"XO Tour Llif3" (stylized as "XO TOUR Llif3" and pronounced "XO Tour Life") is a single by American rapper

Lil Uzi Vert Symere Bysil Woods ( ; born July 31, 1995), known professionally as Lil Uzi Vert, is an American rapper, singer, and songwriter. They are characterized by their face tattoo, facial tattoos, facial piercings, eccentric hairstyles and androgynous ...

from the extended play ''

Luv Is Rage 1.5 ''Luv Is Rage 1.5'' is the second extended play by American rapper Lil Uzi Vert. It was independently released on February 26, 2017 via Uzi's SoundCloud as throwaway tracks from their debut album ''Luv Is Rage 2'' (2017). The project includes four ...

'' (2017) and debut album ''

Luv Is Rage 2 ''Luv Is Rage 2'' is the debut studio album by American rapper Lil Uzi Vert. It was released on August 25, 2017, through Generation Now and Atlantic Records. The album serves as a sequel to Uzi's commercial debut mixtape ''Luv Is Rage'' (2015). It ...

'' (2017). It was released on

SoundCloud SoundCloud is an online audio distribution platform and music sharing website that enables its users to upload, promote, and share audio. Founded in 2007 by Alexander Ljung and Eric Wahlforss, SoundCloud is one of the largest music streaming se ...

on February 26, 2017, and later on all music streaming platforms on March 24, 2017. The track was produced by

TM88 Bryan Lamar Simmons (born April 4, 1987), professionally known as TM88 (also known as TrackMan 88), is an American record producer and DJ from Atlanta, Georgia. He is a member of the Atlanta-based record production and songwriting team 808 Mafi ...

, with co-production by JW Lucas. It peaked at number seven on the US ''Billboard'' Hot 100, becoming Lil Uzi Vert's highest-charting single as a solo artist until the release of "

Futsal Shuffle 2020 "Futsal Shuffle 2020", or simply titled "Futsal Shuffle" is a song by American rapper Lil Uzi Vert. It was released through Generation Now and Atlantic Records as the lead single from their second studio album, ''Eternal Atake'' on December 13, 20 ...

", which peaked at number five. It was also their second top 10 entry overall after their feature on "

Bad and Boujee "Bad and Boujee" is a song by American hip-hop group Migos featuring vocals from American rapper Lil Uzi Vert. It was released on October 28, 2016 as the lead single from Migos' second studio album ''Culture''. It was released by Quality Cont ...

" by

Migos Migos () is an American hip hop trio from Lawrenceville, Georgia, founded in 2008. The group was originally composed of Southern rappers Quavo, Takeoff, and Offset. Quavo is from Athens, Georgia; Offset and Takeoff were born and raised in Law ...

. It is Lil Uzi Vert's most popular song, and has amassed over one billion streams on Spotify. On December 7, 2022, the song was certified RIAA Diamond selling over 11 million copies, giving them their first Diamond certification and making it the best-selling

emo rap Emo rap is a fusion genre of hip hop and emo music. Originating in the SoundCloud rap scene in the mid-2010s, the genre fuses characteristics of hip hop music, such as beats and rapping, with the lyrical themes, instrumentals, and vocals commo ...

song of all-time. A sequel to the song, titled " P2" was included on Lil Uzi Vert's second album ''

Eternal Atake ''Eternal Atake'' is the second studio album by American rapper Lil Uzi Vert. It is their first project since their 2017 studio album ''Luv Is Rage 2''. After being initially announced in 2018, the album was released on March 6, 2020, through Ge ...

'' (2020). The song has since come to be regarded as Lil Uzi Vert's

signature song A signature (; from la, signare, "to sign") is a Handwriting, handwritten (and often Stylization, stylized) depiction of someone's name, nickname, or even a simple "X" or other mark that a person writes on documents as a proof of identity and ...

. It was later featured on the soundtrack for ''

WWE 2K20 ''WWE 2K20'' is a professional wrestling video game developed by Visual Concepts and published by 2K Sports. It was released worldwide on October 22, 2019, for Microsoft Windows, PlayStation 4, and Xbox One. It is the twenty-first installment of ...

