What's Luv? (feat. Ashanti)

"What's Luv?" is a playful and provocative exploration of the dichotomy between physical desire and emotional love within the context of modern relationships and nightlife. The song's central theme questions the necessity of love and commitment when it comes to sexual attraction and fleeting encounters. Fat Joe, through his verses, embodies the persona of a charismatic player who is upfront about his intentions. He's attracted to a woman's physical attributes and is looking for a good time without the complications of a serious relationship. He famously asks, "what's love gotta do with a little menage?", directly challenging conventional romantic ideals and proposing a purely hedonistic experience. This perspective is contrasted by the chorus, sung by Ashanti and co-written by Ja Rule, which repeatedly asks "What's love?". It interpolates the iconic hook from Tina Turner's 1984 hit "What's Love Got to Do with It," but shifts the focus slightly by suggesting love "should be about us, it should be about trust." This creates a dynamic tension between carnal desire and the ideal of a deeper connection. The song doesn't offer a definitive answer but rather presents a dialogue between these two conflicting ideas, ultimately suggesting that in the world depicted, lust often takes precedence over love.

The song unfolds as a conversation and exploration of modern relationships, primarily from a male perspective focused on lust and casual encounters. It opens with Fat Joe setting a scene in a club, expressing his immediate physical attraction to a woman. He's direct about his intentions, appreciating her curves and seductive look, but also revealing a short fuse for too much conversation that might spoil the mood. He boasts about his lavish lifestyle, implying he can provide for women, and frames the encounter as a fun, no-strings-attached experience. He directly challenges the idea of love being a barrier to a physical relationship, even suggesting a ménage à trois, questioning the traditional role of love in the context of immediate desire.

Ashanti's chorus, which interpolates Tina Turner's classic "What's Love Got to Do with It," acts as the song's central hook and thematic question. It contrasts Fat Joe's verses by suggesting that love should be about something deeper, specifically trust. This creates a playful tension between the song's two viewpoints: the raw, physical desire articulated by Fat Joe and the more idealistic, emotion-based concept of love voiced by Ashanti.

In his second verse, Fat Joe addresses a woman who is already in a relationship. He acknowledges her commitment, even noting a tattoo of her man's name, but he isn't deterred. He frames his interest not as being a "hater" but simply as someone who "crushes a lot," a nod to a famous line by his late mentor, Big Pun. He positions himself as a tempting alternative, focusing purely on the physical chemistry between them and urging her to get closer, implying that the allure of the moment should outweigh her existing loyalties.

Ja Rule's contribution on the album version reinforces the theme of a fleeting, hedonistic connection. He describes a late-night club scene, emphasizing the sexual nature of the encounter. His verse is explicit about the physical acts he desires, further detaching the interaction from any emotional depth. He portrays a world where relationships are transactional and driven by lust, where the idea of love is secondary to immediate gratification.

The song's bridge, sung by Ashanti, shifts the perspective slightly. While her chorus introduces the idea of trust, her bridge takes on a more provocative and assertive tone. She expresses her own desire and confidently states what she wants from the physical encounter, making it clear she's an active participant who expects satisfaction. This adds a layer of female agency to the narrative, suggesting the desire for a physical connection without emotional strings isn't exclusive to the male perspective.

Ultimately, "What's Luv?" captures a snapshot of early 2000s club culture, presenting a narrative where the lines between love, lust, and loyalty are blurred. It’s a dialogue between the cynical, pleasure-seeking player and the lingering ideal of love, all set to an infectious beat that made it a massive commercial success. The song doesn't necessarily resolve the question it poses, but rather revels in the ambiguity and excitement of the chase.

"What's Luv?" was released on February 4, 2002, as the second single from Fat Joe's fourth studio album, Jealous Ones Still Envy (J.O.S.E.) (2001). The song was produced by Irv Gotti and Chink Santana for Murder Inc. Records. The track's creation involved a significant collaboration. Irv Gotti and Ja Rule had already developed the chorus, with Ashanti singing on the demo. Fat Joe revealed in an Instagram Live session with Ashanti that he was woken up at 3 a.m. and summoned to the studio, where they presented him with the song. Initially, the producers and record label intended to replace Ashanti's vocals with those of Jennifer Lopez to appeal to the Latin market, a common practice at the time where Ashanti would record reference tracks for bigger artists. However, upon hearing the demo, Fat Joe insisted that Ashanti's vocals remain on the final version, a decision that proved pivotal to the song's success and one that Ashanti herself was unaware of for many years. The song was recorded at The Crackhouse studio in New York City. The credited writers are Fat Joe (Joseph Cartagena), Ja Rule (Jeffrey Atkins), producers Irv Gotti (Irving Lorenzo) and Chink Santana (Andre Parker), as well as Terry Britten and Graham Lyle for the Tina Turner interpolation, and Christopher Rios (Big Pun) for a referenced lyric.

