"12.38" is a song by American rapper

Donald Glover Donald McKinley Glover Jr. (; born September 25, 1983), also known by his stage name Childish Gambino (), is an American entertainer, writer, director, and producer. After working in Derrick Comedy while studying at New York University, Glove ...

, performed under the stage name Childish Gambino, from his fourth studio album, ''

3.15.20 ''3.15.20'' is the fourth studio album by American singer Donald Glover, under his stage name Childish Gambino. It was initially uploaded to the website donaldgloverpresents.com on March 15, 2020, before being taken down 12 hours later and reapp ...

'' (2020). The song features guest vocals by rapper

21 Savage Shéyaa Bin Abraham-Joseph (born October 22, 1992), known professionally as 21 Savage, is a rapper based in Atlanta, Georgia, United States. Born in London, he moved to Atlanta with his mother at age seven. He became known after releasing two m ...

, American singer-songwriter

Atia "Ink" Boggs Atia Boggs, also known as INK, is a Grammy-nominated American singer, songwriter, guitarist, and producer. She has worked with Chris Brown, Justin Bieber, Monica, and Beyoncé, among others. Songwriting and production credits Credits are c ...

, and American musician

Kadhja Bonet Kadhja Bonet (; born January 31, 1988, in Los Angeles, California) is an American musician. Bonet grew up in a musical family and studied classical music from an early age. She began her career in 2014 with her debut single "Tears for Lamont" a ...

. It was written by the artists and DJ Dahi who produced it with Gambino. Glover sings about a psilocybin-induced trip with a girl, while 21 Savage raps about

police harassment The police are a constituted body of persons empowered by a state, with the aim to enforce the law, to ensure the safety, health and possessions of citizens, and to prevent crime and civil disorder. Their lawful powers include arrest and ...

. Critics praised the song's comedic narrative and 21 Savage's guest appearance. "12.38" peaked at number 22 on the NZ Hot Singles published by

Recorded Music NZ Recorded Music NZ (formerly the Recording Industry Association of New Zealand (RIANZ)) is a non-profit trade association of record producers, distributors and recording artists who sell recorded music in New Zealand. Membership of Recorded Mus ...

Background and recording

Producer DJ Dahi called the creation of the song an evolving process. Dahi had an initial beat with chords provided by Ely Rise.

's vocals were for another track, but were

chopped Chopped can have the following meanings: * Chopped and screwed Chopped and screwed (also called screwed and chopped or slowed and throwed) is a music genre and technique of remixing music that involves slowing down the tempo and deejaying. It ...

and reused for "12.38". Dahi described the track as having "funky, odd, but feels good" energy. The song was momentarily put to the side, but Gambino continued writing his verse. Rapper

recorded his guest verse and American singer-songwriter

was invited to co-write on the song. Glover and 21 Savage previously collaborated in 2018 on the former's single " This Is America" and the track "Monster" from the latter's second studio album '' I Am > I Was''.

Composition and lyrics

Noah Yoo of '' Pitchfork'' described the production of "12.38" as a "sensual, minimalistic bounce." The song interpolates André 3000's song " Vibrate". In the song, a girl feeds Glover psilocybin, who is unfamiliar with the

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. Sexual tension builds up as his girlfriend keeps texting him, causing his phone to vibrate. Glover uses humorous lines such as "Why your cat looking at me sideways?" in place of a hook and chorus. His verse continues as a beat-by-beat breakdown of the psilocybin use, until he wakes up alone. He name-checks multiple female artists, including Toni Braxton,

SZA Solána Imani Rowe (born November 8, 1989), known professionally as SZA ( ), is an American singer and songwriter. Born in St. Louis, Missouri, she began making music in the early 2010s, releasing two extended plays before signing with the hip ...

, and

Chaka Khan Yvette Marie Stevens (born March 23, 1953), better known by her stage name Chaka Khan (), is an American singer. Her career has spanned more than five decades, beginning in the 1970s as the lead vocalist of the funk band Rufus. Known as the " Qu ...

. 21 Savage raps about

; he was previously detained by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement in February 2019. 21 Savage also raps about

Popeyes Popeyes Louisiana Kitchen, Inc., also known as Popeyes and formerly named Popeyes Chicken & Biscuits and Popeyes Famous Fried Chicken & Biscuits, is an American multinational chain of fried chicken fast food restaurants that was formed in 1972 ...

' chicken and cartoon character Popeye's spinach. By the end, the song "devolves into spirals of vocal echoes" as a result of the psilocybin trip kicking in.

Release and promotion

The song originally surfaced under the unofficial title "Vibrate" when Glover streamed ''3.15.20'' on his website on March 15, 2020. The track was titled "12.38" upon the album's official release on March 22, 2020. Only the tracks "Algorythm" and " Time" have proper names; the rest, such as "12.38", are marked by their respective timestamps. "12.38" was released as a single to urban adult contemporary radio on April 14, 2020, along with "Sweet Thang (24.19)".

Critical reception

Kitty Empire of '' The Guardian'' called the song excellent and described it as having "the feel of narrative fiction". Empire stated that the song "could be an episode of '' Atlanta''," an American comedy-drama television series created by Glover. Rowan5215 of ''

Sputnikmusic Sputnikmusic is an American music community website offering music criticism and music news alongside features commonly associated with wiki-style websites. The format of the website is unusual in that it includes both professional and amateur c ...

'' called the song hilarious and wrote that Glover " eaponizeshis full range to spin some '' The Love Below''-style seduction." Okla Jones of '' Consequence of Sound'' called the song witty and sonically-pleasing as Glover "taps into his prowess as both a writer and a comic." Jones wrote that 21 Savage's verse had

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charm and was must-needed. Noah Yoo of ''Pitchfork'' praised 21 Savage's "particularly on point" guest appearance. Yoo wrote that as the song ends in spiraling echoes, "it's 21's lyrics you’re left thinking about."

Personnel

Credits adapted from Tidal. *

Childish Gambino Donald McKinley Glover Jr. (; born September 25, 1983), also known by his stage name Childish Gambino (), is an American entertainer, writer, director, and producer. After working in Derrick Comedy while studying at New York University, Glove ...

– lead artist, producer, lyricist, composer *

– featured vocals, lyricist, composer *

– featured vocals, lyricist, composer * DJ Dahi – producer, lyricist, composer * Chukwudi Hodge – drums *

Kurtis McKenzie Kurtis McKenzie, formally known as The Arcade, is a British record producer, songwriter, and musician based in Los Angeles. McKenzie is a Grammy Award-winning, Latin Grammy Award-winning, and Academy Award-nominated record producer and composer ...

– drums * Carlos "Loshendrix" Munoz – guitar * Ely Rise – keyboards * James Francies, Jr. – synthesizers * Riley Mackin – recording, mixing

Charts

References

{{authority control 2020 songs Donald Glover songs Songs written by Donald Glover Songs written by 21 Savage Songs about drugs