A Hit Is a Hit

• James Gandolfini as Tony Soprano
• Lorraine Bracco as Dr. Jennifer Melfi
• Edie Falco as Carmela Soprano
• Michael Imperioli as Christopher Moltisanti
• Dominic Chianese as Corrado Soprano, Jr. *
• Vincent Pastore as Pussy Bonpensiero
• Steven Van Zandt as Silvio Dante
• Tony Sirico as Paulie Gualtieri
• Robert Iler as Anthony Soprano, Jr. *
• Jamie-Lynn Sigler as Meadow Soprano
• Nancy Marchand as Livia Soprano *

* = credit only

• Jerry Adler as Hesh Rabkin
• Drea de Matteo as Adriana
• Bokeem Woodbine as Massive Genius

Paulie, Christopher and Pussy rob and kill a Colombian drug dealer. They gain a huge amount of cash; as Tony says, a once-in-a-lifetime score.

Christopher and Adriana meet Massive Genius, a wealthy gangster rapper, and Christopher arranges a sit-down for him with Hesh Rabkin. Massive says he is acting on behalf of the mother of a deceased black singer whose royalties Hesh stole, and now claims $400,000. Hesh refuses, and threatens a counterclaim: there is an unauthorized sampling by Massive's record label of a song, the copyright of which is owned by Hesh's label. Massive says he will see Hesh in court. When the conversation is over, Tony and his crew jeer at a self-proclaimed gangster who works within the legal system.

Adriana proposes that she should pursue a career as a music producer and that Massive can help. Christopher, flush with money, agrees to finance a demo for the band Visiting Day, whose singer, Richie Santini, is Adriana's ex-boyfriend. The demo recording progresses slowly and Christopher smashes Richie's guitar over his back in frustration. Christopher is told by Hesh that the band is not good and realizes that Massive is helping them only because of his sexual interest in Adriana. When he tells her this, Adriana accuses him of trying to hold her back and storms out.

Carmela wonders whether she and her children will be alright if anything happens to Tony, but he reassures her. A friend introduces her to the stock market and gives her a tip; she buys and profits.

Tony, keen to mix with meddigans (white Americans not of Italian descent or Italian-Americans that don't act "Italian") accepts an invitation from his neighbor and family physician, Dr. Bruce Cusamano, to play a round of golf at a country club along with his friends. They pester Tony with questions about organized crime. As he later tells Dr. Melfi, he feels he is being "used for somebody else's amusement, like a dancing bear." In revenge, Tony persuades Dr. Cusamano to keep a package (of sand) safely for him, pretending it contains something sinister.

• Jean Cusamano: Wife of Dr. Cusamano and friend of the Soprano family

• Gallegos a.k.a. "Juan Valdez": Shot in the forehead by Paulie Gualtieri

• The title refers to when Hesh Rabkin mentions to Christopher that he knows a hit song when he hears one, saying "a hit is a hit" and that the band Visiting Day's song is not a hit, and they are not particularly talented.
• Giving the title a double meaning, a hit is also the slang term for a mafia-ordered murder; the episode opens with a hit on a Colombian drug dealer, and while hosting Tony in a golf game at his country club, Bruce Cusamano refers to mobster Carmine Galante's assassination as a "fuckin' beautiful hit".

• The song played when Tony, Christopher, and Paulie celebrate their big score at a hotel with their Cumares is "A Dreamer's Holiday" by Ray Anthony.
• The song played when Christopher and Adriana come to a party at Massive Genius' mansion is "DJ Keep Playin' (Get Your Music On)" by Yvette Michele.
• Earlier in the episode, while Christopher and Adriana talk about their tastes in music, she plays "You Give Love a Bad Name" by Bon Jovi.
• When Christopher and Adriana hatch their music management plan over dinner, the background song is "Decara a la pared" from Lhasa De Sela's album "La Llorona".
• The song played when Christopher and Adriana take Massive Genius to a club to watch Visiting Day perform. Also later, when Visiting Day try to cut their record; and later still, when Adriana plays the song for Massive Genius, and Christopher plays the song for Hesh is "Erase Myself" by the fictional band Visiting Day.
• The song played when Hesh looks over his mementos from his days running a record label is "Fools Follow Angels" by Little Jimmy Willis.
• The background song when Adriana is modeling her black dress for Christopher near the end of the episode is "Why" by Annie Lennox.
• The song played in one of the closing scenes, which Hesh hears and then says to Christopher, "Now that is a hit", is "Nobody Loves Me But You" by Dori Hartley.
• The songs performed by the episode's fictional band, Visiting Day/Defiler, were created and performed bespoke by Gregg Wattenberg and Nick Fowler. "Defile You" is played over the end credits.

Listed in order of first appearance:^[1]

• North Caldwell, New Jersey
• Soundview, Bronx
• Livingston, New Jersey
• Jersey City, New Jersey
• Glen Head, New York