{"id":10003559,"date":"2025-07-15T14:30:00","date_gmt":"2025-07-15T12:30:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.thomann.de\/blog\/en\/?p=10003559"},"modified":"2025-07-16T14:40:21","modified_gmt":"2025-07-16T12:40:21","slug":"one-hit-wonders-of-the-2000s","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.thomann.de\/blog\/en\/inspire\/one-hit-wonders-of-the-2000s\/","title":{"rendered":"One-Hit Wonders of the 2000s: Unforgettable Songs"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

To have a real hit for once! What many bands consider their ultimate goal can be both a blessing and a curse. We check out 20 acts that became immortal with a single hit, never to be heard from ever again.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

1 Alcazar \u2013 “Crying at the Discoteque”, 2000<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

“Crying at the Discoteque” was by far the biggest hit by the Swedish band Alcazar. It was released in 2000 and made it into the charts in many European countries in 2001, reaching gold status in Germany, Belgium, and Switzerland. Based on a sample of the 1979 disco hit “Spacer” by the French disco project Sheila & B. Devotion, the song glorifies the disco era of the 70s. Although the band did have a couple of smaller hits, they disbanded in 2018.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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2. Caesars \u2013 “Jerk It Out”, 2002<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Formed in Stockholm in 1995, the band named itself after the famous Caesars Palace casino in Las Vegas. Their first success came with the purchase of a Farfisa organ and the unmistakable hook played on it. In 2003, the band removed the word \u201cPalace\u201d from the name to avoid possible legal disputes in the USA. While \u201cJerk It Out\u201d could already be heard in the game FIFA 2004, it became a huge hit when Apple used it in a commercial in 2005.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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3. Baha Men \u2013 “Who Let the Dogs Out”, 2000<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Ask a simple question, answer it with five resounding \u201cWhos\u201d, and you\u2019ve got a hit! This song is actually a cover of “Who Let the Soca Out” by Trinidadian singer Anselm Douglas. But it was the version with the dogs that became a worldwide hit and received several gold and platinum awards and a Grammy in 2001. The song is featured in many TV shows and films, such as “Rugrats in Paris”, “Men in Black II”, and of course “Madagascar 3”. This all but guarantees that we\u2019ll never forget it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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4. Kat DeLuna feat. Elephant Man \u2013 “Whine Up”, 2007<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Kat DeLuna also had to find out the hard way what happens when the album that follows a debut single doesn’t live up to the record company\u2019s expectations. “Whine Up” made it into the charts worldwide, reached the top 10 in France, Belgium, and Romania, and was a number 1 hit in the US Dance Club Songs. However, the subsequent releases did not achieve the expected success. DeLuna had to change record companies and has not yet been able to repeat the success she had with Elephant Man.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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5. Wheatus \u2013 “Teenage Dirtbag”, 2000<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

“Teenage Dirtbag” was the theme song for the film “Loser”, whose lead actors, Jason Biggs and Mena Suvari, are also featured in the music video for the song. And here, too, the one-hit wonder recipe of “great debut single, disappointing follow-ups, dispute with the record company” unfortunately worked far too well. Wheatus from Long Island, New York were never able to repeat their success, even though the band is still active.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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6. Metro Station \u2013 “Shake It”, 2007<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Third single, first and only hit. That’s the short story of the 2007 song “Shake It” by the Los Angeles band Metro Station. While recording their second album, the band got caught up in a dispute, some members left, and the two founders Mason Musso (he kept the band name Metro Station) and Trace Cyrus (yes, Miley’s brother) each preferred to do their own thing. There were several reunions, but never again a hit as monumental as “Shake It”.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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7. City High \u2013 “What Would You Do?”, 2001<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

