Shut Up was released in 2003 as a single from the Black Eyed Peas album Elephunk, the record that brought Fergie into the group and pushed them toward mainstream pop. Built as a back and forth duet about a couple arguing in circles, it became a major international hit and one of the defining tracks of that era for the group. The repeated hook proved easy to lift out of context, so editors and meme pages later reused it as a standalone reaction to rambling, bickering and unwanted advice.