"The Search" is a song by American rapper NF, released through

Capitol Records Capitol Records, LLC (known legally as Capitol Records, Inc. until 2007) is an American record label distributed by Universal Music Group through its Capitol Music Group imprint. It was founded as the first West Coast-based record label of note ...

on May 30, 2019, as the second single from the album of the same name. It was written and produced by NF alongside

Tommee Profitt Tommee James Profitt (born November 12, 1984) is an American songwriter and producer. Biography Profitt is originally from Grand Rapids, Michigan, United States. He moved to Nashville, Tennessee in 2017 to continue his music career. He has w ...

, and lyrically discusses the negative impact of fame and commercial success on NF's mental and physical health. A music video was released the same day as the song. It debuted at number 70 on the US ''Billboard'' Hot 100.

Composition and lyrics

"The Search" lasts for a duration of 4 minutes and 8 seconds, with NF rapping 777 words throughout the track. The song's production features "prickly strings, choral backing chants and an unforgiving beat drop" and its structure contains a 30 second intro and lacks a chorus. Lyrically, it discusses the impact on NF's mental health as a consequence of his mainstream success. While the rapper initially understates the negative impact of fame on his life, he soon escalates his criticisms of commercial accomplishments, stating that "The sales can rise/ Doesn't mean much though when your health declines."

Meaning

The main message in this song is one of doing well. He starts off his song by “honestly answering the casual and frequent question, “How’s life?” NF continues to answer the greeting throughout the track by discussing recent changes in life, depression and the world itself.”

Critical reception

Danielle Chelosky of ''Substream Magazine'' described "The Search" as "introspective and unapologetic," while Tyler Schmitt of '' Variance Magazine'' called it "blistering."

Jon Caramanica Jon Caramanica (born 1975) is an American journalist and pop music critic who writes for ''The New York Times''. He is also known for writing about hip hop music. Biography Born in Brooklyn, New York (state), New York, Caramanica received his ba ...

, writing for ''

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 ...

'', commended NF's delivery, writing that he "raps tartly and with compelling angst." Andrew Unterberger of ''

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 ...

'' wrote that the track "proves that fame is one long anxiety attack" and added that its production gives "the meltdown overtaking his mind operatic grandeur."

Appearances in media

The song is featured in the trailer of season three of the video game

Apex Legends ''Apex Legends'' is a free-to-play Battle royale game, battle royale-hero shooter game developed by Respawn Entertainment and published by Electronic Arts. It was released for PlayStation 4, Windows, and Xbox One in February 2019, for Nintendo ...

. From October 19, 2020 to February 2022, the song was featured as the opening theme song for

WWE World Wrestling Entertainment, Inc., d/b/a as WWE, is an American professional wrestling promotion. A global integrated media and entertainment company, WWE has also branched out into other fields, including film, American football, and vario ...

Monday Night Raw ''WWE Raw'', also known as ''Monday Night Raw'' or simply ''Raw'', is an American professional wrestling television program produced by WWE that currently airs live every Monday at 8 p.m. ET on the USA Network in the United States. The show fe ...

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 ...

. * Nate Feurstein – composer, lyricist, producer *

– composer, lyricist, producer, mastering engineer, mixer, studio personnel

Charts

Certifications

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Search, The 2019 singles 2019 songs NF (rapper) songs Songs written by Tommee Profitt Songs written by NF (rapper) Capitol Records singles