In the UK, Shaggy and Rayvon’s 2001 hit song “Angel” has earned a platinum certification.
The certification was released by the British Phonographic Industry (BPI) on November 1, acknowledging the track’s sales and streaming stats, which have now exceeded 600,000 units. In May 2001, it received a Gold certification (400,000 units).
- Advertisement -
Angel, the 17th most popular song of 2001 in the United States, is still a staple on wedding playlists and was featured on Shaggy’s Hot Shot album. Shaun “Sting International” Pizzonia produced the song, which peaked at number one in 12 countries, including the US, Canada, and the UK.
The beat included bits from the Steve Miller Band song 1973, The Joker, while the words of Evie Sands’ original 1967 song Angel of the Morning were interpolated. Shaggy noted that the bass part of The Joker was really reggae in a 2021 Billboard interview.
He shared, “DJ Paul, who used to play at the Club Illusion in Brooklyn, was a really good friend with my longtime producer Sting International. He actually made a suggestion of interpolating Steve Miller Band’s 1973 song The Joker.”
“So that bass — doom-doom, do-do-doom-doom — is actually a reggae bassline even though it’s from a rock song. It just had that groove that made you want to put your arms around it,” he noted.
Regarding the lyrics, Shaggy stated that: “myself and Dave Kelly had already written one verse. While we were playing it, RikRok actually walked in singing that melody. I was like, ‘Wow, that’s dope’. We ended up just flipping the words and making it cooler by saying ‘peeps’ and ‘shorty’. That was the slang that was going on at the time.”
He continued, “I ended up finishing the second verse and the bridge with RikRok. That made me realize we had a special record.”
More than 500 million people have viewed Angel’s official music video on YouTube. With the current 4X Platinum certification, “It Wasn’t Me” featuring Rikrok is Shaggy’s most popular song in the UK.
He has a Platinum certification for his song “Boombastic,” and Silver certifications for “In the Summertime” with Rayvon, “I Need Your Love” with Mohombi, and “Faydee and Costi.”
