Pink Landed Her ‘Get The Party Started’ Hit After Madonna Turned It Down

Hardcore Pink fans occasionally still let loose to the songstress’ 2001 single “Get The Party Started.” But it seems that the popular hit – which launched Pink’s second album, Missundaztood, selling more than 13 million copies all over the world – was originally intended for someone else.

According to the Daily Mail, Pink – whose real name is Alecia Beth Moore – was considered for the song only after Madonna first refused to record it. What’s more, it apparently took some convincing before the song’s writer and producer, former 4 Non Blondes frontwoman Linda Perry, finally acquiesced to give Pink a chance.

As Perry told Rolling Stone magazine in an interview on Saturday, she initially thought of Pink as a “bling-bling girl” and didn’t necessarily deem her suitable to voice her new song.

Perry revealed in the interview that her first choice for the “Get The Party Started” track was none other than the “Material Girl” singer, but that Madonna passed on the collaboration.

“I sent it to Madonna and she passed, but a week later, Alecia [a.k.a. Pink] called. She left me this really crazy message how she would come find me if I didn’t call her back,” Perry told Rolling Stone.

Pink would have most likely missed out on recording what later proved to be one of her biggest hits had she not been adamant to win Perry over. The singer went above and beyond to prove to the song writer that she was right for the job, and eventually landed the track that Madonna had just turned down.

Perry confessed that what ultimately persuaded her to give Pink the song was the artist’s undeniable talent and her sauciness.

“Alecia’s awesome. She’s so sassy.”

The songwriter also told Rolling Stone that Pink was very modest about her impending success.

“We were sitting one day and I said, ‘This album’s going to be huge.’ She laughed at me. But I was like, ‘It’s going to be a groundbreaking record and change things for you.’ She didn’t believe me. But we completely changed her format and it worked.”

But the string of revelations about the popular 2001 hit didn’t end there. In the interview, Perry also made the surprising confession that she wrote the song as “kind of a joke” and with the sole purpose of merely trying her hand with Pro Tools recording gear.

“‘Get the Party Started’ was just me figuring out what all this stuff does. I came up with that beat, laid it down, found all these weird chords and sounds and put the horns.”

As for the song’s theme and lyrics, Perry candidly gave away that she simply sat down and wrote “every clichéd line I can think of.”

Her strategy – or lack of, to be more precise – obviously worked, as “Get The Party Started” was an immediate success. The song was released on October 1, 2001, and climbed to No. 4 on the US Billboard Hot 100 – bringing tons of fame and recognition both for Perry and for Pink.

The hugely acclaimed artist is now one of the best-selling singers in the world – shifting over 40 million albums and 50 million singles worldwide, notes the Daily Mail.