After having been featured on the soundtrack to the film “Life” with Eddie Murphy and Martin Lawrence in 1999, “What Would You Do?” became the first single from the band\u2019s debut album in 2001. And even though the single reached number 8 in the USA and numerous top 10 and top 50 positions worldwide, that was as far as it went. After disagreements during the recording of the second album, the trio broke up. A brief, brilliant episode from the world of hip-hop.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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8. Kevin Lyttle feat. Spragga Benz \u2013 “Turn Me On”, 2003<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

“Turn Me On” made it to number 4 on the American Billboard Hot 100 and into the top 10 in numerous countries worldwide. The song from Kevin Lyttle\u2019s debut album was originally released as a soca ballad, but success came with its re-release as a dance song for the US market. Unfortunately, it was short-lived, because even though Kevin Lyttle produced more singles and two albums, none of them could match the success of “Turn Me On”.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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9. The Darkness – “I Believe in a Thing Called Love”, 2003<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

 “I Believe in a Thing Called Love” is the third single from The Darkness’ debut album. To quote the comment from user Mr.Snotrock3t under the YouTube video: “The absolute BALLS to release this song, with this video, with that falsetto, at the time they did… LEGENDARY”. There’s no better way to describe it. The band went on to win 3 Brit Awards the following year \u2013 and that was it. The Darkness are still on the road with their mixture of glam rock and hard rock, but another hit has eluded them.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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10. The Ting Tings \u2013 “That’s Not My Name”, 2008<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Maybe we should have created a “one-and-a-half-hit-wonder” category for The Ting Tings, because thanks to an Apple advert, the band also had one other hit with the song “Shut Up And Let Me Go”. However, it doesn’t come close to “That’s Not My Name”, which has recently been in everyone’s ears again thanks to a TikTok challenge and its appearance in the Netflix film “The Life List”. Incidentally, the band could have cut everything short if the singer had revealed that her name was Katie White. But then we would have missed out on a great song!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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11. Eamon \u2013 “Fuck It (I Don’t Want You Back)”, 2003<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Sometimes written with an asterisk, sometimes spelled out with the \u201cu\u201d, the title of this song obviously attracted a lot of attention. And so it was that the first single by New York musician Eamon went straight to number 1 in the charts in many countries around the world. Eamon has since released three albums, but none of them have come close to repeating the success of “Fuck It”. Nine gold and five platinum awards are hard to beat!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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12. Trapt \u2013 “Headstrong”, 2002<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

The rock band Trapt from California now has nine studio albums to its name, some of which even made it into the American Top 50. But Trapt only had one successful single. Their debut single “Headstrong” was voted “Top Rock Song” and “Modern Rock Track of the Year” at the Billboard Music Awards in 2003. And the band continues to tour diligently!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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13. Lumidee \u2013 “Never Leave You (Uh Oooh, Uh Oooh)”, 2003<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Lumidee from New York also shares the fate of many artists with a one-hit wonder in that her debut single outshines all her other songs \u2013 almost! Although Lumidee was unable to repeat the success of her song “Never Leave You” with its distinctive “Uh Oooh” as a solo musician, she did enjoy success as a guest musician. In 2006, for example, she released the song “Dance!” with mascot Goleo for the football World Cup.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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14. O-Zone \u2013 “Dragostea Din Tei”, 2003<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Every year, a summer hit seems to come out of nowhere, only to be played so much that we inevitably get tired of it at some point. Just such a song is “Dragostea Din Tei” by the Moldovan boy band O-Zone, which joined the ranks of summer hits in 2004. And the lyrics “Ma-ia-hii, ma-ia-huu, Ma-ia-hoo, ma-ia-haa” (no, it’s not about Maria!) are sure to ring a bell with you, too!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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15. Crazy Town \u2013 “Butterfly”, 2000<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

The American crossover band Crazy Town showed just how brilliantly rock and hip-hop can work together in 2000 with their hit “Butterfly”, which went gold seven times and platinum nine times. Incidentally, the guitar melody from the intro is a sample from the song “Pretty Little Ditty” by the Red Hot Chilli Peppers. Crazy Town is now history, but “Butterfly” has long become a great classic.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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16. Hoobastank \u2013 “The Reason”, 2003<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

