Beyonc Knowles, Kelly Rowland, LeToya Luckett and LaTavia Roberson sat down at a table 20 years ago to reenact the Godfather scene from the 1996 film Set It Off. Their intentions for The Writings on the Wall were clear: get these fuckboys the hell up out of here. For the next 15 tracks, the Houston teens sang harmonious anthems letting haters know they were So Good, calling out a pressed Bug a Boo and asking why men do women wrong on Hey Ladies. And unlike their ballad-heavy debut album, the group rode the up-tempo beats with their distinct sing-rapping.
1999 was a remarkable year for the genre. That year, Whitney Houstons Heartbreak Hotel with Kelly Price and Faith Evans peaked on the Billboard Hot 100, Mariah Carey released Heartbreaker, Brandy had us asking Have You Ever? and Blaque had a hit with Bring It All to Me. Crooners owned mainstream R&B, Monica, Maxwell and Ginuwine included. But artists like TLC, Missy Elliott and Timbaland were playing with a more hip-hop-leaning R&B by this time, making room for Destinys Child to flex.
The Writings on the Wall was not only the last album to feature all four original members, but it became the foundation of the groups signature sound. It was a part of a new wave of R&B that would last for several years to come. The songs were original, with samples from only Bug a Boo and Temptation, and only included two features from Missy Elliott and Next. And the message was an affirmative, biblical even, body of female empowerment anthems as Destinys Child laid out the relationship commandments. Thou shall pay bills, thou shall not bug, thou shall confess, and so on.
The legendary status just jumped out.
It was a sound that cut through everything else that was going on, music industry veteran and writer Naima Cochrane told HuffPost during a phone conversation. But still, it had elements of Missy in it, that futuristic kind of production, but it didnt really sound exactly like anything else that was on the radio.
The album, released July 27, 1999, earned the group its first two No. 1 records with the lead single Bills, Bills, Bills followed by Say My Name. The album debuted at No. 6 and remained on the Billboard Top 40 for most of that year. Say My Name earned Destinys Child its first Grammy. Produced by Missy, Kandi Burruss, Kevin Shekspere Briggs, Rodney Darkchild Jerkins, Dwayne Wiggins, Chad Elliot, Daryl Simmons and Beyonc herself, The Writings on the Wall is still Destinys Childs best-selling album, moving more than 6 million units in the U.S. to date.
","type":"video","meta":{"author":"DestinysChildVEVO","author_url":"https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCjvlwa6AOFGJ6e3Mjr2cg3w","cache_age":86400,"description":"Bills, Bills, Bills by Destinys Child\nListen to Destinys Child: https://DestinysChild.lnk.to/listenYD\n\nWith a string of hits ranging from the self-reliant Bills, Bills, Bills to the jelly-celebrating Bootylicious, Destinys Child brought a fiercely strong brand of femininity to the pop chartsand made stars out of key members Michelle Williams, Kelly Rowland and Beyonc Knowles.\n\nSubscribe to the Destinys Child YouTube Channel: https://DestinysChild.lnk.to/subscribeYD\n \nFollow Destinys Child:\nFacebook: https://DestinysChild.lnk.to/followFI\nInstagram: https://DestinysChild.lnk.to/followII\nTwitter: https://DestinysChild.lnk.to/followTI\nWebsite: https://DestinysChild.lnk.to/followWI\nSpotify: https://DestinysChild.lnk.to/followSI\nYouTube: https://DestinysChild.lnk.to/subscribeYD\n \nLyrics:\nAt first we started out real cool \nTaking me places I ain't never been \nBut now, you're getting comfortable \nAin't doing those things you did no more \nYou're slowly making me pay for \nThings your money should be handling \nAnd now you ask to use my car \nDrive it all day and don't fill up the tank \nAnd you have the audacity to even come and step to me \nAsk to hold some money from me until \nYou get your check next week\nYou trifling \n(Good for nothing type of brother) \nSilly me \n(Why haven't I found another) \n(A baller), when times get hard need someone to help me out \n(Instead of) a scrub like you who don't know what a man's about\nCan you pay my bills \nCan you pay my telephone bills \nCan you pay my automo-bills \nIf you did then maybe