Sophie B. Hawkins "Damn, I Wish I Was Your Lover"

"Damn I Wish I Was Your Lover" was a hit song in the U.S. (#5) by Sophie B. Hawkins. Released in 1992, it is from her album Tongues and Tails. It achieved success in many countries such as Norway and Austria where it was a top ten hit.

ay-Z featuring Amil and Ja Rule "Can I Get A..."

"Can I Get A..." is a 1998 single by rapper Jay-Z that features Amil and Ja Rule. It was released on Def Jam's Rush Hour Soundtrack in promotion of the film Rush Hour, but also appears on Jay-Z's third album Vol. 2... Hard Knock Life. The song is produced by Irv Gotti and Lil' Rob. The song is notable for popularizing a young Amil and Ja Rule as well as becoming one of Jay-Z's most commercially successful singles at the time, peaking at #19 on the Billboard Hot 100.

L.L. Cool J "Mama Said Knock You Out"

"Mama Said Knock You Out" was a hit single by LL Cool J off of his album of the same name. The song's famous beginning is "Don't call it a comeback / I've been here for years." Before "Mama Said Knock You Out" was released, many people felt that LL Cool J's career was waning; his grandmother, who still believed in his talent, told him to "knock out" all the critics. The song was produced by Marley Marl with help from Bobby "Bobcat" Ervin and LL himself and won Best Rap Solo Performance at the Grammy Awards of 1992.

Fiona Apple "Criminal"

"Criminal" is a song written by American singer-songwriter Fiona Apple for her debut album Tidal (1996). Apple described the song as a description of "feeling bad for getting something so easily by using your sexuality. It was released as the album's third single in September 1997 (see 1997 in music), and is widely considered Apple's breakout hit, peaking at #21 on the Billboard Hot 100, as well as #4 on the Billboard Modern Rock Tracks chart. The song won a Grammy Award for Best Female Rock Vocal Performance at the 40th Grammy Awards and was nominated for Best Rock Song. The song was listed at number seventy-one on Blender magazine's 2005 list of "The 500 Greatest Songs Since You Were Born".

Joan Osborne "One of Us"

"One of Us" is a song written by Eric Bazilian (of The Hooters) and originally released by Joan Osborne. Released in March 1995 on the album Relish and produced by Rick Chertoff, it became a top 40 hit in November of that year.

Naughty by Nature "O.P.P."

"O.P.P." is a 1991 song recorded by rap group Naughty by Nature. The song made it to the US Top Ten (peaking at #6), propelling their self titled album Naughty by Nature to platinum status. The song's declaration "Down Wit' OPP" was a popular catchphrase in the U.S. in the early-'90s. Its beat is sampled from Jackson 5's "ABC" in which Alphonzo Mizell, Freddie Perren, Deke Richards, and Berry Gordy Jr. got a writing credit for the song. It was a hugely successful single, as Allmusic described "There was not a bigger, more contagious crossover radio smash in the autumn of 1991 than Naughty by Nature's "O.P.P."

Sugar Ray "Fly"

"Fly" is a song by rock band Sugar Ray. It appears on their 1997 album Floored twice: one version with reggae artist Super Cat (Track 4) and the other without (Track 13). The former was more prominent on the radio, but the more soft-rock format stations chose to play the latter. The band's frontman Mark McGrath remarked on the difference