Playas Gon' Play

"Playas Gon' Play" is the second and final single from American girl group 3LW's self-titled debut album (2000). The single was released in April 2001. Although the song was a favorite among fans,^{[citation needed]} it peaked at only number 81 on the Billboard Hot 100. It performed moderately on the UK Singles Chart, where it peaked at number 21. In 2017, Billboard named the song number 89 on their list of "100 Greatest Girl Group Songs of All Time".^[1] The song featured lead vocals by Naturi Naughton.

"Playas Gon' Play"
Single by 3LW
from the album 3LW
B-side	"Never Let 'Em Go"
Released	April 10, 2001 (2001-04-10)
Length	4:40 (album version) 3:40 (radio edit)
Label	Epic
Songwriter(s)	Sean "Sep" Hall Nate Butler
Producer(s)	Sean "Sep" Hall
3LW singles chronology
"No More (Baby I'ma Do Right)" (2000) "Playas Gon' Play" (2001) "Feels Good (Don't Worry Bout a Thing)" (2002)
Music video
"Playas Gon' Play" on YouTube

Music video

The video was directed by Darren Grant on February 17, 2001. It received decent video play on TV channels such as BET and MTV and enjoyed some success on BET's 106 & Park and MTV's TRL. The video debuted on TRL on March 7, 2001, at number seven and stayed on the countdown for 11 days and peaked at number five. The video fell off the countdown on May 18, 2001.

The video starts with the girls being dropped of at a tropical beach resort. Once they have been dropped off, they change into their bikinis and walk through the resort. As they walk through the resort, boys are looking at them. Throughout the video are scenes of the girls hanging out on a balcony watching over the resort. Another portion of the video shows the girls performing a dance routine in front on the pond at the resort at night.

Track listings

US CD single^[2] "Playas Gon' Play" (album version) – 4:40 "Playas Gon' Play" (instrumental) – 4:43 "Playas Gon' Play" (a cappella) – 4:37 "Never Let Em' Go" (album version) – 3:46 "Never Let Em' Go" (remix) – 4:04 UK CD single^[3] "Playas Gon' Play" (radio edit) – 3:40 "Playas Gon' Play" (8 Jam Street mix) – 5:08 "Playas Gon' Play" (System 3 Step mix) – 6:11 "Playas Gon' Play" (video) – 3:48

UK cassette single^[4] "Playas Gon' Play" (radio edit) – 3:40 "Playas Gon' Play" (8 Jam Street mix) – 5:08 "Dear Diary" – 4:15 Australian CD single^[5] "Playas Gon' Play" (radio edit) – 3:40 "Playas Gon' Play" (Street mix) – 5:15 "Playas Gon' Play" (System 3 Step mix) – 6:11 "No More (Baby I'ma Do Right)" (8 Jam Street mix) – 5:08

Charts

Chart (2001)	Peak position
Australia (ARIA)^[6]	66
Europe (Eurochart Hot 100)^[7]	83
Ireland (IRMA)^[8]	46
New Zealand (Recorded Music NZ)^[9]	36
Scotland (OCC)^[10]	45
UK Singles (OCC)^[11]	21
UK Hip Hop/R&B (OCC)^[12]	5
US Billboard Hot 100^[13]	81
US Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs (Billboard)^[14]	56
US Rhythmic (Billboard)^[15]	17

Release history

Region	Date	Format(s)	Label(s)	Ref.
United States	April 10, 2001	Rhythmic contemporary urban radio	Epic	^[16]
	May 1, 2001	Contemporary hit radio		^[17]
United Kingdom	August 27, 2001	12-inch vinyl CD cassette		^[18]
Australia	October 15, 2001	CD		^[19]

Lawsuit

In 2017, "Playas Gon' Play" writers Sean Hall and Nathan Butler filed a lawsuit accusing Taylor Swift of copyright infringement because Swift's 2014 song "Shake It Off" features the lyrics "the players gonna play, play, play, play, play and the haters gonna hate, hate, hate, hate, hate."^[20] Swift claimed in a 2022 declaration that she had never heard "Playas Gon' Play" or anything else by 3LW prior to writing "Shake It Off," rather, the first time she heard the song was after the claim was made against her. Swift also pointed out other songs that use similar phrasing and said the concept is common phrasing, whereas Hall and Butler claimed the phrasing, while common in recent years, was unique at the time they wrote the song.^[21] On December 12, 2022, the lawsuit was dropped with no final verdict.^[22]

References

1. Staff (July 10, 2017). "100 Greatest Girl Group Songs of All Time: Critics' Picks". Billboard. Retrieved July 11, 2017.
2. Playas Gon' Play (US CD single liner notes). 3LW. Epic Records. 2001. 49K 79595.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
3. Playas Gon' Play (UK CD single liner notes). 3LW. Epic Records. 2001. 671793 2.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
4. Playas Gon' Play (UK cassette single sleeve). 3LW. Epic Records. 2001. 671793 4.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
5. Playas Gon' Play (Australian CD single liner notes). 3LW. Epic Records. 2001. 671361 2.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
6. "Issue 608" ARIA Top 100 Singles. National Library of Australia. Retrieved September 21, 2020.
7. "Eurochart Hot 100 Singles" (PDF). Music & Media. September 15, 2001. p. 9. Retrieved March 5, 2018.
8. "Irish-charts.com – Discography 3LW". Irish Singles Chart. Retrieved October 21, 2019.
9. "3LW – Playas Gon' Play". Top 40 Singles.
10. "Official Scottish Singles Sales Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved December 2, 2017.
11. "Official Singles Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company.
12. "Official Hip Hop and R&B Singles Chart Top 40". Official Charts Company. Retrieved December 2, 2017.
13. "3LW Chart History (Hot 100)". Billboard. Retrieved May 10, 2015.
14. "3LW Chart History (Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs)". Billboard. Retrieved May 10, 2015.
15. "3LW Chart History (Rhythmic)". Billboard. Retrieved May 10, 2015.
16. "CHR/Rhythmic: Going for Adds" (PDF). Radio & Records. No. 1396. April 6, 2001. pp. 47, 54. Retrieved April 24, 2021.
17. "CHR/Pop: Going for Adds" (PDF). Radio & Records. No. 1399. April 27, 2001. p. 50. Retrieved June 3, 2021.
18. "New Releases – For Week Starting August 27, 2001: Singles" (PDF). Music Week. August 25, 2001. p. 31. Retrieved August 16, 2021.
19. "The ARIA Report: New Releases Singles – Week Commencing 15th October 2001" (PDF). ARIA. October 15, 2001. p. 24. Archived from the original (PDF) on February 20, 2002. Retrieved April 24, 2021.
20. "Taylor Swift Shake It Off Lyrics". Genius. Genius Media Group Inc. Retrieved September 17, 2022.
21. Davis, Wynne. "Taylor Swift says she never listened to 3LW before writing 'Shake It Off'". npr. npr. Retrieved September 17, 2022.
22. Donahue, Bill (December 12, 2022). "Taylor Swift Copyright Accusers Drop Lawsuit Over 'Shake It Off' After Five Years Of Litigation". Billboard. Retrieved December 12, 2022.