we could chill \nI don't think you do \nSo, you and me are through \nCan you pay my bills \nCan you pay my telephone bills \nCan you pay my automo-bills \nIf you did then maybe we could chill \nI don't think you do \nSo, you and me are through\nNow you've been maxing out my cards \nGiving me bad credit buying me gifts with my \nOwn ends \nHaven't paid the first bill \nBut you're steady heading to the mall \nGoing on shopping sprees perpetrating to your friends that you be balling \nAnd then you use my cell phone \nCalling whoever that you think at home \nAnd then when the bill comes all of a sudden you be acting dumb \nDon't know where none of these calls come from \nWhen your mama's number's here more than once\nCan you pay my bills \nCan you pay my telephone bills \nCan you pay my automo-bills \nIf you did then maybe we could chill \nI don't think you do \nSo, you and me are through \nCan you pay my bills \nCan you pay my telephone bills \nCan you pay my automo-bills \nIf you did then maybe we could chill \nI don't think you do \nSo, you and me are through\nCan you pay my bills \nCan you pay my telephone bills \nCan you pay my automo-bills \nIf you did then maybe we could chill \nI don't think you do \nSo, you and me are through \nCan you pay my bills \nCan you pay my telephone bills \nCan you pay my automo-bills \nIf you did then maybe we could chill \nI don't think you do \nSo, you and me are through\n \n#DestinysChild #BillsBillsBills #Vevo","options":{"_end":{"label":"End on","placeholder":"ex.: 11, 1m10s","value":""},"_start":{"label":"Start from","placeholder":"ex.: 11, 1m10s","value":""},"click_to_play":{"label":"Hold load & play until clicked","value":false}},"provider_name":"YouTube","thumbnail_height":720,"thumbnail_url":"https://i.ytimg.com/vi/NiF6-0UTqtc/maxresdefault.jpg","thumbnail_width":1280,"title":"Destiny's Child - Bills, Bills, Bills (Official Video)","type":"video","url":"https://action.news/watch?v=NiF6-0UTqtc","version":"1.0"},"flags":[],"fullBleed":false,"options":{"theme":"featured","device":"mobile","editionInfo":{"id":"us","name":"U.S.","link":"https://action.news","locale":"en_US"},"originalEdition":"us","isMapi":false,"isAmp":false,"isVideoEntry":false,"isEntry":true,"isMt":false,"entryId":"5d728271e4b03aabe35bad44","entryPermalink":"https://action.news/entry/destinys-child-writings-on-the-wall-legacy_n_5d728271e4b03aabe35bad44","entryTagsList":"music,beyonce,kelly-rowland,destinys-child,for-the-love-of-1999","sectionSlug":"entertainment","deptSlug":"entertainment","sectionRedirectUrl":"https://action.news/entertainment","subcategories":"black-voices,women","isWide":false,"headerOverride":null,"noVideoAds":false,"disableFloat":false,"isNative":false,"commercialVideo":{"provider":"custom","site_and_category":"us.entertainment","package":null},"isHighline":false,"vidibleConfigValues":{"cid":"60afc111dcf87c2cd2f5d8bf","overrides":{"front_page_top_videos":{"desktop":"60b64354b171b7444beaff4d","mobileweb":"60b64354b171b7444beaff4d"},"top_media":{"desktop":"60b8e6bdc5449357a7ada147","mobile":"60b8e701c5449357a7ada2ee","iphone":"60b8e643cdd90620331bb1f6","ipad":"60b8e643cdd90620331bb1f6","androidphone":"60b8e699c5449357a7ada04c","androidtablet":"60b8e699c5449357a7ada04c"},"anthology":{"desktop":"60b8e616cdd90620331bb0ba","mobile":"60b8e671c5449357a7ad9f66","iphone":"60b8e643cdd90620331bb1f6","ipad":"60b8e643cdd90620331bb1f6","androidphone":"60b8e699c5449357a7ada04c","androidtablet":"60b8e699c5449357a7ada04c"},"content":{"desktop":"60b8e616cdd90620331bb0ba","mobile":"60b8e671c5449357a7ad9f66","iphone":"60b8e643cdd90620331bb1f6","ipad":"60b8e643cdd90620331bb1f6","androidphone":"60b8e699c5449357a7ada04c","androidtablet":"60b8e699c5449357a7ada04c"}},"playerUpdates":{"5668ae6ee4b0b5e26955d6a6":"60d2472d9340d7032ad7e443","56aa41bae4b091744c0440d8":"60e869dc7c5f3b17b6741b81","5841b2b5cc52c716ec6e5a7f":"60b8e355cdd90620331ba185","58b5e2b8d85a10302feee895":"60b64316b171b7444beafdb2","58b74698f78ced31417819ae":"60b8e5bec5449357a7ad9b52","58b74ccecebcea57e2c3a3d1":"60b8e5eac5449357a7ad9ca5","58cff690d85a100b9992bc39":"60b8e616cdd90620331bb0ba","58cffb3fb6d9b972a49a3c9d":"60b8e643cdd90620331bb1f6","58cffdd74d96935d7d6ec180":"60b8e671c5449357a7ad9f66","58d03a84f78ced6518eb2fa7":"60b643c82e76be41f112735c