"Houdini" is a song by British YouTuber and rapper

KSI Olajide Olayinka Williams "JJ" Olatunji (born 19 June 1993), known professionally as KSI, is an English YouTuber and rapper. He is a co-founder and member of the British YouTube group known as the Sidemen. He is the CEO of Misfits Boxing and ...

featuring fellow British rappers Swarmz and

Tion Wayne Dennis Junior Odunwo (born 1 September 1993), known professionally as Tion Wayne, is a British rapper and DJ from Edmonton, North London. He appeared on three top-10 singles on UK Singles Chart as a guest – NSG's " Options", "Keisha & Becky" ...

from the former's debut studio album, '' Dissimulation'' (2020). Produced by AJ Productions and

Jacob Manson Jacob Manson is a British DOB is March,91 multi platinum-selling music producer, DJ and songwriter best known as a member of house production duo Blonde with Adam Englefield. Manson signed a publishing deal with Sony ATV in 2013. Blonde was the ...

, the song was released for digital download and

streaming Streaming media is multimedia that is delivered and consumed in a continuous manner from a source, with little or no intermediate storage in network elements. ''Streaming'' refers to the delivery method of content, rather than the content it ...

RBC Records RBC Records is an American online independent record label and management company founded by partners Brian Shafton and Bob Grossi. It provides artists and independent labels with a full-service "virtual label" alternative to signing with a maj ...

and

BMG BMG may refer to: Organizations * Music publishing companies: ** Bertelsmann Music Group, a 1987–2008 division of Bertelsmann that was purchased by Sony on October 1, 2008 *** Sony BMG, a 2004–2008 joint venture of Bertelsmann and Sony that wa ...

on 24 April 2020 as the fourth

single Single may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media * Single (music), a song release Songs * "Single" (Natasha Bedingfield song), 2004 * "Single" (New Kids on the Block and Ne-Yo song), 2008 * "Single" (William Wei song), 2016 * "Single", by ...

from the album. "Houdini" is a

UK rap UK rap, also known as British hip hop or UK hip hop, is a music genre, genre of music, and a culture that covers a variety of styles of hip hop music made in the United Kingdom. It is generally classified as one of a number of styles of urban mu ...

and

afroswing Afroswing, also known as Afrobashment, or less commonly Afrobbean or Afro-trap (not to be confused with the French genre), is a genre of music that developed in the UK during the mid-2010s, derivative of dancehall and afrobeats, with influence ...

track. "Houdini" received positive reviews from

music critics Music journalism (or music criticism) is media criticism and reporting about music topics, including popular music, classical music, and traditional music. Journalists began writing about music in the eighteenth century, providing commentary on w ...

, who commonly praised Swarmz's catchy

chorus Chorus may refer to: Music * Chorus (song) or refrain, line or lines that are repeated in music or in verse * Chorus effect, the perception of similar sounds from multiple sources as a single, richer sound * Chorus form, song in which all verse ...

. The song charted at number six in the United Kingdom, where it has been

certified Certification is the provision by an independent body of written assurance (a certificate) that the product, service or system in question meets specific requirements. It is the formal attestation or confirmation of certain characteristics of a ...

silver by the

British Phonographic Industry British Phonographic Industry (BPI) is the British recorded music industry's Trade association. It runs the BRIT Awards, the Classic BRIT Awards, National Album Day, is home to the Mercury Prize, and co-owns the Official Charts Company with th ...

(BPI), and further charted in Australia, Estonia and Ireland. An accompanying

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 24 April 2020. The video places the three artists in a studio with overhead blue

neon lighting Neon lighting consists of brightly glowing, electrified glass tubes or bulbs that contain rarefied neon or other gases. Neon lights are a type of cold cathode gas-discharge light. A neon tube is a sealed glass tube with a metal electrode ...

, an expensive car and models.

Writing and production

"Houdini" was co-produced by British record producers AJ Productions and

. Swarmz recorded both a

and a verse to the

instrumental An instrumental is a recording normally without any vocals, although it might include some inarticulate vocals, such as shouted backup vocals in a big band setting. Through semantic widening, a broader sense of the word song may refer to instru ...

. He sent the track to

, who listened to it but "wasn't too sure about it". After playing it to his girlfriend, who "thought otherwise" and said "it would be a banger", KSI decided to go ahead and work on the track, recording a verse for "Houdini". KSI "wasn't too keen on Swarmz's verse", so he decided to replace it with a verse from another featured artist, resulting in the addition of a verse by

. KSI recalled that when deciding which other artist to feature on the song, the decision was between Tion Wayne or

Jay1 Jason Andrè Juami (born 27 January 1998), better known by his stage name Jay1 (stylised as JAY1), is a British rapper and songwriter who is from Coventry. He is of Congolese ancestry. He has had two top 20 singles in the UK. Jay1 is best known ...

Release and promotion

KSI revealed the song's title, featured artists,

cover art Cover art is a type of artwork presented as an illustration or photograph on the outside of a published product such as a book (often on a dust jacket), magazine, newspaper ( tabloid), comic book, video game (box art), music album (album art), ...

and release date on 17 April 2020 via

social media Social media are interactive media technologies that facilitate the creation and sharing of information, ideas, interests, and other forms of expression through virtual communities and networks. While challenges to the definition of ''social medi ...

, saying, "we about to drop the biggest U.K. banger of 2020". The song was made available for

pre-order A pre-order is an order placed for an item that has not yet been released. The idea for pre-orders came because people found it hard to get popular items in stores because of their popularity. Companies then had the idea to allow customers to r ...

on the same day. "Houdini" was released for digital download and

one week later on 24 April 2020 through American

independent record label An independent record label (or indie label) is a record label that operates without the funding or distribution of major record labels; they are a type of small- to medium-sized enterprise, or SME. The labels and artists are often represented ...

