"You Already Know" is a song recorded by American singer Fergie, featuring guest vocals from Trinidadian-American rapper

Nicki Minaj Onika Tanya Maraj-Petty (; born December 8, 1982), known professionally as Nicki Minaj ( ), is a Trinidadian-born rapper based in the United States. She is known for her musical versatility, animated flow in her rapping, alter egos and accent ...

. It was released on August 25, 2017, alongside promotional single "

Hungry Hunger is a sense, sensation that motivates the consumption of food. The sensation of hunger typically manifests after only a few hours without eating and is generally considered to be unpleasant. Satiety occurs between 5 and 20 minutes after ea ...

" as the fourth single from Fergie's second

studio album An album is a collection of audio recordings issued on compact disc (CD), Phonograph record, vinyl, audio tape, or another medium such as Digital distribution#Music, digital distribution. Albums of recorded sound were developed in the early ...

, ''

Double Dutchess ''Double Dutchess'' is the second studio album by American singer and rapper Fergie. It was released on September 22, 2017. The album is the singer's first to be released under her own imprint, Dutchess Music, in a partnership with Retrofuture P ...

'' (2017), the same day the album was made available for pre-order. "You Already Know" impacted mainstream and rhythmic radio on September 12, 2017. As of September 2017, "You Already Know" moved almost 56,600 copies in the United States according to

Nielsen SoundScan Luminate (formerly Nielsen SoundScan, Nielsen Music Products, and MRC Data) is a provider of music sales data. Established by Mike Fine and Mike Shalett in 1991, data is collected weekly and made available every Sunday (for albums sales) and eve ...

Background

"You Already Know" has been described as a song with

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house A house is a single-unit residential building. It may range in complexity from a rudimentary hut to a complex structure of wood, masonry, concrete or other material, outfitted with plumbing, electrical, and heating, ventilation, and air condi ...

influences. It samples " It Takes Two" by

Rob Base and DJ E-Z Rock Rob Base & DJ E-Z Rock were an American hip hop duo from Harlem, New York City. Rob Base is the stage name of Robert Ginyard (b. 1967) and DJ E-Z Rock was Rodney "Skip" Bryce (1967–2014). They are best known for the 1988 hit " It Takes Two", ...

, which in turn samples the

Lyn Collins Gloria Lavern Collins (June 12, 1948 – March 13, 2005), better known as Lyn Collins, was an American soul singer best known for working with James Brown in the 1970s and for the influential 1972 funk single, "Think (About It)". A favorite a ...

1972 song "

Think (About It) "Think (About It)" is a funk song recorded by Lyn Collins and released as a single on James Brown's People Records in 1972. The recording was produced by Brown (who also wrote the song) and features instrumental backing from his band The J.B.'s. ...

". Prior to the song's release, a lyric about Minaj's ex-boyfriend

Meek Mill Robert Rihmeek Williams (born May 6, 1987), known professionally as Meek Mill, is an American rapper. Born and raised in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, he embarked on his music career as a battle rapper, and later formed a short-lived rap group, ...

, was changed following their breakup in January 2017. The single was written by Fergie and Minaj, with

will.i.am William James Adams Jr. (born March 15, 1975), known professionally as will.i.am (pronounced "Will-I-am"), is an American rapper, singer, songwriter and record producer. He is the founding and lead member of the musical group Black Eyed Peas. ...

handling the song's production. Fergie first teased the collaboration in a radio interview in late 2014 while promoting " L.A. Love (La La)". The song was performed live for the first time on

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on May 20, 2016. Fergie spoke about the song, saying:

Critical reception

Jordan Miller of ''Breathe Heavy'' reacted positively towards the song, calling it "fresh to death". In particular he praised Minaj's verse. ''

Stereogum ''Stereogum'' is a daily Internet publication that focuses on music news, reviews, interviews, and commentary. The site was created in January 2002 by Scott Lapatine. ''Stereogum'' was one of the first MP3 blogs and has received several award ...

'' placed the song as the third best track of the week, with the senior editor Tom Breihan calling it a monster: "It's a big, shameless

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-rush pop megablast, a riot of

synth A synthesizer (also spelled synthesiser) is an electronic musical instrument that generates audio signals. Synthesizers typically create sounds by generating waveforms through methods including subtractive synthesis, additive synthesis and f ...

-bloop hooks and

James Brown James Joseph Brown (May 3, 1933 – December 25, 2006) was an American singer, dancer, musician, record producer and bandleader. The central progenitor of funk music and a major figure of 20th century music, he is often referred to by the honor ...

drum-breaks and house

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s and ecstatic

diva Diva (; ) is the Latin word for a goddess. It has often been used to refer to a celebrated woman of outstanding talent in the world of opera, theatre, cinema, fashion and popular music. If referring to an actress, the meaning of ''diva'' is clo ...

-wails.". Breihan also shows surprise with Fergie's

rap 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 ...

skills. It was considered the fortieth best song of 2017 by ''

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 ...

''.

Personnel

Taken from Tidal. * Fergie – vocals, performer, songwriter *

– vocals, featured artist, performer, songwriter *

– producer * Joel Metzler – vocal producer * Aubrey Delaine – vocal producer * Johannes Raasina – mixing engineer * Padraic Kerin – engineer * Joe Peluso – engineer

Charts

Release history

References

{{Authority control 2017 songs 2017 singles Fergie (singer) songs Nicki Minaj songs Songs written by Fergie (singer) Songs written by Nicki Minaj Songs written by James Brown Song recordings produced by will.i.am Songs written by will.i.am Songs written by Big Daddy Kane Black-and-white music videos