Popstar (DJ Khaled song)

"Popstar" (stylized in all caps) is a song by American musician DJ Khaled, featuring Canadian rapper Drake, released simultaneously with their other collaboration "Greece", on July 17, 2020, as the dual lead singles from Khaled's upcoming 12th studio album Khaled Khaled. Both songs were produced by OZ. It marks the sixth and seventh collaborations between Khaled and Drake, and their first since 2017's "To the Max". The upbeat "Popstar" sees Drake boasting about being the "popstar" of the generation. The song proved to be more successful than "Greece", debuting at number three on the Billboard Hot 100, and number-one in Drake's native Canada.

"Popstar"
Single by DJ Khaled featuring Drake
from the album Khaled Khaled
ReleasedJuly 17, 2020 (2020-07-17)
Length3:20
Label
Songwriter(s)
Producer(s)
  • OZ
  • David & Eli
  • DJ Khaled
DJ Khaled singles chronology
"Important"
(2020)		 "Popstar" / "Greece"
(2020)
Drake singles chronology
"Chicago Freestyle"
(2020)		 "Popstar" / "Greece"
(2020)		 "Only You Freestyle"
(2020)

Background

In January 2020, Khaled flew to Drake's hometown Toronto where they spent time together in the studio. In June, he teased a Drake collaboration on his Instagram, captioning various posts with emojis of a key and owl, the mascot of Drake's OVO label. He further revealed that "the first single been ready" and confirmed that he was working on a new album. After fans inundated Khaled with questions on the Drake references, he said fans would have to wait a little longer for new music.[1] In early July, Khaled confirmed that Drake was on his new album. On July 15, a day before the song's release, Khaled announced his 12th studio album would be titled Khaled Khaled.[2] He also announced two Drake collaborations would be released on July 17, "Popstar" and "Greece".[3]
DJ Khaled and Drake have collaborated various times, first in 2009 with "Fed Up",[4] and during the 2010s, on "I'm On One", "No New Friends", "For Free" and "To the Max".[1]

Produced by OZ, he previously produced Drake's "Toosie Slide" and several tracks on his Dark Lane Demo Tapes mixtape.[5]

Composition

Producer OZ created the beat on July 23, 2019, and then used a loop by German production duo David x Eli, to take the track to "the next level".[5] The reggae-tinged[6] song contains "moody" production,[2] with a hard,[7] "woozy" beat.[5] Drake's "tight syllables"[8] include lyrics about vacationing in the tropical island Turks and Caicos, which he also referenced on the songs "Omertà" (2019) and "Pain 1993" (2020).[7] He also boasts about his status as the "popstar" of the generation, while name-dropping Scooter Braun, Rihanna, Ariana Grande, Selena Gomez, David Foster, and Justin Bieber.[9][8] He further touches on his accomplishments and those who discredits his success.[10] Complex's Eric Skelton said Drake's style on the song "may have drawn inspiration" from rappers Valee and Baby Keem.[7] Valee's manager Andrew Barber tweeted that Drake replicated Valee's flow on his 2018 track "Womp Womp".[11]

Critical reception

The New York Times' Jon Caramanica called the song a "string of ruminative tough talk", and opined "when he raps like this, with a stream of boastfulness, it's often an ego-clearing amuse bouche for a more ambitious release to follow".[8] Rolling Stone's Charles Holmes complimented the song's star quality, stating: "It's a blunt object of a song that seems willing to forgo anything resembling subtlety".[12] Billboard's Michael Saponara labelled the song "Instagram caption-friendly", and said it oozes with "song of the summer potential".[5]

Music video

With the announcement on the songs, Khaled posted a trailer for the song's video, co-starring Spanish actor Jordi Mollà.[6]

Commercial performance

"Popstar" and "Greece" debuted at numbers three and eight on the Billboard Hot 100, respectively, becoming Drake's record-extending 24th and 25th debuts in the Hot 100's top 10. It also marked his 39th and 40th Hot 100 top ten entries, breaking Madonna's 18-year record.[13]

Charts
Chart (2020) Peak
position
Australia (ARIA)[14] 10
Austria (Ö3 Austria Top 40)[15] 29
Belgium (Ultratip Flanders)[16] 12
Belgium (Ultratip Wallonia)[17] 39
Canada (Canadian Hot 100)[18] 1
Czech Republic (Singles Digitál Top 100)[19] 67
Denmark (Tracklisten)[20] 26
France (SNEP)[21] 101
Germany (Official German Charts)[22] 36
Hungary (Single Top 40)[23] 25
Hungary (Stream Top 40)[24] 19
Ireland (IRMA)[25] 14
Italy (FIMI)[26] 93
Netherlands (Single Top 100)[27] 42
New Zealand (Recorded Music NZ)[28] 17
Norway (VG-lista)[29] 25
Portugal (AFP)[30] 20
Scotland (Official Charts Company)[31] 53
Sweden (Sverigetopplistan)[32] 33
Switzerland (Schweizer Hitparade)[33] 18
UK Singles (Official Charts Company)[34] 11
US Billboard Hot 100[35] 3
US Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs (Billboard)[36] 3
US Mainstream Top 40 (Billboard)[37] 38
US Rhythmic (Billboard)[38] 8
US Rolling Stone Top 100[39] 1
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gollark: ++tel link apionet <#827225594172801154>