, under

BMG Rights Management BMG Rights Management GmbH (also known simply as BMG) is an international music company based in Berlin, Germany. It combines the activities of a music publisher and a record label. BMG was founded in October 2008 after Bertelsmann sold its ...

. The song was premiered exclusively on

BBC Radio 1 BBC Radio 1 is a British national radio station owned and operated by the BBC. It specialises in modern popular music and current chart hits throughout the day. The station provides alternative genres at night, including electronica, dance, ...

the night before its release. A

lyric 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 promotional or musical artistic purposes. Modern music videos are primarily made and used as a music marketing device ...

, created by BWGRX, was released to KSI's YouTube channel on 8 May 2020. A

remix A remix (or reorchestration) is a piece of media which has been altered or contorted from its original state by adding, removing, or changing pieces of the item. A song, piece of artwork, book, video, poem, or photograph can all be remixes. The o ...

of the song by DJ group Pink Panda was released on 23 June 2020. An audio video for the remix was uploaded to KSI's YouTube channel on the same day.

Critical reception

Courtney Wynter of

GRM Daily GRM Daily (Grime & Rap Music Daily), formerly Grime Daily, is a British urban music outlet and entertainment platform. As the name suggests, the platform is an outlet for UK rap and its various genres, such as UK drill, afroswing, trap, and Briti ...

said, ""Houdini" is a polished-sounding single dominated by a fun-filled vibe. Swarmz jumps in first with an infectious hook which is followed by confident lyrics and energetic flows from both KSI and Tion Wayne". Thomas Gillespie of ''

Earmilk ''EARMILK'', sometimes stylized in all caps, is a North American online music publication. Launched in the late 2000s by Montrey Whittaker, Blake Edwards and Eric DeFazio, ''Earmilk'' publishes on a variety of music genres, often covering hip h ...

'' said, ""Houdini" is a change of pace from the more American style singles that have come before from KSI. The track is an

afro The afro is a hair type created by natural growth of kinky hair, or specifically styled with chemical curling products by individuals with naturally curly or straight hair.Garland, Phyl"Is The Afro On Its Way Out?" ''Ebony'', February 1973. ...

-centric hip-hop club banger that will bar sitting on the charts for weeks to come. UK titans Tion Wayne and Swarmz join KSI on this one and the chemistry is abundant. From the bouncy production and infectious drum pockets to the catchy flows produced by both KSI and Tion Wayne respectively are fantastic. Not to mention, the chorus is by far one of the catchiest and stickiest I have heard in a long time".

Year-end lists

Music video

The song's

was uploaded to KSI'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 ...

channel on 24 April 2020. It has received 29 million views. The video was filmed in

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

in March 2020. The video is directed by Kaylum. The video stars all three artists in a studio with "overhead blue neon lights, an expensive car and models".

Commercial performance

In the United Kingdom, "Houdini" earned the highest new entry on the

UK Singles Chart The UK Singles Chart (currently titled Official Singles Chart, with the upper section more commonly known as the Official UK Top 40) is compiled by the Official Charts Company (OCC), on behalf of the British record industry, listing the top-s ...

in its first week of release. It debuted at number six, becoming KSI's second song to reach the top 10, and spent a total of 10 weeks on the chart. The song also debuted at number five on the UK Hip Hop and R&B Singles Chart. On 9 July 2020, ''

Music Week ''Music Week'' is a trade publication for the UK record industry distributed via a website and a monthly print magazine. It is published by Future. History Founded in 1959 as '' Record Retailer'', it relaunched on 18 March 1972 as ''Music W ...

'' reported that "Houdini" was the UK's 49th highest-selling song of the first half of 2020. On 31 July 2020, "Houdini" was

silver by the

(BPI) for track-equivalent sales of 200,000 units in the UK. On 14 September 2020, ''Music Week'' reported that "Houdini" has sold 228,569 track-equivalent units in the UK. In Ireland, "Houdini" debuted at number 11 on the

Irish Singles Chart The Irish Singles Chart is the Republic of Ireland's music industry standard singles popularity chart issued weekly by the Irish Recorded Music Association (IRMA) and compiled on their behalf by the Official Charts Company. Chart rankings are bas ...

and spent a total of nine weeks on the chart. The song debuted at number 10 on the

Euro Digital Song Sales The ''Billboard'' charts tabulate the relative weekly popularity of songs and albums in the United States and elsewhere. The results are published in ''Billboard'' magazine. ''Billboard'' biz, the online extension of the ''Billboard'' charts, pr ...

chart. KSI reacted to the commercial success of "Houdini" at the time,

tweeting Twitter is an online social media and social networking service owned and operated by American company Twitter, Inc., on which users post and interact with 280-character-long messages known as "tweets". Registered users can post, like, ...

, "Thank you everyone for your support. We're consistently breaking boundaries. They're slowly understanding the power of a YouTuber. Too gassed right now!!"

Credits and personnel

Credits adapted from

Tidal Tidal is the adjectival form of tide. Tidal may also refer to: * ''Tidal'' (album), a 1996 album by Fiona Apple * Tidal (king), a king involved in the Battle of the Vale of Siddim * TidalCycles, a live coding environment for music * Tidal (servic ...

. *

songwriting, vocals * Swarmzsongwriting, vocals *

songwriting, vocals * AJ Productionsproduction, songwriting *

production, songwriting * Eight9FLYsongwriting * Michalis Michaelmixing * Henkka Niemistömastering

Charts

Certifications

Release history

References

{{Authority control 2020 songs 2020 singles KSI songs BMG Rights Management singles RBC Records singles Swarmz songs Songs written by KSI Songs written by Jacob Manson Songs written by Swarmz Songs written by Tion Wayne Tion Wayne songs