The primary lyrical device in "What's Luv?" is the rhetorical question posed in the chorus, which functions as a central motif. This question, borrowed from Tina Turner's "What's Love Got to Do with It," is re-contextualized for the hip-hop club scene of the early 2000s. While Turner's song was about emotional self-preservation and avoiding the pain of love, Fat Joe's track uses the question to strip away emotional pretense in favor of straightforward physical desire. Love isn't something to be feared, but rather something irrelevant to the immediate situation. Fat Joe's verses use the imagery of a lavish, successful lifestyle ("you should see the jewelry on my women") as a metaphor for his status and desirability, suggesting that material success is part of the attraction, separate from emotional connection. Additionally, the line "I'm not a hater, I just crush a lot" is a direct lyrical reference to the song "Still Not a Player" by Fat Joe's late protégé, Big Pun. This serves as an homage and also symbolically aligns Fat Joe's persona with that of the charismatic, unapologetic 'player' that Big Pun embodied.

The predominant emotional tone of "What's Luv?" is playful, flirtatious, and confident. It operates from a place of swagger and hedonism rather than deep emotional vulnerability. The song's atmosphere is that of a bustling, vibrant nightclub, where desires are immediate and transactions are straightforward. Fat Joe's verses convey a sense of bold, unapologetic lust and masculine confidence. This is created through his direct lyrics, boasting of his lifestyle, and his nonchalant dismissal of the woman's existing relationship. Ashanti's vocals on the chorus introduce a slightly different emotional texture; her delivery is smooth and questioning, which can be interpreted as either a genuine search for a deeper meaning or a seductive part of the game. The bridge, where she asserts her own desires, adds an element of confident, female sensuality. There is no significant emotional shift in the song; it maintains its upbeat and libidinous energy from start to finish, focusing entirely on the thrill of the chase and the potential for a physical encounter.

"What's Luv?" was a massive commercial success and a defining song of the early 2000s hip-hop/R&B crossover era. It peaked at number two on the US Billboard Hot 100, where it remained for 20 weeks, becoming Fat Joe's highest-charting single as a lead artist. The song also topped the Billboard Hot Rap Tracks chart. Its success had a significant impact on Ashanti's career; with "What's Luv?" at number two and her own single "Foolish" at number one, she became the first female artist to simultaneously hold the top two spots on the Billboard Hot 100. The track was a global hit, reaching the top five in countries like the UK, Australia, and Switzerland. The song was also featured on the soundtrack for the 2002 film Juwanna Mann, and its music video, filmed at Fordham University, featured cameos from the film's stars and members of Fat Joe's Terror Squad. The song's formula of a hardcore rapper paired with a smooth R&B singer for the hook became a dominant trend in popular music. The song's enduring popularity is evident through its continued presence on throwback playlists and its status as a quintessential anthem of its time.

"What's Luv?" is built on a mid-tempo, danceable rhythm that was highly characteristic of club-oriented hip-hop and R&B in the early 2000s. The beat is structured around a four-on-the-floor drum pattern, making it infectious and easy to move to. Fat Joe's lyrical flow is laid-back but rhythmic, often using simple end rhymes to maintain a conversational and accessible feel (e.g., "lips/strip," "eye/high," "chillin'/gettin'"). His verses employ a relatively straightforward rhyme scheme, often relying on couplets (AABB), which makes the storytelling clear and direct. The rhythm of his delivery plays against the steady musical beat, creating a syncopated and engaging vocal performance. The chorus, sung by Ashanti, features a more melodic and flowing rhythm that contrasts with the percussive nature of the rap verses. This interplay between the rhythmic, spoken-word style of the verses and the smooth, sung melody of the hook is a key component of the song's appeal and structure, creating a dynamic and memorable track.

Musically, "What's Luv?" is a quintessential example of the early 2000s hip-hop/R&B crossover formula. It blends Fat Joe's gritty, New York-style rap verses with a smooth, melodic, and incredibly catchy R&B hook sung by Ashanti. This call-and-response structure between the hard rap verses and the soft chorus was a hallmark of producer Irv Gotti's Murder Inc. sound. The production features a prominent, replayed sample (an interpolation) of the synth-marimba hook from Tina Turner's "What's Love Got to Do with It," which makes the song instantly recognizable. Fat Joe's vocal delivery is confident and conversational, portraying a character who is direct and unapologetic. Ja Rule's ad-libs and verse on the album version add another layer of the signature Murder Inc. sound. Literarily, the song relies on direct address and rhetorical questions to engage the listener and the female subject of the song. Fat Joe uses vivid, if straightforward, imagery to describe his physical desires ("I wanna chick with thick hips that licks her lips"). The lyrical reference to Big Pun's "I'm not a player, I just crush a lot" is a key intertextual element that grounds the song within hip-hop history and tradition.