Image via Complex Original
How and why does a song blow up? A look at the top of the Billboard Hot 100, Spotify’s Top Hits playlist, the iTunes Top 10 or any other modern metric of success reveals a few familiar commonalities: massive superstar artists, recognized sonic formulas for success, and, generally, a carefully timed release date. When it comes to that last variable, there’s a long history of the players behind some of your favorite music relying heavily on a supposed pseudoscience to dictate the ideal timing of dropping records. Not convinced? Please direct your attention to a number of times “your favorite rapper” has had an album ceaselessly pushed back. Don’t worry, 2009-2011 Lupe will wait.
However, there are always a handful of songs that break that mold and, for one reason or another, defy the timing, and year, of their release. In our ever-more digital music landscape, the old rules have gone the way of Blockbuster video stores. They’re played all the way out. Conventional album and single rollouts are a thing of the past. Any song residing on any one of the endless number of music distribution platforms we use can blow up at any time.
If a track has the proper star power, like the Avengers-esque combination of 2015-era Future and the Weeknd, it can shoot into the stratosphere overnight. Other times, an unknown can drop a SoundCloud gem that’ll take months and months to catch any attention and then suddenly—perhaps off the strength of a high-powered remix or eye-catching video—become immediately unavoidable. It’s a consistent modern musical phenomenon and one that tells us a lot about how we find, enjoy and obsess over songs in today’s world. Now, with the year ticking toward its halfway mark, it’s time to survey the landscape and check out the songs from 2015 that are making their presence felt in 2016.
OT Genasis f/ Young Dolph “Cut It”
Thanks to “Cut It,” OT Genasis officially erased the words “one hit wonder” that previously resided comfortably next to his name. On his new hit, OT sticks with the menacing simplicity and repetition that made “CoCo” so inescapably popular. Also like its predecessor, “Cut It” has rocketed up the Hot 100 chart, where after 11 weeks it currently sits at 57 after peaking as high as 43.
In recent weeks, “Cut It” has been propelled by the contributions of a few high-profile superstars and even more anonymous amateurs. The track received remixes from Young Thug, Kevin Gates and A$AP Ferg who, in an ode to Jimmy McMillan, raps “my rent is way too high you need to cut it.” Additionally, it’s become the perfect backdrop for some of the finest recent viral dance videos.
Will the success of “Cut It” generate excitement for the similarly titled and styled follow-up single “Push It?” Maybe, but honestly probably not. Regardless, OT Genasis is a one hit wonder no more and that’s more than most *casts a side-eye at Trinidad James* can say.
Flo Rida “My House”
For the vast majority of Flo Rida’s countless hits, the biggest pop-rapper since Nelly has leaned on a sound taken from outside of his supposed genre. Top-tier smashes like “Good Feeling,” “Whistle” and “Wild Ones” are far more indebted to big house EDM than hip-hop. That’s why it was equal parts refreshing and surprising when his latest reach for the charts, “My House,” sounded more like a 90s hip-hop single than a 2010s beat-dropping Electronic hit. Out went the rising synths and staccato pop guitars and in came a comforting piano line and “Top Billing’s” drums.
The nostalgia-laden “My House” dropped back in October and has been climbing up the charts steadily ever since. Debuting on the Billboard Hot 100 chart in November, the track then received a major boost from corporate America after being featured prominently in a Super Bowl commercial and Wrestlemania. Ultimately, the track peaked at number five over three months after it first debuted on the charts. Flo Rida notched another major hit and still managed to never show anyone his eyeballs (think about it, have you ever seen him without glasses?) and all's right with the world.
Madeinyto “Uber Everywhere”
Seemingly every year, one song gets plucked from the crowded obscurity of SoundCloud and, for any number of reasons, becomes massive. Following in the footsteps of “Trap Queen,” “Uber Everywhere” is this year’s slow burning internet-to-mainstream crossover mega-hit. In the 10 months since “Uber Everywhere” was posted on Madeintyo’s then sparsely populated SoundCloud account, the bouncy, infectious track has made the prolific rise from anonymity, to “tracks to watch out for” lists to the Billboard Hot 100 charts.
“Uber Everywhere” began to pick up real heat last summer with the release of its official video in August. Images of Bootymath riding around sundrenched Atlanta streets on a child’s toy, impromptu roof dance parties and Madeintyo's diminutive stature gave the song a second life and thrust it into low-key song of the summer contention. However, the real shot in the arm was supplied by a litany of remixes, specifically from G.O.O.D. Music’s own Travis Scott. Off the strength of a shoddily recorded concert video and low quality leak, the internet was begging for the remix before it was ever officially released. Since being finally liberated on March 7, the remix has brought a surge of previously uninterested mainstream fans over to Madeintyo’s banger.
Yo Gotti “Down in the DM”
2016 was a banner year for Yo Gotti. Although he only made his major label debut in 2012, the Memphis native had been a steady presence in the world of rap blogs and Southern hip-hop for years. But, prior to the lead up to excellent but generically titled The Art of Hustle, Gotti had failed to make an imprint on mainstream hip-hop.
