Destiny’s Child’s Kelly Rowland Hates ‘Bug A Boo’ But It’s One Of The Group’s Most Popular Songs
Destiny’s Child has provided women some of the most powerful songs about female empowerment. They had women around the world demanding their partner’s respect with songs like “Say My Name” and had women confident with “Survivor.” But just as fans have their favorite and least favorites from the group’s catalog, so does its members. Kelly Rowland would be happy to never hear or perform their 1999 hit “Bug-A-Boo” ever again, despite the song being one of the group’s most popular.
Kelly Rowland reveals her least favorite Destiny’s Child song is “Bug-A-Boo”
During a 2019 appearance on Bravo’s Watch What Happens Live with Andy Cohen, Rowland discussed her time in Destiny’s Child. In a game of Q&A, Rowland answered questions on her favorite and least favorite songs with her group.
“My favorite would have to be anything from the last Destiny Fulfilled album,” Rowland said. The album was released in 2004 as their final studio length album and a coinciding world tour. “My least favorite would probably have to be, oh gosh, ‘Bug-A-Boo,'” she continued. The song was a single from the group’s second album.
Related: Kelly Rowland Talks About Her Least Favorite Destiny’s Child Song and Kandi Burruss as a Songwriter
Rowland explained that there is a part of the song during the bridge that makes it annoying. “It’s like this one part on the bridge where I’m like ‘Ughhhhhhh.’ That part kind of makes me [hate it].”
Bug-A-Boo is a Destiny’s Child fan favorite and was a modest hit
Co-written by the four original members of Destiny’s Child and RHOA star Kandi Burruss, “Bug-A-Boo” was released in August 1999 as the second single from Destiny’s Child’s sophomore album, The Writings On The Wall. The uptempo track’s theme is about an annoying and semi-obsessive boyfriend who bugs his girlfriend with numerous calls, messages, and unexpected visits. The song uses portions of the 1978 song “Child’s Anthem” by Toto.
“Bug-A-Boo” peaked at No. 33 on the Billboard Hot 100. It performed better on the R&B chart, peaking at No. 15 and spent a total of 20 weeks on the Hot 100. It had international success as well, peaking within the top 10 in the Netherlands and the United Kingdom.
Though the song was a modest hit on the charts, the accompanying music video helped grow its popularity. Directed by Darren Grant, the video received tons of airplay on MTV and BET and remained on rotation on top music video countdown shows, including TRL. “Bug-A-Boo” became the group’s first music video to actually chart on TRL. Kobe Bryant was also featured in the music video.
A remix of “Bug-A-Boo” featuring Wyclef Jean was also released. All sequences including in the original remained the same for the remix, with an added shot of Jean.
“Bug-A-Boo” helped make ‘The Writings On The Wall’ a multi-platinum album
The album debuted at No. 6 on the US Billboard 200 chart. But as singles like “Bills, Bills, Bills” and “Bug-A-Boo” and “Say My Name” gained traction, the album sales increased.
Eventually, The Writings On The Wall was certified eight times platinum and earned six Grammy nominations, including two for Best R&B Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocals, two for Best R&B Song, Record of the Year, and Song of the Year.
Billboard Magazine listed the album at No. 39 on its Top 200 Albums of the Decade. The critical reception of the album was also fairly positive, with many publications giving the album four out of five stars.
