Readers of That Grape Juice know what avid music lovers we are – especially of hits past.

So, as our retrospective segments, ‘From the Vault’ and ‘TGJ Replay,’  allow us the chance to re-spin the gems and jams of yesterday of one artist, our latest feature –  Chart Rewind – serves as a variation of our Retro Rewind assay to salute an entire era of music history.

This week, we bow to the Queen of Neo-Soul Erykah Badu and her highest charting single to date, 2000’s ‘Bag Lady.’

Join us inside:

As evidenced by her iconic #VERZUZ battle with Jill Scott, singer-songwriter Erica Wright (better known by her stage name Erykah Badu) has lent the R&B subgenre Neo-Soul some of its most memorable pieces over the last 20 years – a smorgasbord of cultural hits that led to her being dubbed the Queen.

Yet, to the surprise of many, her celebrated discography cannot boast as many smash hits on the Billboard Hot 100.  That predicament seemed poise to change in 2000 when the diva released ‘Bag Lady.’

Following an award-winning spree for her first album, 1997’s 3x Platinum ‘Baduizm,’ expectations were high for its official follow-up (later christened ‘Mama’s Gun’).  Her response to the call for new music came September 12, 2000 courtesy of ‘Bag Lady’ – a soul-tinged tune that speaks of a woman who has difficulty making progress in life due to ’emotional baggage.’

Apparently the topic resonated with many as this week that year the song hopped to #6 on the Hot 100 – not even a month after its unveiling.  It fared even better on the R&B/Hip Hop charts as it ruled there for 7 weeks.

When the dust settled, ‘Bag’ bagged quite the positive response from industry critics – much like the work from ‘Baduizm’ before – as it earned two nods at the 2001 GRAMMYS (Best Female R&B Vocal Performance and Best R&B song).  Despite earning no RIAA certifications, the song stands as a fan favorite from Badu’s catalog and remains just one of two top 10 hits she’s had over her illustrious career (the other being the 2002 Common-assisted ‘Love of My Life’).

As we hail the Queen, look below to see who joined her in the top 25 this week 20 years ago.

Hot 100 This Week in 2000

Hot 100 This Week

Click here to see this week’s full Chart Check: Hot 100.

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