If I Can't

Last updated
"If I Can't"
50 Cent - If I Cant - CD cover.jpg
Single by 50 Cent
from the album Get Rich or Die Tryin'
A-side "Poppin' Them Thangs"
B-side
ReleasedSeptember 16, 2003
Genre
Length3:16
Label
Songwriter(s)
Producer(s)
50 Cent singles chronology
"P.I.M.P."
(2003)
"If I Can't"
(2003)
"On Fire"
(2004)

"If I Can't" is a song recorded by American rapper 50 Cent for his debut studio album Get Rich or Die Tryin' (2003). It is one of the album's four tracks produced by Dr. Dre, with co-production from frequent collaborator Mike Elizondo. Lyrically, the song describes how 50 Cent believes that "if I [he] can't do it [referring to anything], it can't be done". It was released as the fourth and final single from Get Rich or Die Tryin' on September 16, 2003, by Interscope Records, Shady Records and Aftermath Entertainment.

Contents

"If I Can't" failed to match the commercial success of its predecessors, peaking only at number 76 on the US Billboard Hot 100. However, it peaked at number ten in the United Kingdom, after being released as a double A-side single with G-Unit's song "Poppin' Them Thangs".

Background

"Before my album Get Rich or Die Tryin' came out, there was a big debate about what the first single should be. Jimmy Iovine thought it should be the one that Dr. Dre produced, 'If I Can't'. But Em wanted 'In da Club'. In the end they were deadlocked, so they asked me and I told them, real quiet, 'In da Club'." – 50 Cent [1]

Released in 2003, it reached No. 76 in the US, becoming 50 Cent's sixth Hot 100 entry, but nonetheless his weakest charting single at that time. It also peaked at No. 10 in the UK as a double A-side with "Poppin' Them Thangs" (G-Unit). The song was written by 50 Cent, Dr. Dre, and Mike Elizondo, with production by Dr. Dre, and Mike Elizondo.

Music video

At the start there is a white man introducing 50 Cent; it then consists of video footage of 50 Cent in different concerts and documentaries. All of the members of G-Unit are seen in the video. It is very similar to the music video to Eminem's 2003 single "Sing for the Moment".

Track listing

  1. "If I Can't" - 3:16
  2. "Poppin' Them Thangs" (with G-Unit) - 3:45
  3. "In da Club" (Live in New York) - 4:52
  4. "If I Can't" (Music Video) - 3:24
  5. "Poppin' Them Things" (Music Video) - 3:48
  1. "If I Can't" - 3:16
  2. "Poppin' Them Things" (with G-Unit) - 3:45
  1. "If I Can't" - 3:16
  2. "In da Club" (Live in New York) - 4:52
  3. "What Up Gangsta" (Live in New York) - 4:08
  4. "If I Can't" (Instrumental) - 3:08

Charts

Certifications

Certifications and sales for "If I Can't"
RegionCertification Certified units/sales
Denmark (IFPI Danmark) [27] Gold45,000
Germany (BVMI) [28] Gold150,000
United Kingdom (BPI) [29]
with "Poppin' Them Thangs"
Gold400,000
United States (RIAA) [30] Gold500,000

Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone.

Release history

Release dates and formats for "If I Can't"
RegionDateFormat(s)Label(s)Ref.
United StatesSeptember 16, 2003 Digital download
AustraliaJanuary 19, 2004 Maxi CD Universal Music
United Kingdom [lower-alpha 1] February 23, 2004
Polydor
Germany [lower-alpha 1] March 15, 2004Maxi CDUniversal Music

Notes

  1. 1 2 Across Europe, "If I Can't" was released as a double A-side single with "Poppin' Them Thangs".

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