in New York) - 4:08
  4. "If I Can't" (Instrumental) - 3:08

Charts

Chart (2003)[5][6][7] Peak
position
Australian Singles Chart 22
German Singles Chart 39
Hungarian Singles Chart[8] 56
UK Singles Chart ^ 10
US Billboard Hot 100 76
US Billboard Hot Rap Tracks 22

^ Released as a double A-side with "Poppin' Them Thangs"

Remixes

References

  1. ↑ Haynes, Gavin (October 1, 2015). "Soundtrack of my life". NME: 48.
  2. ↑ "If I Can't / Poppin' Them Thangs". 23 February 2004 – via Amazon.
  3. ↑ "If I Can't Poppin Them 2" – via Amazon.
  4. ↑ "50 CENT IF I CAN'T CD SINGLE - eBay". eBay.
  5. ↑ 50 Cent - P.I.M.P. - Music Charts. aCharts.us.Accessed July 8, 2007.
  6. ↑ Billboard Singles. All Music Guide. Accessed July 8, 2007.
  7. ↑ 50 Cent P.i.m.p. @ Top40-Charts.com. Top40-Charts.com. Accessed July 8, 2007.
  8. ↑ "MAHASZ". www.mahasz.hu.
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