","592edf20e0fa177b0c26f7fd":"60b8e699c5449357a7ada04c","5b35266b158f855373e28256":"60b64354b171b7444beaff4d","5c116f29f79c4171d82b7c2a":"60b64440b171b7444beb040b","5c1170fc600c9a697bf0c6b9":"60b646102e76be41f1127ffc","5c47791afa1b317df8ae0c4f":"60b8e6bdc5449357a7ada147","5c477987a6b48b35f164773d":"60b8e701c5449357a7ada2ee","5c4779ee943c3c2a64f28371":"60b8e747cdd90620331bb861","5c477a26fcd67b26879bc7c2":"60b8e788c5449357a7ada67b","5d8921a78c3ae845f366c9b6":"60ae7be5f3a7c13a30417ff9","58b98b00ba82aa39a6534321":"60d0de7c9340d7032ad1146c","58b9d14cb6d9b96c9ec32af3":"60d0dec19340d7032ad115a0","58cff8eccebcea42931e0436":"60d0e005b627221e9d819d44","592edf5de0fa177b0c26f95b":"60d0e38fb627221e9d81adcf","58cff72fd85a100b9992c112":"60d0e447b627221e9d81b0da","56b4d34fe4b022697697c400":"60d2472d9340d7032ad7e443","60b8e4c0c5449357a7ad957d":"60e869dc7c5f3b17b6741b81"}},"connatixConfigValues":{"defaultPlayer":"ff7fdddc-5441-4253-abc4-f12a33fad58b","clickToPlayPlayer":"d014396e-b366-4c17-aeac-3ce906fa3fd0","videoPagePlayer":"f010447b-d244-4111-a314-7b4542ae4145","verticalPlayer":"e58cb05a-0bc8-4210-9108-fea82726c065","stickyPlayerControl":"52ea1755-d601-4ad1-bccc-d8cce3f0e5da","stickyPlayerON":"8055e9e5-3bda-4933-8d45-9ad814fb6e22"},"topConnatixThumnbailSrc":"data:image/png;base64,iVBORw0KGgoAAAANSUhEUgAAAAEAAAABCAQAAAC1HAwCAAAAC0lEQVR42mNkYAAAAAYAAjCB0C8AAAAASUVORK5CYII=","customAmpComponents":[],"ampAssetsUrl":"https://amp.assets.huffpost.com","videoTraits":null,"positionInUnitCounts":{"buzz_head":{"count":0},"buzz_body":{"count":0},"buzz_bottom":{"count":0}},"positionInSubUnitCounts":{"article_body":{"count":4},"blog_summary":{"count":0},"before_you_go_content":{"count":0}},"connatixCountsHelper":{"count":0},"buzzfeedTracking":{"context_page_id":"5d728271e4b03aabe35bad44","context_page_type":"buzz","destination":"huffpost","mode":"mobile","page_edition":"en-us"},"tags":[{"name":"Music","slug":"music","links":{"relativeLink":"topic/music","permalink":"https://action.news/topic/music","mobileWebLink":"https://action.news/topic/music"},"relegenceSubjectId":981391,"department":{"name":"Entertainment","slug":"entertainment"},"section":{"title":"Entertainment","slug":"entertainment"},"topic":{"title":"Music","slug":"music","overridesSectionLabel":false},"url":"https://action.news/entertainment/topic/music"},{"name":"Beyonce ","slug":"beyonce","links":{"relativeLink":"topic/beyonce","permalink":"https://action.news/topic/beyonce","mobileWebLink":"https://action.news/topic/beyonce"},"department":{"name":"Entertainment","slug":"entertainment"},"section":{"title":"Entertainment","slug":"entertainment"},"topic":{"title":"Beyonc","slug":"beyonce","overridesSectionLabel":false},"url":"https://action.news/entertainment/topic/beyonce"},{"name":"kelly rowland","slug":"kelly-rowland","links":{"relativeLink":"topic/kelly-rowland","permalink":"https://action.news/topic/kelly-rowland","mobileWebLink":"https://action.news/topic/kelly-rowland"},"relegenceId":5377347,"url":"https://action.news/topic/kelly-rowland"},{"name":"Destiny's Child","slug":"destinys-child","links":{"relativeLink":"topic/destinys-child","permalink":"https://action.news/topic/destinys-child","mobileWebLink":"https://action.news/topic/destinys-child"},"relegenceId":1248030,"department":{"name":"Entertainment","slug":"entertainment"},"section":{"title":"Entertainment","slug":"entertainment"},"topic":{"title":"Destiny's Child","slug":"destinys-child","overridesSectionLabel":false},"url":"https://action.news/entertainment/topic/destinys-child"},{"name":"for the love of 1999","slug":"for-the-love-of-1999","links":{"relativeLink":"topic/for-the-love-of-1999","permalink":"https://action.news/topic/for-the-love-of-1999","mobileWebLink":"https://action.news/topic/for-the-love-of-1999"},"department":{"name":"Entertainment","slug":"entertainment"},"section":{"title":"Entertainment","slug":"entertainment"},"topic":{"title":"For The Love Of 1999","slug":"for-the-love-of-1999","overridesSectionLabel":false},"url":"https://action.news/entertainment/topic/for-the-love-of-1999"}],"isLiveblogLive":null,"isLiveblog":false,"cetUnit":"buzz_body","bodyAds":["\r\n\r\n","\r\n\r\n","\r\n\r\n"],"adCount":0},"isCollectionEmbed":false,"enhancements":{}}">
_(720p).jpg)
 OFFICIAL HD MUSIC VIDEO.jpg)
.jpg)
