Cater 2 U

Album: Destiny Fulfilled (2004)
Charted: 14
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Songfacts®:

  • Destiny's Child have their share of songs that call out men for their misdeeds, but in "Cater 2 U," they're here to serve. Beyoncé takes the first verse, offering to take off his shoes and draw him a bath; Kelly Rowland takes over in verse two, promising to stay in shape and fulfill his desires; Michelle Williams comes in for the third verse, telling him, "Your wish is my command."

    "In order to be a strong woman, you have to have a strong man," Beyoncé told MTV. "There's nothing wrong with women doing that for their man if their man deserves it and he does the same for you."
  • This was the fourth and final single from Destiny's Child's fourth and final studio album, Destiny Fulfilled. By this time, Beyoncé and Kelly Rowland had both released solo albums.
  • Each member of the group has a songwriting credit on this track along with Rodney Jerkins, Ricky Lewis and Robert Waller. Jerkins (known as "Darkchild") and Lewis (known as "Ric Rude") also produced the track.
  • The "2 U" is a Prince thing (Destiny's child were big fans). His song "Nothing Compares 2 U" was famously covered by Sinéad O'Connor.
  • Legal action was brought against the R&B trio by singer/songwriter Rickey Allen, who claimed that this song was inspired by a track he had composed with the same title, which was copyrighted in the mid-1990s. The three Destiny's Child stars finally agreed to a settlement behind closed doors in 2009.
  • Jake Nava directed the video, which was shot in the California desert and features see-through lawn chairs, bikinis, and some lucky guys.
  • When Destiny's Child performed this song at the BET Awards in 2005, they wandered into the crowed midway through the song looking for "some men to cater to." Beyoncé grabbed Terrence Howard; Rowland found her "Dilemma" partner Nelly, and Williams claimed Magic Johnson. They led each of them to the stage, where they sat them down, sang to them, and gave them lap dances. Nelly and Magic played it straight, but Howard looked like Roger Rabbit the first time he saw Jessica. "My wife can't be too happy, but she came and got me," Howard explained. "I tried to say no."

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