Each Music Monday will be formatted as followed: an overview/ my opinion on their said career, followed by the ranking of their top 5 songs. No artist is without flaws, their worst three songs will also be judged and ripped to shreds.
As a reminder, this is not going to be a series where I list no-name songs off an artist’s shitty second album that’ll you’ll hear occasionally in an urban coffee shop. We only grade hits here. I’m not looking for songs that have the best underlying message. I’m not looking for songs that represent the artist’s struggle and triumph over something shitty that happened to them. I don’t care about any of that. We are only ranking the cream of the crop, the pinnacle of an artist’s success. Before you ask, I will not be ranking The Beatle’ songs, as I do not want to tarnish my blog with overrated garbage. If you have a problem with that, or my rankings, and want to make your criticisms known, you can email all of your concerns to VinnieWontCheckThis@gmail.com. Prior versions of this series can be found here.
In light of the reunion, this was the only ranking that made sense for this week. I love the Pussycat Dolls. So with that let’s get started.
The Pussycat Dolls are an American girl group and dance ensemble, founded in Los Angeles, California, by choreographer Robin Antin in 1995 as a burlesque troupe. The group received a lot of press coverage June 1999, when Playboy featured a Pussycat Dolls pictorial, featuring at least seven contemporary members posing semi-nude. Following their growing popularity, Interscope music producers became involved with the group helping them to transform into a franchise after Gwen Stefani was asked to perform with the dolls. The former dance troupe evolved into a music group in 2003, recruiting singers Nicole Scherzinger and Melody Thornton to join Carmit Bachar, Ashley Roberts, Jessica Sutta and Kimberly Wyatt to form this new recording group. Their highly anticipated debut album, PCD, was released in September 2005 and was a commercial and critical success. PCD sold nine million copies and had an array of hits. It had a top two (Don’t Cha), top three (Buttons), top five (Stickwitu), top fifteen (Beep), and top 20 (Wait a Minute) songs. I seriously consider this one of strong set of five songs off an album this century. The five singles off of PCD are probably in the same ballpark as the five songs off of Fergie’s The Dutchess (London Bridge, Fergalicious, Glamorous, Big Girls Don’t Cry, Clumsy) and Katy Perry’s Teenage Dream Album (California Gurls, Teenage Dream, Firework, E.T., Last Friday Night). Those are the top three off my head, if I’m missing something please let me know. The group was enjoying unparalleled and unmatched success (I don’t say that to be dramatic, The Pussycat Dolls were huge… Rihanna was THEIR opening act on their tour. RIHANNA!! The Pussycat Dolls were that big). Despite this, tension in the group began developing, with Carmit-one of the original founding members when they were just a dancing troupe- left the group ahead of their second album. The group’s second album, Doll Domination, was released in September 2008. In terms of matching the success that PCD achieved, the album is considered a disappointment. However, it is important to note that this ‘disappointment’ of an album still had two top ten hits (When I Grow Up, I Hate This Part) and a top fifteen song (Jai Ho!). The group’s tour supporting the album grossed $14 million but despite still making a boat load of money, the tension in the group was too much to overcome, and the group split at the conclusion of the tour. For the better part of 10 years, that is where the Pussycat Dolls’ story ends, however last year, rumors of a reunion being the works made its way online. For a while it was just hearsay, a couple sources here and there but nothing ever materialized- until September 2019, when the group was photographed in the recording studio. This was later confirmed by Nicole Scherzinger early in November 2919 that the group will be performing and touring once again.
At long last my nightmare was over, PCD is back, and I am riding a wave I have not ridden for 10 years. 24 hours after their reunion performance, the air feels a little fresher today, and all feels right in the world.
Toughest Omission: Wait a Minute (ft. Timbaland): This is an empowering song about knowing your worth and that you don’t need anyone- but if you want someone, make sure it’s on your terms and have them spoil you. This song is a good one, I enjoy it a lot, but PCD has too many hits, I can’t put it in the top 5.
5. I Hate This Part: It does feel like foreshadowing that this was one of the last songs the Pussycat Dolls gave us before ghosting us for a decade. This is a great song if you need a good cry about the end of a relationship. If you’re the dumper, the words Nicole says resonates with you masterfully. If you’re dumpee- everything Nicole says is complete bullshit, it was probably pretty easy for them, and while I’m at it, you were never loved. Have a great day!
4. Stickwitu: Every girl has been planning their dream wedding since they were 5, and I’m aware that I’m going to have no say in any of the planning process and that’s fine by me, spending the next 2-10 years of their lives their entire life with me is punishment enough, the least I can do is let you pick out the flavor of cake that you want before you give up on all your hopes and dreams and ultimately settle for me. But regardless, you’ll always have the special day you dreamed of. However, the only thing I’m gonna demand is that this song is my wedding song. I was 11 when I first heard it and from then I knew that this was going to be it. My opinion hasn’t changed on it nearly 15 years later either.
3. When I Grow Up: there are two types of people in this world. One who think that the lyrics are “I wanna have boobies” and the other group thinks it is “I wanna have groupies.” In today’s day and age where nobody can agree on anything, I think it stems from us arguing back and forth on this back in 2009. (For the record, I used to think it was boobies).
2. Don’t Cha (ft. Busta Rhymes): The epitome of “the grass is always greener on the other side.” There’s an underlying message in every Pussycat Doll song and the message in this one is simple- I’m the best and your significant other will never be. Have confidence in yourself, and know your worth. That message resonated with 11 year old Vinnie, and so I took this new found confidence and told a girl that her boyfriend wasn’t anything special, and she’d be way happier with me. She then told said guy what I said and then he and his friends ganged up on me and beat me up by the basketball courts. Fuck off Greg. (Yes a guy named Greg beat me to a pulp in middle school, I still haven’t lived it down).
1. Buttons (ft. Snoop Dogg): Whenever this song comes on my inner hoe is BANGING on the door just begging to be unleashed. I become a different person when listening to it, it’s frightening. The song is perfect and the video is even better. I need to take a bath.
This is a Pussycat Dolls Slander Free Zone. Use this time to watch their reunion performance and realize what you’ve been missing for a decade.
Today’s girl groups couldn’t hold a CANDLE to the Pussycat Dolls and that’s a stone cold fact. I’m so happy they’re back.
Your Turn
If you had a blog and were to rank every Pussycat Doll song that hit top 20 on the charts, what are your top 5?
| Title | Year | Peak chart positions | Album |
| Don’t Cha | 2005 | 2 | PCD |
| Stickwitu | 2005 | 5 | PCD |
| Beep (ft. will.i.am) | 2006 | 13 | PCD |
| Buttons (ft. Snoop Dogg) | 2006 | 3 | PCD |
| Wait a Minute (ft. Timbaland) | 2006 | 20 | PCD |
| When I Grow Up | 2008 | 9 | Doll Domination |
| I Hate This Part | 2008 | 10 | Doll Domination |
| Jai Ho! | 2009 | 15 | Doll Domination |
Vin'sane Thoughts 