Gotti’s forecast changed in October when his ode to internet-aided escapades gave him something he’d never had before: a truly massive hit. The track started to simmer on urban radio but ascended to the rap-single stratosphere with the help of one Ms. Onika Tanya Maraj. Once the remix dropped in February, the song leaped from No. 31 on Billboard’s Hot 100 to a new peak of 18 and saw its streams pick up by 59 percent. The song’s success is now undeniable and if “Snapchat me that p***y” doesn’t become the mantra for a generation it’ll at least be a few people’s 2016 yearbook quote.
Bryson Tiller “Don’t”
Bryson Tiller is hip-hop and R&B’s most recent and prolific breakout star and “Don’t” is the signature song that powered that ascension. The lead single of 2015’s TRAPSOUL, “Don’t” rose with Tiller as he became a legitimate phenomenon. The simmering, spacey ballad is the perfect introduction to Tiller’s sound. His voice is velvety but not overpowering; the sporadic snaps, chopped up vocals and airy synths blend R&B and hip-hop into a tasty sonic medley; and the entire song is centered around the “I’m just saying, you can do better” sentiment of Drake’s “Marvin’s Room.”
When a sea of dad-hat-clad teens and twentysomethings mobbed S.O.B’s in October, it was clear that Tiller had captured something special. When he took the stage to perform “Don’t” only to have it sung for him by the crowd it was obvious that the song had become a legitimate hit. When, just five months after packing the 200-person S.O.B’s, Tiller played two nights at the infamous, 6,000 seat Radio City Music Hall it was obvious that he had in short time become a superstar.
Jeremih “Oui”
Prior to the massive success of Late Nights: The Album, the outlook for Jeremih’s career was shaky. He’d found reliable success with hit singles like “Birthday Sex” or “Down on Me,” but he had yet to turn those sparks into the sustained fire of a strong, cohesive album. Add on to that pressure the fact that “Don’t Tell ‘Em,” the lead single off of Late Nights, came out almost two years before the album, and the success of his following singles is that much more exciting.
Out of all the tracks on Late Nights, the breezy “Oui” has made the biggest impact. From climbing the Billboard charts to soundtracking Apple Music’s Alison Brie and Jamie Lanister makeout session, Jeremih’s beautiful misunderstanding of the French language is everywhere. From the escalating ad-libs to the song’s bouncy swing, “Oui” is a spectacular song, but just one of the many standouts off of one of the better albums of 2015.
Kevin Gates “2 Phones”
With “2 Phones,” Kevin Gates broke through barriers that had previously been holding him back from achieving the wide appreciation his talent for writing punishing street raps and effortless melodies deserves.
First, the massive hit helped him shed the label of “regional artist.” Although it shouldn’t be considered an insult, calling an artist regional often pigeonholes them in a way that limits their potential. Because of Gates’ intense popularity in Louisiana and his distinctive drawl, he had a tough time shedding the label. As it raced up to number 18 on the Hot 100 charts, the nationwide success of “2 Phones” made that erroneous idea a thing of the past.
Second, and just as importantly, having a true bonafide hit single allowed the uninitiated to know Gates for something other than his tabloid antics. They say that all press is good press, but it’s certainly better for people to know you for a hit than for dating your cousin. With “2 Phones,” Gates placed his art at the center of the conversation.
Future f/ the Weeknd “Low Life”
On Christmas Day, two artists finishing up the biggest years of their careers decided to gift the masses a collaboration that would send them off into the new year on the right note. “Low Life” features the Weeknd and Future doing what they had done all year long. Future paired with Metro Boomin to turn his struggles with vice into a slew of infectious, energizing quotables while the Weeknd mused melodically and delivered memorable hooks. Since its festive drop, the track has taken off in 2016. Amongst all of his hits this year, “Low Life” received the high honor of being Future’s choice for his SNL performance and has resided on the Billboard Hot 100 the longest, where it’s sat since early February.
DJ Snake f/ Bipolar Sunshine “The Middle”
On “The Middle,” DJ Snake continues to emerge from behind the shadow of his early, high-profile work with artists like Diplo and Lil Jon. “Turn Down for What” is a very distinct mega-hit and its sound—aggressive, comically large, and trappy—carries some expectations that many have since come to attach to the rest of Snake’s material. “The Middle” works nicely against some of those assumptions. While it certainly crescendos, it’s mostly subdued and plodding, coming in and out of its peaks and valleys smoothly. Released back in October, the track provides a peek at two potential superstars. Joining Snake, whose tour schedule and festival placement already puts him in the top rung of electronic producers and performers, is Bipolar Sunshine. Between his excellent Drowning Butterflies EP and the underappreciated but undeniably funky Goldlink collaboration “Funky,” the English singer has showcased his talent and quickly made a name for himself.