Mass spectrometry-based proteomics is a suite of high-throughput and sensitive approaches for identifying and quantifying proteins in biological samples. These methods allow for quantifying >10,000 proteins in bulk samples. However, these techniques have not yet been widely applied to single cells despite the fact that modern mass spectrometers can detect single ions. To explain why, this primer talk will explore core concepts of mass spectrometry-based proteomics with emphasis on developing intuition for the physical processes underpinning peptide sequencing and quantification. In particular, I will cover what is called "shotgun" or "discovery" proteomics using isobaric barcoding, a technology used by Single Cell Proteomics by Mass Spectrometry (SCoPE-MS). The primer talk will outline the obstacles that have limited the broad application of quantitative mass spectrometry to single-cell analysis and how SCoPE-MS overcomes these obstacles to enable profiling thousands of proteins across thousands of single cells.