Hella Good

"Hella" was a popular saying in 2001, used as a modifier to indicate something even better than "super," but maybe not quite "uber." In this song, No Doubt is feeling hella good, so they're gonna keep on dancing. It the only hit song with that word in the title.

Gwen Stefani and Tony Kanal of No Doubt teamed with Chad Hugo and Pharrell Williams (The Neptunes) to write this song. The Neptunes didn't produce it though - Nellee Hooper did. At least that's what the credits say, but Williams implied they were producers on the track but their effort went unrecognized. "I wasn't happy with the way those production credits went," he told Q magazine in 2003. The Neptunes had worked on a number of big songs by this point ("Got Your Money" by ODB, "The City Is Mine" by Jay-Z) but weren't yet hella famous. That changed soon after, when they lent their talents Nelly for "Hot In Herre" and Kelis for "Milkshake." Losing their producers' credit on "Hella Good" stung, but it didn't prevent them from working with Stefani again. They co-wrote and produced her smash solo single "Hollaback Girl." As for Nellee Hooper, he was a member of Soul II Soul and produced Sinéad O'Connor's album I Do Not Want What I Haven't Got.

This was the second single from No Doubt's fifth album, Rock Steady, following "Hey Baby." They expanded their sonic palette a great deal on the album, working with a host of producers and songwriters. "Hella Good" is a voyage into modern electronic sounds and pop melodies, but they also have some songs with a ska influence, including "Underneath It All," written with Dave Stewart of Eurythmics.