"Say No Go" | ||||
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Single by De La Soul | ||||
from the album 3 Feet High and Rising | ||||
Released | June 1989 | |||
Recorded | 1988 | |||
Genre | Alternative hip hop Golden age hip hop | |||
Length | 4:21 | |||
Label | Tommy Boy | |||
Songwriter(s) | ||||
Producer(s) | Prince Paul, De La Soul | |||
De La Soul singles chronology | ||||
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"Say No Go" is a single by De La Soul from their influential 1989 album 3 Feet High and Rising. It reached number 18 in the UK charts.[1] The tune is heavily based on the Hall & Oates song "I Can't Go for That (No Can Do)".[2]
During the 1980s and 1990s, the United States faced a severe crack cocaine epidemic. This crisis particularly impacted Black urban communities, leading to increased rates of addiction, violence, and incarceration.[3] In this context, The song is a cautionary tale about the use of drugs, in particular "base" (otherwise known as crack cocaine); a topic they would tackle on their follow-up album, De La Soul Is Dead, albeit from a different perspective, on the song "My Brother's a Basehead".
In the opening line, Posdnuos raps: "Now let's get right on down to the skit / A baby is brought into a world of pits / And if it could've talked that soon / In the delivery room / It would've asked the nurse for a hit".
"Say No Go" includes samples from the following songs:[4]
Chart (1989) | Peak Position |
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Australian ARIA Singles Chart | 35 |
UK Singles (OCC) | 18 |
U.S. Billboard Hot Black Singles | 32 |
U.S. Billboard Hot Dance Club Play | 3 |
U.S. Billboard Hot Rap Singles | 11 |
U.S. Billboard Hot Dance Music/Maxi-Singles Sales | 13 |