"A Lot" (stylized in

lowercase Letter case is the distinction between the Letter (alphabet), letters that are in larger uppercase or capitals (or more formally ''majuscule'') and smaller lowercase (or more formally ''minuscule'') in the written representation of certain lang ...

) is a song by Atlanta-based 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 ...

. The audio of the song was released on December 20, 2018 via the rapper's

YouTube YouTube is a global online video platform, online video sharing and social media, social media platform headquartered in San Bruno, California. It was launched on February 14, 2005, by Steve Chen, Chad Hurley, and Jawed Karim. It is owned by ...

account. It was sent to rhythmic and

urban contemporary Urban contemporary music, also known as urban music, hip hop, urban pop, or just simply urban, is a music radio format. The term was coined by New York radio DJ Frankie Crocker in the early to mid-1970s as a synonym for Black music. Urban contem ...

radio on January 8, 2019 as the lead single from his second studio album '' I Am > I Was''. "A Lot" features

North Carolina North Carolina () is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States. The state is the 28th largest and 9th-most populous of the United States. It is bordered by Virginia to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the east, Georgia and So ...

rapper

J. Cole Jermaine Lamarr Cole (born January 28, 1985) is an American rapper and record producer. Born on a military base in Germany and raised in Fayetteville, North Carolina, Cole initially gained recognition as a rapper following the release of his d ...

, though he only appears in the streaming and digital versions, as well as later CD pressings. The song was written by the artists and its producers

DJ Dahi Dacoury Dahi Natche (born March 10, 1983), professionally known as DJ Dahi, is an American DJ, songwriter, record producer and singer from Inglewood, California. Dahi is perhaps best known for producing " Money Trees" by American rapper Kendric ...

and

J. White Did It Anthony Jermaine White (born December 17, 1984), known professionally as J. White Did It or simply J. White, is an American record producer, songwriter, and DJ from Leavenworth, Kansas. He is best known for producing Cardi B's chart-topping sing ...

. It samples "I Love You" by East of Underground, which is a cover of " I Love You for All Seasons" performed by The Fuzz; The Fuzz member Shelia Young is credited as a co-writer. The song received acclaim from critics, with ''

Billboard A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertise ...

'' ranking it as the 6th best song of 2019. It won a

Grammy Award The Grammy Awards (stylized as GRAMMY), or simply known as the Grammys, are awards presented by the Recording Academy of the United States to recognize "outstanding" achievements in the music industry. They are regarded by many as the most pres ...

for

Best Rap Song The Grammy Award for Best Rap Song is an honor presented at the Grammy Awards, a ceremony that was established in 1958 and originally called the Gramophone Awards, to recording artists for quality songs in the rap music genre. Honors in several ...

at the 2020 ceremony, marking both 21 Savage and J. Cole's first Grammy wins.

Background

Speaking to ''

The Breakfast Club ''The Breakfast Club'' is a 1985 American teen coming-of-age comedy-drama film written, produced, and directed by John Hughes. It stars Emilio Estevez, Paul Gleason, Anthony Michael Hall, Judd Nelson, Molly Ringwald, and Ally Sheedy. The film t ...

'' radio show, 21 Savage recalled how the song came about after he and J. Cole first met at the Made in America Festival in 2018; the two exchanged cellphone numbers and a random text from Cole ended up in a studio session. 21 further elaborated:

He took the song with him back home to Raleigh, 'cause he drove ..and then he sent me the shit. And I was like, "Damn, this shit hard as fuck". That was just like some spur-of-the-moment shit. You know I had to go up there and fuck with Cole".

Composition and lyrics

On the song, 21 Savage reflects "just how much he's endured and how far he's come". J. Cole meanwhile "speaks directly on the dubious machinations of the music industry, the

justice system The contemporary national legal systems are generally based on one of four basic systems: civil law, common law, statutory law, religious law or combinations of these. However, the legal system of each country is shaped by its unique history and ...

, media spin and his own place in the larger narrative". The lyricism was described by ''Billboard'' as "heady, honest lyricism that gives the song its timeless appeal". The song's video and the original CD edition feature an additional verse by 21, which included the line "Been through some things, but I couldn't imagine my kids stuck at the border", a reference to the

Trump administration family separation policy The United States family separation policy under the Trump administration was presented to the public as a "zero tolerance" approach intended to deter illegal immigration and to encourage tougher legislation. In some cases, families followi ...

. The hook contains similarities to

Gucci Mane Radric Delantic Davis (born February 12, 1980), known professionally as Gucci Mane, is an American rapper and record executive. He helped pioneer the hip hop subgenre of trap music alongside fellow Atlanta-based rappers T.I. and Young Jeezy, ...

's 2009 song of the same name.

Music video

The

music video A music video is a video of variable duration, that integrates a music song or a music album with imagery that is produced for promotion (marketing), promotional or musical artistic purposes. Modern music videos are primarily made and used as a m ...

was released on February 1, 2019 and was directed by filmmaker Aisultan Seitov. It depicts 21 Savage having a family reunion in a luxurious mansion, with alternate shots intercut of his family members in dire situations such as being pulled over by police, in the hospital, refining cocaine, in jail, held hostage by

organized crime Organized crime (or organised crime) is a category of transnational, national, or local groupings of highly centralized enterprises run by criminals to engage in illegal activity, most commonly for profit. While organized crime is generally th ...

, being sexually trafficked, or mourning the death of a son. The video was influenced by the films ''

Cold War The Cold War is a term commonly used to refer to a period of geopolitical tension between the United States and the Soviet Union and their respective allies, the Western Bloc and the Eastern Bloc. The term '' cold war'' is used because the ...

'' and ''

The Godfather Part II ''The Godfather Part II'' is a 1974 American epic crime film produced and directed by Francis Ford Coppola. The film is partially based on the 1969 novel ''The Godfather'' by Mario Puzo, who co-wrote the screenplay with Coppola. ''Part II'' s ...

''. Both J. Cole's verse and 21 Savage's alternate verse from the album version are featured, with J. Cole also appearing in the video.

Alleged correlation to the detention of 21 Savage

After the arrest and detention of 21 Savage by

ICE Ice is water frozen into a solid state, typically forming at or below temperatures of 0 degrees Celsius or Depending on the presence of impurities such as particles of soil or bubbles of air, it can appear transparent or a more or less opaq ...

just days after the release of the music video for "A Lot", it was purported that besides his immigration status, the rapper was specifically targeted due to his alternate verse for the album version of the song. Lawyers for 21 Savage, in addition to U.S. Representative

Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (; ; born October 13, 1989), also known by her initials AOC, is an American politician and activist. She has served as the U.S. representative for New York's 14th congressional district since 2019, as a member of th ...

, all suspect that ICE targeted him for a certain stanza of the song that criticized issues with the Mexico-U.S. border, especially the

Charts

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

Certifications

Awards

External links

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Lot 2018 songs 2019 singles 21 Savage songs Epic Records singles Song recordings produced by J. White Did It Songs written by 21 Savage Songs written by J. White Did It Songs written by DJ Dahi Immigration-related protests Songs written by J. Cole Song recordings produced by DJ Dahi