"Self Care" is a song recorded by American rapper

Mac Miller Malcolm James McCormick (January 19, 1992 – September 7, 2018), known professionally as Mac Miller, was an American rapper and record producer. Miller began his career in Pittsburgh's hip hop scene in 2007, at the age of fifteen. In 2010, h ...

for his fifth studio album ''

Swimming Swimming is the self-propulsion of a person through water, or other liquid, usually for recreation, sport, exercise, or survival. Locomotion is achieved through coordinated movement of the limbs and the body to achieve hydrodynamic thrust that r ...

'' (2018). It was written by Miller, Destin Route,

Erica Wright Erica Abi Wright (born February 26, 1971), known professionally as Erykah Badu (), is an American singer-songwriter, record producer and actress. Influenced by R&B, soul, and hip hop, Badu rose to prominence in the late 1990s when her debut al ...

, Jahmal Cantero,

Devonte Hynes Devonté Hynes (born David Joseph Michael Hynes, 23 December 1985), also known as Blood Orange and formerly Lightspeed Champion, is an English singer, songwriter, record producer and director based in New York City. From 2004 to 2006, Hynes was ...

, and its producers Dacoury Natche, Eric Dan, Tyler Mason, and Peter Mudge. The track was released on July 13, 2018, as the second single from the album. Musically, "Self Care" is a two-part song, described as a "self-guided tour through iller'spersonal rehabilitation" by ''

Pitchfork A pitchfork (also a hay fork) is an agricultural tool with a long handle and two to five tines used to lift and pitch or throw loose material, such as hay, straw, manure, or leaves. The term is also applied colloquially, but inaccurately, to th ...

''s Sheldon Pearce. "Self Care" peaked at number 33 on the US ''Billboard'' Hot 100 after Miller's death in September 2018, becoming his highest-charting song as lead artist at the time. The song was

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 ...

triple platinum in the United States. Its

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 ...

, which references the film '' Kill Bill: Volume 2'', shows Miller escaping a coffin after being buried alive.

Background and composition

"Self Care" was released by

Warner Bros. Records Warner Records Inc. (formerly Warner Bros. Records Inc.) is an American record label. A subsidiary of the Warner Music Group, it is headquartered in Los Angeles, California. It was founded on March 19, 1958, as the recorded music division of the ...

on July 13, 2018, as the second single from

's fifth studio album ''

''. It is a two-part song, split between "Self Care" and "Oblivion". The first part was written by Miller, Destin Route,

, and its producers Dacourny "DJ Dahi" Natche and Peter "Nice Rec" Mudge; it also contains an excerpt from " On & On" by

Erykah Badu Erica Abi Wright (born February 26, 1971), known professionally as Erykah Badu (), is an American singer-songwriter, record producer and actress. Influenced by rhythm and blues, R&B, Soul music, soul, and hip hop, Badu rose to prominence in the ...

, which was written by Badu and Jahmal Cantero. The second part was written by Miller and its producers Eric Dan, Tyler "Nostxlgic" Mason, and Mudge. * Online version: Each part was recorded separately in 2017, at

Conway Recording Studios Conway Recording Studios is a recording studio in Hollywood, California. People and awards Conway started in the early 1970s as a mastering studio. In 1976, the studio began recording albums, including projects by Elton John and Stevie Wond ...

Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...

and

ID Labs ID Labs (stylized as "I.D. Labs") is a commercial recording studio and production facility, opened in 2003, owned and operated by Pittsburgh-based producer, E. Dan. The engineer and producer team, composed of Jeremy "Big Jerm" Kulousek, Eric "E. Da ...

Pittsburgh Pittsburgh ( ) is a city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, United States, and the county seat of Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, Allegheny County. It is the most populous city in both Allegheny County and Wester ...

, respectively. "Self Care" contains elements of R&B,

space Space is the boundless three-dimensional extent in which objects and events have relative position and direction. In classical physics, physical space is often conceived in three linear dimensions, although modern physicists usually consider ...

funk Funk is a music genre that originated in African American communities in the mid-1960s when musicians created a rhythmic, danceable new form of music through a mixture of various music genres that were popular among African Americans in the m ...

and

cloud rap Cloud rap is a subgenre of Southern rap and trap music that has several sonic characteristics of lo-fi in its hazy, dreamlike and relaxed sound. Many music experts credit rapper Lil B and producer Clams Casino as the early pioneers of this style. ...