References
  1. "DK Khaled Teases Drake Single". Rap-Up. June 10, 2020. Retrieved July 22, 2020.
  2. Sanfiorenzo, Dimas (July 17, 2020). "Drake & DJ Khaled Team up For Two New Songs, "Greece" & "Popstar"". Okayplayer. Retrieved July 22, 2020.
  3. "DJ Khaled Announces New Album 'Khaled Khaled'". Rap-Up. July 15, 2020. Retrieved July 21, 2020.
  4. Sanfiorenzo, Dimas (July 17, 2020). "Drake & DJ Khaled Team up For Two New Songs, "Greece" & "Popstar"". Okayplayer. Retrieved July 21, 2020.
  5. Saponara, Michael (July 17, 2020). "Producer OZ Breaks Down How DJ Khaled and Drake's 'POPSTAR' & 'GREECE' Came Together". Billboard. Retrieved July 21, 2020.
  6. Lavin, Will (July 17, 2020). "DJ Khaled announces 12th studio album and titles of first two singles with Drake". NME. Retrieved July 22, 2020.
  7. McKinney, Jessica (July 17, 2020). "Best New Music This Week: DJ Khaled, Drake, Joey Badass, Tinashe, and More". Complex. Retrieved July 22, 2020.
  8. Caramanica, Jon (July 17, 2020). "Drake Clears His Throat With DJ Khaled, and 10 More New Songs". New York Times. Retrieved July 22, 2020.
  9. Hore-Thorburn, Isabelle (July 17, 2020). "DJ Khaled & Drake Just Delivered the Summer Anthems We Needed". Highsnobiety. Retrieved July 22, 2020.
  10. Li, Nicolaus (July 17, 2020). "DJ Khaled and Drake Reunite on "POPSTAR" and "GREECE"". Hypebeast. Retrieved July 22, 2020.
  11. Woods, Aleia (July 17, 2020). "People Think Drake Sounds Like The Weeknd on DJ Khaled's "Greece"". XXL. Retrieved July 22, 2020.
  12. Holmes, Charles (July 17, 2020). "Drake and DJ Khaled Try to Solve the Song of the Summer Crisis". Rolling Stone. Retrieved July 21, 2020.
  13. Trust, Gary; Zellner, Xander (July 27, 2020). "Drake Breaks Record For Most Top 10 Billboard Hot 100 Hits, Thanks to DJ Khaled Collabs". Billboard. Retrieved July 28, 2020.
  14. "ARIA Australian Top 50 Singles". Australian Recording Industry Association. July 27, 2020. Retrieved July 25, 2020.
  15. "Austriancharts.at – DJ Khaled feat. Drake – Popstar" (in German). Ö3 Austria Top 40. Retrieved July 30, 2020.
  16. "Ultratop.be – DJ Khaled feat. Drake – Popstar" (in Dutch). Ultratip. Retrieved August 14, 2020.
  17. "Ultratop.be – DJ Khaled feat. Drake – Popstar" (in French). Ultratip. Retrieved August 14, 2020.
  18. "DJ Khaled Chart History (Canadian Hot 100)". Billboard. Retrieved July 28, 2020.
  19. "ČNS IFPI" (in Czech). Hitparáda – Digital Top 100 Oficiální. IFPI Czech Republic. Note: Change the chart to CZ – SINGLES DIGITAL – TOP 100 and insert 202030 into search. Retrieved July 27, 2020.
  20. "Track Top-40 Uge 29, 2020". Hitlisten. Retrieved July 29, 2020.
  21. "Top Singles (Week 30, 2020)" (in French). Syndicat National de l'Édition Phonographique. Retrieved July 27, 2020.
  22. "Offiziellecharts.de – DJ Khaled feat. Drake – Popstar". GfK Entertainment Charts. Retrieved July 24, 2020.
  23. "Archívum – Slágerlisták – MAHASZ" (in Hungarian). Single (track) Top 40 lista. Magyar Hanglemezkiadók Szövetsége. Retrieved July 30, 2020.
  24. "Archívum – Slágerlisták – MAHASZ" (in Hungarian). Stream Top 40 slágerlista. Magyar Hanglemezkiadók Szövetsége. Retrieved July 30, 2020.
  25. "Official Irish Singles Chart Top 50". Official Charts Company. Retrieved July 24, 2020.
  26. "Top Singoli – Classifica settimanale WK 30" (in Italian). Federazione Industria Musicale Italiana. Retrieved July 24, 2020.
  27. "Dutchcharts.nl – DJ Khaled feat. Drake – Popstar" (in Dutch). Single Top 100. Retrieved July 24, 2020.
  28. "NZ Top 40 Singles Chart". Recorded Music NZ. July 27, 2020. Retrieved July 25, 2020.
  29. "VG-lista – Topp 20 Single uke 30, 2020". VG-lista. Retrieved July 24, 2020.
  30. "Portuguesecharts.com – DJ Khaled feat. Drake – Popstar". AFP Top 100 Singles. Retrieved July 31, 2020.
  31. "Official Scottish Singles Sales Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved July 24, 2020.
  32. "Veckolista Singlar, vecka 30". Sverigetopplistan. Retrieved July 24, 2020.
  33. "Swisscharts.com – DJ Khaled feat. Drake – Popstar". Swiss Singles Chart. Retrieved July 26, 2020.
  34. "Official Singles Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved July 24, 2020.
  35. "DJ Khaled Chart History (Hot 100)". Billboard. Retrieved July 28, 2020.
  36. "DJ Khaled Chart History (Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs)". Billboard. Retrieved July 28, 2020.
  37. "DJ Khaled Chart History (Pop Songs)". Billboard. Retrieved August 11, 2020.
  38. "DJ Khaled Chart History (Rhythmic)". Billboard. Retrieved August 11, 2020.
  39. "Top 100 Songs, July 17, 2020 - July 23, 2020". Rolling Stone. Retrieved July 27, 2020.
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