''.

Background

"XO Tour Llif3" began when Lil Uzi Vert started collaborating with producer TM88. Lil Uzi Vert originally contacted TM88 through

FaceTime FaceTime is a Proprietary software, proprietary videotelephony product developed by Apple Inc. FaceTime is available on supported iOS mobile devices running iOS 4 and later and Mac computers that run and later. FaceTime supports any iOS devic ...

while TM88 was in Miami to work with rappers

Future The future is the time after the past and present. Its arrival is considered inevitable due to the existence of time and the laws of physics. Due to the apparent nature of reality and the unavoidability of the future, everything that currently ...

and

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, ...

. TM88's return flight to Atlanta was delayed due to the

Fort Lauderdale airport shooting On January 6, 2017, a mass shooting occurred at Fort Lauderdale–Hollywood International Airport in Broward County, Florida, United States, near the baggage claim in Terminal 2. Five people were killed while six others were injured in the shoot ...

. During the ten-hour wait at the airport following the shooting, TM88 lost his laptop charger. When TM88 returned to Atlanta, he could not access his laptop, leading to him using an old computer and a

Beats Pill Beats Pill is a brand of portable Bluetooth speakers produced by Beats Electronics. The Pill was released in 2012. The devices include 3.5 mm audio input and output jacks and charges over a Micro USB port. Design and functionality Serving as ...

speaker to produce the instrumental for "XO Tour Llif3". On February 26, 2017, Lil Uzi Vert released ''Luv Is Rage 1.5'', an extended play consisting of four tracks, including "XO Tour Llif3", on their

account. The song quickly amassed millions of plays and attention across social media, and as a result was given a commercial release. The popularity of "XO Tour Llif3" resulted in the viral "Lil Uzi Vert Challenge".

Composition

"XO Tour Llif3" is an

song composed in common time ( time) with a length of three minutes two seconds and written in B minor with a tempo of 155 beats per minute with a common chord progression of Gmaj7—Em—Gmaj7—Bm—A. The song is inspired by Lil Uzi Vert's relationship with Brittany Byrd and the couple's eventual break-up in June 2016. The themes of the song focus around substance abuse, quoting

Xanax Alprazolam, sold under the brand name Xanax, among others, is a fast-acting, potent tranquilizer of medium duration in the triazolobenzodiazepine (TBZD) class, which are benzodiazepines (BZDs) fused with a triazole ring. It is most commonly ...

and prescription drug abuse as a way to relieve heartbreak. Lil Uzi Vert references money numerous times on the track with one line stating "all my friends are dead" citing the use of deceased presidents on banknotes. TM88 produced "XO Tour Llif3" on FL Studio. XO Tour Llif3 was originally a collaboration with another producer, J.W Lucas. TM88 sped up the original beat and chopped the intro and the first verse before using the

FL Studio FL Studio (previously known as FruityLoops before 2003) is a digital audio workstation (DAW) developed by the Belgian company Image-Line. FL Studio features a graphical user interface with a pattern-based music sequencer. The program is avail ...

plugin Gross Beat to manipulate the volume and the time of the instrumental.

Critical reception

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 ...

'' writer Matthew Strauss stated, "Uzi resists total caricature with

heir Inheritance is the practice of receiving private property, titles, debts, entitlements, privileges, rights, and obligations upon the death of an individual. The rules of inheritance differ among societies and have changed over time. Officiall ...

liberal use of dark, manic details, and on 'XO TOUR Llif3' hey channelthe indulgence of dulled senses perfected by

at his '' DS2'' peak." Regarding the production, Strauss claimed, "TM88's slightly psychedelic minor key production, gives Uzi's nonchalance the feeling of a daydream." Jordan Sargent of ''

Spin Spin or spinning most often refers to: * Spinning (textiles), the creation of yarn or thread by twisting fibers together, traditionally by hand spinning * Spin, the rotation of an object around a central axis * Spin (propaganda), an intentionally b ...

