"Rich As Fuck" (edited for explicit album as "Rich As F**k" and for clean album as "Rich As F***") is a song by American
hip hop recording artist
Lil Wayne
Dwayne Michael Carter Jr. (born September 27, 1982), known professionally as Lil Wayne, is an American rapper, singer, songwriter, and record executive. His career began in 1995, at the age of 12, when he was signed by rapper Birdman, joining ...
, sent to
urban radio
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 conte ...
on April 9, 2013, as the third and final single from his tenth
studio album, ''
I Am Not a Human Being II'' (2013). The song,
produced by
T-Minus
A countdown is a sequence of backward counting to indicate the time remaining before an event is scheduled to occur. NASA commonly employs the terms "L-minus" and "T-minus" during the preparation for and anticipation of a rocket launch, and eve ...
and
Nikhil Seetharam
Nikhil Seetharam is a multi-platinum Grammy winning Canadian composer and record producer from Toronto, Ontario. He has worked with several notable artists such as Drake, Kendrick Lamar, Nicki Minaj, and DJ Khaled. Nikhil composes film and televis ...
, features a
guest appearance
In show business, a guest appearance is the participation of an outsider performer (such as a musician or actor) in an event such as a music record or concert, show, etc., when the performer does not belong to the regular band, cast, or other ...
from fellow
rapper
Rapping (also rhyming, spitting, emceeing or MCing) is a musical form of vocal delivery that incorporates "rhyme, rhythmic speech, and street vernacular". It is performed or chanted, usually over a backing beat or musical accompaniment. The ...
2 Chainz
Tauheed K. Epps (born September 12, 1977), known professionally as 2 Chainz (or Tity Boi), is an American rapper. Born and raised in College Park, Georgia, he initially gained recognition as one-half of the Southern hip hop duo Playaz Circle, a ...
. The song has since peaked at number 38 on the US
''Billboard'' Hot 100 and at number 11 on the ''Billboard''
Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs
The Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart ranks the most popular R&B and hip hop songs in the United States and is published weekly by '' Billboard''. Rankings are based on a measure of radio airplay, sales data, and streaming activity. The chart had 100 ...
.
Background
On January 6, 2013, the song "Rich As Fuck," featuring rapper
2 Chainz
Tauheed K. Epps (born September 12, 1977), known professionally as 2 Chainz (or Tity Boi), is an American rapper. Born and raised in College Park, Georgia, he initially gained recognition as one-half of the Southern hip hop duo Playaz Circle, a ...
leaked unmastered and was originally set to be the second single from ''
I Am Not a Human Being II'', but "
Love Me" was released as a single instead. On April 9, 2013, "Rich As Fuck" was released as the third and final single from the album.
The official version of the song was remastered and the first and second verse were switched around, compared to the leaked version.
Critical reception
"Rich As Fuck" was met with generally positive reviews from
music critics. David Jefferies called the song "a winner with an enticing and eerie beat from
T-Minus
A countdown is a sequence of backward counting to indicate the time remaining before an event is scheduled to occur. NASA commonly employs the terms "L-minus" and "T-minus" during the preparation for and anticipation of a rocket launch, and eve ...
."
Jody Rosen
Jody Rosen (born June 21, 1969 in New York City) is an American journalist and author. He is a contributing writer for ''The New York Times Magazine''.
Career Journalism
Rosen served as critic-at-large for '' T: The New York Times Style Magaz ...
of ''
Rolling Stone
''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner, and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. It was first known for its ...
'' praised Lil Wayne's lyricism on the song and his "nimble musicality of his vocal tone and flow." Dean Van Nguyen of
PopMatters
''PopMatters'' is an international online magazine of cultural criticism that covers aspects of popular culture. ''PopMatters'' publishes reviews, interviews, and essays on cultural products and expressions in areas such as music, television, fi ...
said the "creeping funk beat on "Rich As Fuck" inspire Wayne to one of his sharpest flows on the album." Jon Hadusek of
Consequence of Sound
''Consequence'' (previously ''Consequence of Sound'') is an independently owned New York-based online magazine featuring news, editorials, and reviews of music, movies, and television. In addition, the website also features the Festival Outlook ...
said the song had an old-school feel, and called the song ''I Am Not a Human Being's'' "finest moment." Jon Caramanica of ''
The New York Times
''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid d ...
'' called 2 Chainz appearance on the song impressive. Brandon Soderberg of ''
Spin'' also praised 2 Chainz for having a "charismatic presence on the song." Jayson Greene of
Pitchfork Media
''Pitchfork'' (formerly ''Pitchfork Media'') is an American online music publication (currently owned by Condé Nast) that was launched in 1995 by writer Ryan Schreiber as an independent music blog.
Schreiber started Pitchfork while working ...
said the Bay Area-influenced clap instrumental of the song work around him, not with him.
''
Complex
Complex commonly refers to:
* Complexity, the behaviour of a system whose components interact in multiple ways so possible interactions are difficult to describe
** Complex system, a system composed of many components which may interact with each ...
'' ranked "Rich As Fuck" number 18 on their list of the 50 best songs of 2013, saying "The song might not push the limits of art, but when this comes on at the right time, it's the jam, and unlike a lot of the other big hits of the year, it didn't get played out."
Music video
The music video was directed by Parris in early 2013, and was released on March 22, 2013 on
MTV. The video was released on
YouTube
YouTube is a global online video sharing and 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 Google, and is the second mo ...
through his
VEVO
Vevo ( , an abbreviation for "Video Evolution", stylized as VEVO until 2013) is an American multinational video hosting service, best known for providing music videos to YouTube. The service is also available as an app on selected smart TVs, ...
one day later, on March 23, 2013. The video is age-limited and need verification for viewing.
Chart performance
Weekly charts
Year-end charts
Certifications
Release history
References
{{Authority control
2013 singles
Lil Wayne songs
2 Chainz songs
Songs written by Lil Wayne
Songs written by 2 Chainz
Cash Money Records singles
Song recordings produced by T-Minus (record producer)
2012 songs
Songs written by Nikhil Seetharam
Songs written by T-Minus (record producer)
Trap music songs