. The song begins with "watercolor synth washes", as Miller croons its affirming chorus. Around halfway through, it abruptly switches to an "airy synth and glitchy" beat, turning its vibe "from claustrophobic to weightless." ''

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 ...

''s Gil Kaufman said the song "chronicles an emotional spiral, with Mac spinning out into 'oblivion,' which sounds like exactly the place he wants to be." Sheldon Pearce of ''

'' described it as a "breezy, self-guided tour through iller'spersonal rehabilitation."

Commercial performance

In the United States, "Self Care" debuted at number 24 on the ''Billboard'' Bubbling Under Hot 100, and peaked at number 5 on the chart dated August 18, 2018. After Miller's death in September 2018, "Self Care" was propelled to number 33 on the US ''Billboard'' Hot 100, surpassing " Loud" (2012; number 53) as his highest-charting song as lead artist at the time. It also reached his highest peak as lead artist in Australia at number 83 on the

ARIA Charts The ARIA Charts are the main Australian music sales charts, issued weekly by the Australian Recording Industry Association. The charts are a record of the highest selling songs and albums in various genres in Australia. ARIA became the offici ...

, in Canada at number 38 on the

Canadian Hot 100 The Canadian Hot 100 is a music industry record chart in Canada for songs, published weekly by '' Billboard'' magazine. The Canadian Hot 100 was launched on the issue dated March 31, 2007, and is currently the standard record chart in Canada; a n ...

, and in the United Kingdom at number 61 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 ...

. His peaks set by "Self Care" were later surpassed by " Good News" in 2020. In September 2021, "Self Care" was certified

triple platinum Music recording certification is a system of certifying that a music recording has shipped, sold, or streamed a certain number of units. The threshold quantity varies by type (such as album, single, music video) and by nation or territory (see ...

by the

Recording Industry Association of America The Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) is a trade organization that represents the music recording industry in the United States. Its members consist of record labels and distributors that the RIAA says "create, manufacture, and/o ...

(RIAA) for combined sales and streaming data in excess of three million units in the United States.

Music video

A music video for "Self Care" was released on the same day as the song. Directed by Christian Weber, it begins with Miller buried alive inside a coffin. He raps his verses while smoking a cigarette, and carves "''

Memento mori ''Memento mori'' (Latin for 'remember that you ave todie'Kill Bill: Volume 2''.

Personnel

Credits adapted from ''Swimming''s liner notes and

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 ...

. * Malcolm McCormick – lead vocals (as Mac Miller), songwriting * Peter Mudge – additional production, additional programming (as Nice Rec) * Ben Sedano – engineering assistant * John Armstrong – engineering assistant *

Manny Marroquin Manny Marroquin (born September 21, 1971) is an American mixing engineer.Daley, Dan (May 2005).Manny Marroquin. ''Sound on Sound''. Retrieved February 10, 2007 He has received ten Grammy awards for his professional audio work. Life and career M ...

– mix * Chris Galland – engineering mix * Robin Florent – engineering mix assistant * Scott Desmarais – engineering mix assistant *

Mike Bozzi Mike Bozzi is an American mastering engineer at Bernie Grundman Mastering in Hollywood, California. He won a Grammy Award for Record of the Year for mastering Childish Gambino's " This Is America", and is a six-time nominee for the Grammy Awa ...

– mastering "Self Care" * Dacourny Natche – production, programming (as DJ Dahi) *

– songwriting, additional vocals * Destin Route – songwriting, additional vocals (as Dicaprio) *

– songwriting * Jahmal Cantero – songwriting * Vic Wainstein – recording "Oblivion" * Eric Dan – production, programming, recording (as ID Labs) * Tyler Mason – production, programming (as Nostxlgic)

Charts

Certifications

References

{{Authority control 2018 singles 2018 songs Mac Miller songs Warner Records singles Songs written by Erykah Badu Songs written by DJ Dahi Songs written by Dev Hynes Songs written by JID Songs written by Mac Miller