Cardi sent the file three days after the Grammys.
No message with it, just the audio attachment and a single line underneath.
you said say less so say less. just need your verse.
I played it in the car on the way to the studio. It was not long, which she had already said it would not be. Club record, hard, the kind of thing that was built to be played loud in a room full of people. Cardi's energy on it was exactly what you expected from Cardi, which meant it was a lot and it worked. She was not trying to be subtle. The song was not asking for subtle.
I listened to it twice through and by the time I parked I already knew what I was going to do with it.
I was not going to write anything down.
* * *
The engineer had the session open when I got in. I told him I was going one take and he just nodded like that was a normal thing to say, which for me it basically was by now.
I stood at the mic and let the beat run through my headphones twice. Felt the tempo. Found where I was going to come in. Cardi's hook was still in my head from the car.
(Clout cardi b)
Do anything for clout.
I had thoughts about that. About what it looked like from where I was standing now, two Grammys on my shelf, a label running, two artists climbing, all the people who had tried to use my name for something when I was nobody and were louder about it now that I was somebody. The song gave me a place to put all of it.
I leaned into the mic.
"One take," I said. "Bitch."
The beat dropped.
* * *
Diamonds on fleek
Bitch, I ain't talking about the heat, oh
Put it on, streets
We straight out the streets
We straight out the streets
Straight out the streets to a penthouse
Straight out the streets to a penthouse
Miami beach (Yayo)
Niggas talk crazy on tweets (Who)
They don't want it 'cause I come to defeat
(They don't wanna)
I peep, these niggas all sweet (Weak)
Bamboo sticks all in the Jeep (Brr, brr)
There's a new weirdo every week (Weirdo)
Get the whip, put it up for my seats (Put it up)
No cure for the IG disease (No cure)
Do anything for clout (Anything)
They do anything for clout (Anything)
Do anything for clout (Anything)
They do anything for clout (Clout)
Do anything for clout (Clout, do this, woo woo)
They do anything for clout (Anything)
Do anything for clout (Hey)
Bitch, watch your mouth (Watch it)
Bitch, stay in your place (Place)
Bitch, get out the way (Love)
My bitch on your ass, Kim K (Yeah)
No disrespect (Nah)
The nigga be tripping, but we love Ye (He tripping)
Swapping our cars with my bitch
I bought her the Lambo
She bought me the Wraith (Swappin')
Practice, practice, practice make perfect
Nigga, it's never too late
(Never, never, never)
I took the ssss outta the snake
(I took the soul out the snake)
Did not see the bills up out of the bank (Racks)
The blog and the media fake (They fake)
Shorty DM me, I'm straight (I'm straight)
I'm not gon' bite on the bait (Nah)
Sipping on toxic waste (Look)
On the low with your bitch and it's great (On the low)
Mask on her face, chaser
Run to the set, we in shape (Show)
If I go broke she gone leave, escape (She gone)
I put 2 mill in the safe just in case
Don't go my way (no cap)
My kids gotta have money not just me (Facts)
That's selfish (It's selfish)
Oh, I took the crown off the king
Like Mike did Elvis (Oh, I took it)
Ooh, the world is wild, he dying
Don't lie, that don't help him (World is wild)
Ooh, your bitch want to eat up the drip
And you can not help it
Straight out the streets to a penthouse
Miami beach (Yayo)
Niggas talk crazy on tweets (Who)
They don't want it 'cause I come to defeat
(They don't wanna)
I peep, these niggas all sweet (Weak)
Bamboo sticks all in the Jeep (Brr, brr)
There's a new weirdo every week (Weirdo)
Get the whip, put it up for my seats (Put it up)
No cure for the IG disease (No cure)
Do anything for clout (Anything)
They do anything for clout (Anything)
Do anything for clout (Anything)
They do anything for clout (Clout)
Do anything for clout (Clout, do this, woo woo)
They do anything for clout (Anything)
Do anything for clout (Hey)
Look, whole lotta people need to hear this (Facts)
It's a lotta names on my hit list (Bap bap)
Mouth still say what it wants to (Woo)
Pussy still wet like a big bitch (Facts, facts)
I should run a whole blog at this rate (Phew)
They using my name for clickbait (Clickbait)
Bitches even wanna start fake beef (Fake beef)
Just send a little weave in the mixtape
They know I'm the bomb, they ticking me off
Saying anything to get a response
I know that mean they traffic is low
Somebody just gotta practice to launch
So fuck being tame
I'd rather be wild
Bitches is Brandy, they wanna be down
Soon as these bitches got something to sell
They say my name, say my name, Destiny Child
Everybody wanna be lit
Everybody wanna be rich
Everybody wanna be this
If I was you, I'd hate me bitch
Read my rhymes, nigga, suck my dick
All of that talk and I'm calling it out
Public opinions from private accounts
You not a check, then you gotta bounce
I got the drip, come get an ounce
They do anything for clout (Clout)
They do anything for clout (Whoo)
Bitches is mad, bitches is trash (Errr)
Oscar the Grouch (Grouch)
Seeing me win, they gotta hurt
Ooh, ooh, ouch
Said when they see me, what they gon' do?
Bitch, not from the couch, bah
Do anything for clout (Anything)
They do anything for clout (Anything)
Do anything for clout (Anything)
They do anything for clout (Clout)
Do anything for clout (Clout, do this, woo woo)
They do anything for clout (Anything)
Do anything for clout
* * *
When it ended I pulled off the headphones and looked through the glass at the engineer.
He had this expression like he was trying to stay professional and not quite managing it.
"That's the one," he said through the monitor.
"Yeah," I said. "Send it."
I sat back on the couch while he bounced the file. The booth was still warm from the session. I thought about Cardi on the red carpet three days ago, pointing at me across the whole carpet like she had already made the decision and was just informing me of it.
She had not been wrong.
I texted her while the file was uploading.
one take. just like I said.
She texted back in under a minute.
bro. THIS IS IT. dropping friday dont argue with me
I forwarded it to June without saying anything. She called me back in four minutes.
"Friday is four days away, Jordan."
"I know."
"The rollout—"
"June."
A pause.
"Fine. Friday."
I put my phone in my pocket and leaned back on the couch. Outside the studio the city was moving like it always moved, indifferent to whatever was happening in here. In four days a Grammy-winning rapper and a two-time Grammy winner were going to drop a song that had taken me one take to record.
I was not going to lose any sleep over it