X/@PopBase
The collaboration between these two artists has begun very well since their latest singles “girl, get up.” have reached the US Spotify charts as well as the 35th position with 498,000 streams on the first day. The arrival of the song on the first day has been a special day for the artists, for it has shown their mutual attraction in the current music scene. It has also created a very hot and lively discussion on the internet where the public is debating its performance and implications for the artists involved.
Advertisement
A new song and an immediate entry in the top 40; a pretty good outcome for a Friday! The song, powered by SZA‘s powerful voice and Doechii’s subtlety and breathiness, came out of nowhere. Sometimes that’s just how things go. No extravagant pre-release amounting, no countless hints during the waiting period. Just releasing the song and letting half a million people stream it.
The online response was a mixture of excitement and the usual turmoil among chart-watchers, which was to be expected. Some listeners were simply there for the vibe. ‘Great start,’ a user wrote, and nothing more. ‘Doechii × SZA are a sure thing.’ Another went on, ‘It deserves more but this is still thrilling.’ The sentiment was loud and clear: audiences normally expect nothing less than fire when these collaborators get together, and their partnership backed by the numbers suggests nothing less than fire.
However, in the rapidly changing environment of music debates, the 35th place is nothing more than a premiere. It is akin to a Rorschach test. While one post would have a person thanking and congratulating, there would be another post discussing and questioning metrics and contexts. One individual highlighted the surprise release strategy; one of the observers commented that ‘It was a surprise release with no promo.’ Was the implication—that given the circumstances, the streaming number is actually pretty impressive?
Soon the comparisons began. It is probably impossible to ignore something like that. One commenter introduced another recent significant remix, and this was the catalyst for a prolonged heated discussion over what defines a ‘single’ and an ‘album track remix’ and which one should perform better. The exchange swiftly turned technical as one participant asserted, ‘Is this a single or just a track that was thrown on streaming services…?’ It’s the kind of dense, insider-language debate that thrives on the internet.
And of course, nobody really believes the numbers unless there is some skepticism about them that comes up in the discussion about charts. One user sarcastically pointed out the sudden increase in streams as he quipped, ‘The stream jumping 200k stream from a day to another is definitely not fraudulent.’ It’s a constant struggle between organic growth and the perception of industry manipulating the situation.
Some of the comments made were more direct and competitive rather than analytical. Other artists and their projects were mentioned, and different fans were throwing hints and comments back and forth. One interaction turned into a debate about which artist’s recent work was underperforming, which is a common side effect of turning art into a sport.
Nevertheless, let’s pause for a moment from the numbers. The whole excitement surrounding the collaboration is the core of the hype. A Tampa-born artist, Doechii, with her flamboyant style and genre-crossing sound, on the same team with SZA, one of the most distinctive R&B singers of the past decade. It is an alliance of different yet complementary energies. ‘They’re both so gorgeous,’ one of the fans said while focusing on the visuals that were part of the song. ‘Two nubian queens.’ Another simply said, ‘Doechii is really, really super talented.’
That is the very thing that usually gets overlooked in the streaming stats and chart positions. The human aspect. The reason for 498,000 people pressing play was not to stir up a controversy but to unearth what these two specific artists had brought forth. The anthem-like title ‘girl, get up.’ resonates with the lost and the winners all at once. Whether it is a chart-topping hit or not, it has undoubtedly reached a large audience.
Advertisement
The debut of ‘girl, get up.’ is indeed a significant first chapter for the song. It verifies the presence of a demanding audience for the products of Doechii and SZA. Discussions that were partly celebration, partly dissection, part rivalry, and so on, have become the contemporary soundtrack to a song release. The music has been released and is now doing its thing. That is very important for many listeners, and they consider it more than enough. The success of this collaboration brings to mind other major tours, like the GNX tour with Kendrick Lamar.
