Key Takeaways:

• T-Pain’s catalog includes both solo hits and unforgettable collaborations that defined an era.
• His use of auto-tune and storytelling helped shape the sound of 2000s and 2010s Hip Hop and R&B.
• Behind-the-scenes stories and artist quotes reveal how many of these hits came to life.

T-Pain is the mastermind behind countless hooks on popular records from the early 2000s. It did not matter if he was lending a vocal assist to a peer or fronting his own songs, whatever the case, it was sure to be a hit.

The proud Tallahassee, Florida, native has an extensive list of singles that have amassed millions of listens and just as many units sold. His musical influence reimagined autotune decades after funk master Roger Troutman’s Zapp band made the talk box a creative accessory, and yet he continues to distinguish himself as a leader of Millennial artists satisfying the needs of fans across generations. So, with that being said, let’s revisit iconic T-Pain collaborations and solo hits that helped shape the sound of 2000s and 2010s Hip Hop and R&B and are still dominating playlists.

1. “I’m Sprung”

“I’m Sprung” is the record that put T-Pain on the charts as a breakout new artist in 2005. The catchy melody and his use of auto-tune lodged the tune into the minds of millions and secured his signature sound. However, the record almost fell victim to sitting on a shelf. At the time, T-Pain was signed to Akon’s label, Konvict Muzik, and hoped the “Locked Up” artist would use it as his own. However, Akon wasn’t a fan of the record, so he decided to release it as his own record. It landed on Teddy Pain’s debut album, Rappa Ternt Sanga, and, well, the rest is history.

2. “I’m N Luv (Wit a Stripper)” feat. Mike Jones

“I’m N Luv (Wit a Stripper)” added fuel to the hot streak Nappy Boy caught after his first single. This time, though, he leaned into a story of finding love in the strip club. The playful track shows appreciation for exotic dancers and their art form. Even more noteworthy is the hit’s backstory: “My homeboy was trying to save strippers in the club. The song was a joke. I was literally making fun of him,” he said on the “Hotboxin’ with Mike Tyson” podcast.

3. “Bartender” feat. Akon

“Bartender” has a wild origin story that involves endless drinks and a bartender at an adults-only resort. According to the hitmaker, he got the idea while at an all-inclusive Hedonism, having a ball at the bar. When he went to pay his tab, he was informed that the drinks were included in the cost of his stay, hence the lyrics, "She made us drinks, we drunk 'em, got drunk." The song, which appears on Epiphany, peaked at No. 5 on the Billboard Hot 100.

4. “Buy U a Drank (Shawty Snappin’)” feat. Yung Joc

The early 2000s music phenom had to battle his ego to craft “Buy U a Drank (Shawty Snappin’),” his version of the trendy snap music movement popularized by Atlanta artists and producers. He admitted to Billboard that an A&R requested he add a version of the sound to a song to complete his album, Epiphany. “I’m glad he made that decision. I’m glad he kind of pushed that on me, you know, [and] pushed me past my limit, and [I] came up with a banger,” he said.

5. “Chopped N Skrewed” feat. Ludacris

A standout from the THR33 RINGZ album is “Chopped N Skrewed.” The muses of men being led on by women at the bar and strip club made for a top-tier record that not even the Hot 100 chart could deny (it went No. 1). Ludacris’ slick lyrics meet T-Pain’s realization that he’s been chopped and screwed by his own temptations and will always be relatable to someone.

6. “Can’t Believe It” feat. Lil Wayne

Lightyears before they locked in on the joint T-Wayne mixtape, the NOLA GOAT and Nappy Boy Entertainment honcho gifted fans with “Can’t Believe It.” The track was the lead single from T-Pain’s third studio album. The men traded verses about footing the bill to provide a stripper with the good life that would have her screaming and hollering from Wisconsin to the Cayman Islands.

7. “U And Dat” with E-40 and Kandi

The mainstream Hip Hop community knew T-Pain’s voice thanks to E-40’s massive hit “U And Dat” during the height of the hyphy craze. The record held its own on the Hot 100 chart for 25 weeks and continues to be a classic party song from the Bay Area and beyond.

8. “Low” by Flo Rida

Joining forces with Flo Rida for “Low” was a brilliant and lucrative idea as it earned the multi-hyphenate a diamond-certified record. Apple Bottom jeans and boots with fur will forever feel like an iconic combo because of the hook T-Pain penned on a whim.

9. “Kis Kiss” by Chris Brown

Teddy Penderazzdown wrote and produced his 2007 collaboration with Chris Brown. The dynamic singer-dancer was entering adulthood, so T-Pain pushed the envelope with his lyrics. However, his more mature approach to the record had to be toned down before the pop star’s team approved it. Once it was greenlit and released to radio, it quickly climbed to the top of the Hot 100 chart and remained there for three weeks.

10. “Good Life” by Kanye West

Kanye West’s single “Good Life” featuring the autone maestro took two months to record, had five different hooks, and none of them appear on the version of the song we know and love. T-Pain heard the final rendering when he went to film the music video. “It sounded nothing like that in the studio,” he explained in an interview with Billboard. In the end, Ye’s genius revisions and piecing together of sonic elements won them the Best Rap Song Grammy.

11. “Cyclone” by Baby Bash

A recurring theme in his track history is the songwriter's appreciation of the female form and its bodacious movements. His contribution to Baby Bash’s “Cyclone” is proof of that very sentiment. He sings, “She moves her body like a cyclone/ And she makes me wanna do it all night long/ Going hard when they turn the spotlights on/ Because she moves her body like a cyclone/ A mighty cyclone.”

12. “I LUV HER” by GloRilla

T-Pain and that 2000s sound of hit music are synonymous with each other, so, it’s no wonder that GloRilla struck gold with “I LUV HER” from her freshman album, Glorious. The way her Memphis swag perfectly merges with hints of Teddy’s “Shawty” vocals is the reason so many fans, from millennials to Gen Z, have approved of the single.

13. “Shawty” by Plies

“This should have won a Grammy,” said T-Pain when he reflected on the collaboration with Plies to Billboard. He explained how the song was offered to multiple acts before it was laced with vocals from both Floridians. Peers like Webbie and Pitbull tested their verses on the track, but Plies came out on top.

14. “Got Money” by Lil Wayne

These two are pure fire together, so they had to run it back in the studio again for “Got Money.” Tha Carter III feature cracked the Top 10 on the Hot 100 and is among the LP’s fan-favorite cuts. “That was just a special era. Period. T-Pain and Lil Wayne couldn’t be touched. There’s nobody messing with us in that dynamic duo. We were something else,” he once boasted while talking to Billboard, and truer words could not have been spoken.

15. “All I Do Is Win” by DJ Khaled feat. Ludacris, Rick Ross, Snoop Dogg

This victory anthem falls behind only one other legendary song, Queen’s “We Are the Champions,” and that’s saying a lot considering the latter was released in 1977. DJ Khaled enlisted T-Pain, Ludacris, Snoop Dogg, and Rick Ross for the ultimate victory record in 2010. Tallahassee’s finest was a significant contributor to the track with the hook’s declaration, “All I do is win, win, win, no matter what/ Got money on my mind, I can never get enough/ And every time I step up in the building, everybody hands go up, and they stay there.”

This list proves that T-Pain's sound is never going out of style. If anything, it cements his place on the charts because his hits are timeless no matter the year.