Throwback Thursday: Mase – “Lookin’ at Me” (featuring Diddy)

Throwback Thursday: Mase – “Lookin’ at Me” (featuring Diddy)

Now what the hell is you lookin’ for? Can’t a young man get money anymore?

Mason Betha was at his shit-talking finest when he wrote “Lookin’ at Me,” the third and final single from his debut album, Harlem World. On this anti-ode to his haters, Mase is bragging about the money he makes, the women he sleeps with (including the wives of his haters), the jewelry he wears, and the flashy cars he drives. His boss at the time, Diddy, provided vocals for the hooks and spoken ad libs for that extra razzle dazzle.

“Lookin’ at Me” was released at the height of Bad Boy Entertainment’s success, and thematically, it was consistent with shiny suit style of hip-hop the label was known and loved for. However, production-wise, it was a little different — it had this semi-futuristic sound that was quite unlike anything on the radio at the time. Who produced it, you ask? A then-relatively-unknown duo who called themselves The Neptunes.

“Lookin’ at Me” peaked at No. 8 on the Billboard Hot 100, becoming Mase’s sixth top 10 hit — his third as a lead artist — and the first for Pharrell Williams and Chad Hugo, who would become superproducers over the next decade.