"Whatever U Like" is the debut solo single by American singer Nicole Scherzinger, featuring rapper T.I. The duo, along with Sean Garrett and Polow da Don, composed the song for Scherzinger's planned debut studio album Her Name Is Nicole. "Whatever U Like" was released on July 28, 2007 on Interscope Records.
Background and composition
The Pussycat Dolls debut studio album PCD (2005), was a commercial success that would end up selling 2.9 million records in the United States. The album featured number-one hit singles such as "Don't Cha" and "Buttons". The success of the group's album, spotlighted Scherzinger's work as the lead singer and began recording with other artists such as Timbaland and P. Diddy on "Come to Me" (2006); which became Scherzinger's first solo top-ten hit on the Billboard Hot 100. The collaborations furthered Scherzinger's popularity who was working on her own music over the course of two years (2005–07) and viewed the group as a stepping stone to launch her own solo career. One of the first songs recorded for her solo project, Her Name is Nicole was "Whatever U Like" which was written and produced by Polow da Don and Sean Garrett. The song was leaked early July, before being released as a digital download on July 28, 2007. Interscope Records never intended to ship the song to radio and wanted to use the single to introduce Scherzinger as a solo artist.
"Whatever U Like" is an up-tempo hip hop and R&B song with a length of three minutes and fifty-two seconds. The artists co-wrote the song with its producers Polow da Don and Sean Garrett. The song's beat was compared to Kelis' "Blindfold Me" (2006) and Chilli's "Straight Jack" which were both produced by Polow da Don. Rosie Swash of The Guardian compared the "rave-horn, synth-heavy production" to the works of Timbaland. Lyrically, Scherzinger sings about doing whatever her man likes: “riding it like a Harley.” Garrett appears throughout the song repeating the lines, "Ladies and gentlemen, I know what you want! She's hot as a stove. Her name is Nicole," while T.I. appears towards the middle of the track.
Reception
Rap-Up was one of the first media outlets to hear seven full tracks from Her Name is Nicole which included "Whatever U Like". A reviewer described the song as a "club banger", while commented, "It’s a perfect lead single and a good song to release in the summer." DJ Z from DJ Booth criticized the song for using the same beat and composition as Chilli's song "Straight Jack" writing: "Never a brilliant move to use a duplicate beat while dealing with a minor identity crisis, but if you’re Nicole Scherzinger, I guess it's OK?" Sal Cinquemani from Slant Magazine referred to the song while reviewing The Pussycat Dolls' second studio album Doll Domination (2008). He agreed with DJ Z writing it was a, "blatant rip-off of Kelis's 'Blindfold Me.'"; however he did write the song "was unjustly ignored." Adam Vary of Entertainment Weekly commented, "'Whatever U Like' is no 'London Bridge' — and that’s not exactly a high bar to reach."
In the United States, "Whatever U Like" failed to make a chart appearance on the Billboard Hot 100 but peaked at number 4 on the Bubbling Under Hot 100 Singles chart. It additionally stalled at number 73 on the US Digital Songs and number 83 on the US Pop Songs. In Canada, the song fared better, managing to peak at number 57 on the Canadian Hot 100.
Music video
The official music video was directed by Paul Hunter who previously directed the Pussycat Dolls' debut single "Don't Cha" (2005). Filming concluded on July 25, 2007 in San Pedro, California. On August 9, a short clip was leaked online. On August 20, Scherzinger appeared on TRL to premiere the music video.