'' wrote, "Though the song is an instant hit among Uzi Vert's growing and feverish fanbase—so much so that

label fast tracked an animated video that hit YouTube this morning—it also works as a good entry point for anyone who has not yet approached an artist who is poised to become one of the most ubiquitous voices in rap". ''

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 ...

'' and ''Pigeons & Planes'' named it the best song of the year, ''Billboard'' and ''Pitchfork'' considered it the fifth-best song of the year, ''

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 ...

''s

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 ...

the eighth, ''

Rolling Stone ''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner, and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. It was first kno ...

'' staff considered it the seventeenth, and ''

Entertainment Weekly ''Entertainment Weekly'' (sometimes abbreviated as ''EW'') is an American digital-only entertainment magazine based in New York City, published by Dotdash Meredith, that covers film, television, music, Broadway theatre, books, and popular cul ...

'' the twelfth.

Commercial performance

"XO Tour Llif3" entered the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 chart issued April 4, 2017 at number 49 and peaked at number 7 in May 2017. Spotify recognized the song as one of the most streamed tracks of the summer of 2017 in the US. By September 2017, the song had generated 1.3 billion streams across all streaming platforms, generating $4.5 million with Lil Uzi Vert only earning $900,000. Lil Uzi Vert made an estimated $0.00069231 per play. The song currently sits at over 2 billion streams across streaming platforms.

Music videos

On March 13, 2017, an animated music video for "XO Tour Llif3" was released on Lil Uzi Vert'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. The video, which has been quoted as "trippy", was animated by Andrew William Ralph and features a cartoon version of Lil Uzi Vert gripping a steering wheel while holding a lit

blunt Blunt may refer to: * Blunt (surname), a surname (and list of people with the name) * Blunt (cigar), a term used in the cigar industry to designate blunt-tipped, usually factory-rolled cigars * Blunt (cannabis), a slang term used in cannabis cult ...

in between their fingers. It received over 290 million views as of August 2018. The video has been unlisted on YouTube since the release of the official video on September 4, 2017. On August 4, 2017, the song's official lyric video was released. Directed by Jered Harrison, the video shows an animated version of Uzi riding their motorcycle out of the cargo hold of an airplane and into a purple sky as dollar bills materialize in the air around them before landing in a crowd of fans. The video also became unlisted on YouTube beginning on September 4 but was made public again by December 16, 2017. On September 4, 2017, the official music video for "XO Tour Llif3" was released; it features XO artists

The Weeknd Abel Makkonen Tesfaye (born February 16, 1990), known professionally as the Weeknd, is a Canadian singer, songwriter, record producer, and actor. Known for his sonic versatility and dark lyricism, his music explores escapism, Romance (love), ...

and Nav in cameo appearances. Directed by fashion designer

Virgil Abloh Virgil Abloh (; September 30, 1980 – November 28, 2021) was an American fashion designer and entrepreneur. He was the artistic director of Louis Vuitton's menswear collection beginning in 2018, and was given increased creative responsibilitie ...

, the video was shot in France in the 10th district of Paris. The video became controversial after it was made known that the Arabic subtitles, incorporated into the video stylistically, were merely aesthetic and not an actual translation of the lyrics. An Arabic translator who was previously enlisted among a group to create the original subtitles, later scrapped for unknown reasons, noted the nonsensical content of the subtitles to Abloh, who promptly said that he loved the "'wrong' look". The official video has received over 461 million views as of November 2021.

Sequel

On March 6, 2020, Lil Uzi Vert released a "lyrically reflective" sequel to the song, simply titled " P2", as part of their second studio album, ''

''. The song contains the same drum beat and melodic elements of the original's chorus, with Lil Uzi changing the chorus line to "''I don't really care 'cause I'm done''".

Charts

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

Certifications

References

{{Lil Uzi Vert 2017 songs 2017 singles Atlantic Records singles Lil Uzi Vert songs Songs about drugs Songs about suicide Songs written by Lil Uzi Vert Songs written by TM88