"Down 4 U" was the lead single from The Inc. Records

The Inc. Records

The Inc. Records , is an American record label, owned by Irv Gotti.In 1999, Murder Inc. released its first album, Venni Vetti Vecci by Ja Rule. The album featured the hit single "Holla Holla". The album was executively produced by Irv Gotti and moved on to go platinum, which rose Ja Rule and...

 compilation Irv Gotti Presents: The Inc.

Irv Gotti Presents: The Inc.

Irv Gotti Presents: The Inc. is a compilation album released in 2002 featuring members of Irv Gotti's label Murder Inc. . The album featured the singles "Down 4 U", which reached #6 on the U.S. Hot 100 and "Ain't It Funny" , which made it all the way to #1...

. The song featured rapped verses from Ja Rule

Ja Rule

Jeffrey Atkins , better known by his stage name Ja Rule, is an American rapper, singer, and actor.Born in Hollis, Queens, he began his career in the group Cash Money Click and debuted in 1999 with Venni Vetti Vecci and its single "Holla Holla"...

, Vita and Charli Baltimore

Charli Baltimore

Tiffany "Charli Baltimore" Lane is an American Grammy Award nominated female rapper. Her stage name is taken from Geena Davis's character in the film The Long Kiss Goodnight.-Musical career:...

 and vocals and a chorus performed by Ashanti. The song is a remix of Ja Rule's 2002 single, "Down Ass Bitch

Down Ass Bitch

"Down Ass Bitch" was the fourth single by American rapper Ja Rule, from his third studio album Pain Is Love . It features then-labelmate Charlie Baltimore and was the last single released from the album.-Remix: "Down 4 U":"Down 4 U" is the official remix of "Down Ass Bitch". It features The Inc...

".

Background

"Down 4 U" became a huge hit on the Billboard charts during the summer of 2002, reaching number 6 on the Billboard Hot 100

Billboard Hot 100

The Billboard Hot 100 is the United States music industry standard singles popularity chart issued weekly by Billboard magazine. Chart rankings are based on radio play and sales; the tracking-week for sales begins on Monday and ends on Sunday, while the radio play tracking-week runs from Wednesday...

 and 3 on both the R&B and rap charts. The Irv Gotti-produced song contained a sample from Roger Troutman

Roger Troutman

Roger Troutman was the lead singer of the band Zapp who helped spearhead the Funk movement and heavily influenced West Coast hip hop due to the scene's heavy sampling of his music over the years...

's 1987 hit, "I Want to Be Your Man" for which he was given writing credits. The song's music video showed the artists performing the song on a beach with cameos by Irv Gotti, Eric Roberts

Eric Roberts

Eric Anthony Roberts is an American actor. His career began with King of the Gypsies , earning a Golden Globe nomination for best actor debut. He starred as the protagonist in the 1980 dramatisation of Willa Cather's 1905 short story, Paul's Case...

, Bobby Brown

Bobby Brown

Robert Barisford "Bobby" Brown is an American R&B singer-songwriter, occasional rapper, and dancer. After success in pop group New Edition, Brown began his solo career in 1987 and had a string of Top 10 Billboard hits, culminating in a Grammy Award. He was a pioneer of New Jack Swing music, a...

, Whitney Houston

Whitney Houston

Whitney Elizabeth Houston is an American singer, actress, producer and a former model. Houston is the most awarded female act of all time, according to Guinness World Records, and her list of awards include 1 Emmy Award, 6 Grammy Awards, 30 Billboard Music Awards, 22 American Music Awards, among...

 and other members of The Inc.

In addition to appearing on Irv Gotti Presents: The Inc., the song also appeared on The Source magazine's

The Source (magazine)

The Source is a United States-based, monthly full-color magazine covering hip-hop music, politics, and culture, founded in 1988. It is the world's second longest running rap periodical, behind United Kingdom-based publication Hip Hop Connection. The Source was founded as a newsletter in 1988...

 compilation The Source Presents: Hip Hop Hits, Vol. 6

The Source Presents: Hip Hop Hits, Vol. 6

The Source Presents: Hip Hop Hits, Volume 6 is the sixth annual music compilation album to be contributed by The Source magazine. Released December 10, 2002, and distributed by Def Jam Recordings, Hip Hop Hits Volume 6 features eighteen hip hop and rap hits...

and as a bonus track on Ja Rule's 2002 album, The Last Temptation. The song was performed live by Ja Rule and Ashanti at VH1

VH1

VH1 or Vh1 is an American cable television network based in New York City. Launched on January 1, 1985 in the old space of Turner Broadcasting's short-lived Cable Music Channel, the original purpose of the channel was to build on the success of MTV by playing music videos, but targeting a slightly...

's 6th Annual Hip Hop Honors that honored Def Jam Recordings

Def Jam Recordings

Def Jam Recordings is an American record label, focused primarily on hip hop and urban music, owned by Universal Music Group, and operates as a part of The Island Def Jam Motown Music Group...

.

Peak positions

Chart (2002)	Peak position
U.S. Billboard Hot 100	6
U.S. Billboard Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Singles & Tracks	3
U.S. Billboard Hot Rap Singles	3
UK Singles Chart UK Singles Chart The UK Singles Chart is compiled by The Official Charts Company on behalf of the British record-industry. The full chart contains the top selling 200 singles in the United Kingdom based upon combined record sales and download numbers, though some media outlets only list the Top 40 or the Top 75 ...	4

Year-End charts

End of year chart (2002)	Position
U.S. Billboard Hot 100	44