“Ready or Not” is a song by American hip-hop group Fugees from their second studio album, The Score (1996). The song contains a sample of “Boadicea” (1987) by Irish singer Enya, and its chorus is based on “Ready or Not Here I Come (Can’t Hide from Love)” by the Delfonics. The song was released as the album’s third single in Japan on September 1, 1996, and in the United Kingdom the following day.
“Ready or Not” was met with positive reviews from music critics upon its release. The song was not released as a commercial single in the United States, making it ineligible to appear on the Billboard Hot 100. In the United Kingdom, it became the group’s second chart-topping song on the UK Singles Chart, following “Killing Me Softly”. Additionally, it was one of the best-selling songs of 1996 in the United Kingdom, and remains one of the top-selling hip-hop songs ever in the region. In total, “Ready or Not” reached the top ten in fifteen countries. The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame included “Ready or Not” on their list of ‘Songs that Shaped Rock’. In 2023, Rolling Stone ranked it as one of the 100 best East Coast hip hop songs of all time.
The accompanying music video was directed by film director Marcus Nispel. Several music journalists have cited it as the first rap music video with a seven-figure budget; with the video’s production being reported to have cost approximately 1.3 million dollars at the time of its release, making it one of the most expensive music videos ever.
