Rik Rok: It Wasn’t Me 25 Years Later
Exclusive Interview:
Reggae artist Shaggy’s 2000 album Hot Shot has achieved ten times platinum status. Its quintessential hit single, It Wasn’t Me, has been played over a billion times on Spotify alone. Yet singer/songwriter Rik Rok had no plans of pursuing stardom.
Shaggy and Rik Rok performing It Wasn’t Me
Image courtesy of Michael Caulfield
The Shaggy/Rik Rok duet catapulted the artists to success, performing at the world’s most spectacular music events, from the World Music Awards and Billboard Awards to Michael Jackson’s 30th Anniversary concert in Madison Square Garden. However, achieving success in the music industry involved years of dedication and hard work for aspiring songwriter Ricardo Ducent – better known as Rik Rok.
“I was an overnight one-hit-wonder who was twenty years in the making,” he laughed.
Ducent reflected on his formative years and described listening to the radio during his youth as a “ritual.” Inspired by the likes of Stevie Wonder, Babyface, and Michael Jackson, he one day decided to forge an attempt at writing his own song. As he put it, “a hobby began” that would lead to inconceivable success.
Once he reached university, Ducent pitched a song he wrote to a friend, who he described as “the only connection [he had] to the music industry.” That impressed friend introduced Ducent to a series of connections, creating a link between Ducent and Jamaican reggae duo Brian and Tony Gold.
“In the 1990s, pretty much every dancehall song that had background vocals on it was sung by them.” Being mentored by such talents was not only an education for Ducent, but a gateway to an opportunity that would change his life course.
The Gold duo had a close connection to up and coming artist Shaggy’s manager, Robert Livingston, who happened to be searching for a songwriter. Working in a studio called Mixing Lab, which he called “the hotspot in Kingston for all the local artists”, Ducent impressed Jamaica’s top industry professionals soon enough. One of these artists was Shaggy, his soon-to-be writing partner.
Ducent recalled that soon after, “[Shaggy and I] wrote close to one hundred songs, fourteen of which became the Hot Shot album. Of the fourteen tracks, I co-wrote eight” – including the smash hits Angel and It Wasn’t Me.
It Wasn’t Me’s morally questionable lyrics were Shaggy’s idea, built on the foundation of Rik Rok’s melody. The idea stemmed from an Eddie Murphy stand-up routine Shaggy had watched, where the comedian repeated the phrase “It wasn’t me!”.
Writing the song, Ducent recalls “laughing at every line” and being glad he wasn’t singing on the track. “Women would hate us!” he joked.
Rik Rok in the It Wasn’t Me music video
Image courtesy of Universal Music Group
After the duo recorded a demo for the track, they approached a singer they had in mind to sing opposite Shaggy. An unexpected disagreement between the artists led to the iconic Shaggy/Rik Rok duet we hear today. Ducent added that after recording vocals for the song, he “forgot about it” and returned from the US to Jamaica.
An entire year later, he received a surprising phone call from Shaggy informing him that It Wasn’t Me was included on the final album and had reached number one status in Hawaii. As a result, Ducent was invited to perform on stage with Shaggy at his concerts.
“I panicked… I didn’t even remember anything about the song! I had two weeks to memorise it.”
The realisation that the song had gained such high popularity dawned on Ducent while performing in Hawaii.
“I started singing and then forgot the lyrics halfway through. Thankfully, the crowd was singing along. I held the mic out and they sang the rest of the song for me. I thought, ‘wow, this seems to be quite the phenomenon!’”, he laughed.
Touring in the US, every time the duo performed It Wasn’t Me, “the place erupted.”
For aspiring songwriter Rik Rok, global stardom was “insanity.” Performing on American late-night show Saturday Night Live only further catapulted his fame. “I saw you on SNL!” became a frequent comment heard by the vocalist.
“As a songwriter, the greatest feeling in the world is seeing complete strangers singing words that you came up with.”
Life for Ducent was a whirlwind. The cycle of flight, hotel, concert was relentless. Only after touring did he notice the song’s milestones in the charts. Topping Destiny’s Child’s women’s empowerment anthem Survivor in the Billboard charts, It Wasn’t Me became Rik Rok’s first number one song.
Rik Rok and Shaggy at the 2001 Billboard Awards
Image courtesy of Robert Hepler
“After the momentum of It Wasn’t Me died down – just a little bit – here comes Angel.”
Shaggy and Rayvon’s Angel, which was co-written by Ducent, reached number one status in twelve countries.
“There must have been six or eight of us in the studio trying to come up with a melody [that fit the beat] and no one was liking anything anyone was coming up with. One by one everyone [including Shaggy] left.”
Ducent persisted, searching through his “mental catalogue” for an old song that would fit on the beat. Drawing from his memories of Sundays in Jamaica, where the radio stations would play “oldies”, he landed on interpolating 1967’s Angel of the Morning.
Rik Rok and Shaggy wrote Angel at Shaggy’s apartment, rewriting the original song’s lyrics to be “more street.” The follow-up hit pushed the Hot Shot album to number one status and provided Ducent with his second number one single.
Rik Rok recalls the creation of Angel
Reflecting on life in the spotlight, Ducent stated, “I definitely grew as a result…I became more confident with public speaking and being around strangers, but other than that I’m basically the same person.
“Shaggy gave me some great advice before everything blew up. He said, ‘When you’ve achieved fame, people are gonna tell you that you’ve changed. What you’ll find is actually true though is that people will change towards you.’”
Rik Rok performing at the Michael Jackson 30th Anniversary concert at Madison Square Garden
Image courtesy of Kevin Mazur
Unlike the It Wasn’t Me music video, where Rik Rok leaps off of a truck and hangs out with models in a mansion, Ducent revealed that “life in the music industry was super boring” as he wasn’t one for partying.
Stepping away from the spotlight was a natural transition for Ducent after meeting his wife and starting a family. “I just love being a Dad. It’s the coolest experience,” he smiled.
“Being in the music industry, I’d hear stories of kids growing up without their father… so instead of spending more time on music, I was spending more time with my wife and kids… I think it’s the best decision I’ve ever made.”
A few years ago, however, after his daughter asked him why he stopped making music, Ducent felt inspired to pursue the music industry once again. Having researched how the industry functions today – with recent innovations such as streaming and social media – he began a new website, www.GigFanatic.com, where he will share a secret songwriting formula he has discovered. While the website isn’t fully up and running yet, Ducent is hoping for a Summer 2025 launch.
Rik Rok is currently working on his website, GigFanatic, which will support aspiring songwriters
Image courtesy of Ricardo Ducent
Since his days performing, what has been most surprising for Ducent is It Wasn’t Me’s continued waves of popularity. While he misses the stage, he enjoys seeing his hit being kept alive. From countless TikTok dances to Liam Payne’s sampling of It Wasn’t Me in his hit track Strip That Down, to even a Spanish adaptation of the song with two billion YouTube views, It Wasn’t Me continues to be iconic twenty-five years on.
Ducent can be followed on Instagram @rikrokofficial.
Rik Rok performs a few lines of It Wasn’t Me