“Ring the Alarm” was the second US-released single from Beyoncé’s award-winning, best-selling album B'Day. It was preceded by Grammy-nominated lead single “Déjà Vu” and suceeded by number one song “Irreplaceable.” It was written primarily by Beyoncé herself, inspired by her role in the Dreamgirls movie, with assistance from Swizz Beatz, who produced the song with her, and Sean Garrett. It was rumored to be about Rihanna’s relationship with Bey’s soon-to-be husband Jay-Z, (which, at the time, was rumored to be a love triangle) but Beyoncé denied that.

“Alarm” fared fairly well performance-wise, debuting at Number 12 on the US Billboard Singles chart, her highest debuting single at the time, but would also be her first solo single to not reach the Top 10 (#11), and was her lowest charting single until “Get Me Bodied.” The single, along with some of the album photography, was criticized for its use of real baby alligators and was compared to animal abuse.