All fans of the TV series “Friends” know why this song became so successful. Even though there is a music video for it, it was probably its use as the closing song in the final episode of the sitcom in 2004 that gave it the boost it needed. Although the band Hoobastank has not been able to deliver another big hit like this to date, they are still touring and releasing really good music.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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17. The Calling \u2013 “Wherever You Will Go”, 2001<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Can anyone tell us why singer Alex Band is wearing a T-shirt from Frankfurt am Main in the (second and better-known) video for “Wherever You Will Go”? Nevermind, that certainly wasn’t the reason why this song, which you\u2019ll instantly recognise after the first three bars, remained The Calling’s only big hit. The band experienced ups and downs, Alex Band tried going solo, then there was a comeback, and despite Alex Band’s Parkinson’s disease, the band even released a really good new single in 2024.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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18. Las Ketchup \u2013 “The Ketchup Song (Aserej\u00e9)”, 2002<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

The second immortal summer hit on this list comes from Spain! In 2002, the whole world danced to the “Ketchup Song” by the three sisters Lola, Lucia, and Pilar Mu\u00f1oz, who continue to occasionally perform as the girl group Las Ketchup, now also featuring their sister Rocio. By the way, the song is about a certain Diego who sings along to his favourite song on the dance floor. Listen closely to the nonsense \u2013 do you recognise “Rapper’s Delight” by the Sugarhill Gang? Brilliant!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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19. Daniel Powter \u2013 “Bad Day”, 2005<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Yes, the Canadian-born singer-songwriter only had a single hit, which appeared on his second album. But what a hit it was: the 21 platinum, eight gold, and one silver awards from all over the world that he received for the song and the accompanying album prove that “Bad Day” was truly a mega hit. A crazy anecdote: To be able to perform on Canadian television for the first time, Daniel Powter participated in “Canada’s Got Talent” with his song in 2024 \u2013 and made it to the second round.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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20. Gnarls Barkley \u2013 “Crazy”, 2006<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

The third and final summer hit comes from Gnarls Barkley, a project by DJ Danger Mouse and singer CeeLo Green. With “Crazy”, the two of them collected 16 platinum and 5 gold awards from 13 March 2006 \u2013 only to pull the CD from the market on 29 May. Their reason: “People might get tired of the song!” But by then it was already too late, the song had long since earned its place in the one-hit wonder universe – and deservedly so!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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One-Hit Wonders of the 2000s: Your Opinion<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

How did you experience the 2000s? Can you think of any other one-hit wonders from that time? Let us know in the comments!<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

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\"\"<\/a><\/div><\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

From ‘Butterfly’ to ‘Crying at the Discoteque’… \u25b6\ufe0e Here are 20 unforgettable one-hit wonders from the 2000s that defined an era! \u2713<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":23,"featured_media":10003584,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"tblog_post_audio_url":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[10676],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-10003559","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-inspire"],"category_colors":{"color_key":"inspire","css_classes":{"text":"cat-inspire","text_light":"cat-inspire-light","bg":"cat-bg-inspire","bg_light":"cat-bg-inspire-light","border":"cat-border-inspire","text_on_bg":"cat-text-on-inspire"}},"reading_time":{"minutes":9,"formatted":"9 min"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.thomann.de\/blog\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/10003559","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.thomann.de\/blog\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.thomann.de\/blog\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.thomann.de\/blog\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/23"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.thomann.de\/blog\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=10003559"}],"version-history":[{"count":6,"href":"https:\/\/www.thomann.de\/blog\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/10003559\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":10003840,"href":"https:\/\/www.thomann.de\/blog\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/10003559\/revisions\/10003840"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.thomann.de\/blog\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/10003584"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.thomann.de\/blog\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=10003559"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.thomann.de\/blog\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=10003559"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.thomann.de\/blog\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=10003559"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}