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Freaky Friday (song)

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For the Aqua song, see Aquarius (Aqua album).
"Freaky Friday"
Single by Lil Dicky featuring Chris Brown
ReleasedMarch 15, 2018 (2018-03-15)
Genre
Length3:36
Label
  • Dirty Burd
  • Commission
  • BMG
Songwriter(s)
Producer(s)
Lil Dicky singles chronology
"Dirty Work"
(2017) 		"Freaky Friday"
(2018) 		"Earth"
(2019)
Chris Brown singles chronology
"Stranger Things"
(2018) 		"Freaky Friday"
(2018) 		"Date Night (Same Time)"
(2018)
Music video
"Freaky Friday" on YouTube

"Freaky Friday" is a song by American rapper Lil Dicky featuring American singer Chris Brown and uncredited vocals from Ed Sheeran, DJ Khaled, and Kendall Jenner. Written alongside Ammo and Nicholas Audino and produced by Mustard, Benny Blanco and Twice as Nice, it was released by Dirty Burd on March 15, 2018, alongside its music video.

The song became Lil Dicky's most successful single. "Freaky Friday" peaked at number eight on the Billboard Hot 100. Outside of the United States, "Freaky Friday" topped the charts in New Zealand and the United Kingdom,[1][2] and peaked within the top ten of the charts in Australia, Belgium (Wallonia), Canada, Denmark, Ireland, and the Netherlands.

Composition

[edit]

"Freaky Friday" is a comedy hip hop song featuring a pop rap light-synthed Mustard and Benny Blanco production.[3][4]

Lil Dicky, not having released anything for three years before this single, wanted to prove himself to release the best song he could've done, and after that the concept of the song came to him, he decided to realize it with Chris Brown, being considered by him to be the best example of a superstar he would have liked to collaborate with, and the singer was welcomed to complete the song.[5]

Storyline

[edit]

In the song the artists comically take up the concept of the novel that goes by the same name, swapping their bodies, namely that of a charismatic and controversial superstar (Chris Brown), and that of an emerging artist with a basic life (Lil Dicky).

In the song Dicky is euphoric waking up being Brown, and rejoices because he is rich, handsome, famous, surrounded by beautiful girls and able to sing and dance. Going crazy off his euphoria he calls Kanye West to tell him that he is his biggest fan, and then he realizes that he has a daughter. Meanwhile, Brown in Dicky's body is still dissatisfied with the mediocrity of his life, but he's pleased by the fact that no one judges him in a racist way, due to him being African American or due to the controversies of his past. Subsequently Dicky in Chris' body goes crazy to another level, being exalted by his attractive sexual performances, he posts photos of his penis on the Internet, and when the real Chris sees them starts looking desperately for him, finding him in the private location of a nightclub. He bursts and threatens him, but Dicky warns him that beating him would only mean hurting himself, making him realize that he loves himself, that being the key for both to go back into each others' bodies.[6]

Music video

[edit]

The music video parodies the 2003 remake of Freaky Friday and features cameos from Jimmy Tatro, Ed Sheeran, DJ Khaled and Kendall Jenner.[7] As of April 2021, the video has over 700 million views on YouTube.[8] The video shows Lil Dicky at a Chinese restaurant, similar to the 2003 film, Freaky Friday, where a character is at a Chinese restaurant and wishes she was somebody else. In the music video, Lil Dicky is approached by a fan, played by Jimmy Tatro, who mentions he is a fan of his work. He then says to his girlfriend who he is accompanied by that he is a comedic rapper, who is not that impressive of a rapper. Lil Dicky then says to himself he wishes he was somebody who could dance, and who had credibility. The camera then pans to Chris Brown on television, mentioning he wishes he was somebody else as well. The Chinese waiter takes note of it, and gives Lil Dicky a fortune cookie. The video then shows Lil Dicky, supposedly in the body of Chris, and vice versa. The song illustrates the two in each other's bodies. Towards the end, the two are about to fight, and they realize they should not kill each other, and instead love each other. They realize that this will set them back to their original form. The video then ends with cameos from Ed Sheeran, DJ Khaled and Kendall Jenner, where Lil Dicky is then in possession in all of their bodies.

Controversy

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Shortly after the song's release, the Virginia Tech Hokies women's lacrosse team was heavily scrutinized after members of the team uploaded a video of themselves singing along to Chris Brown's verse, where he (supposedly as Lil Dicky in his body) starts saying "What up my nigga" to everyone he encounters. Virginia Tech coach John Sung later apologized on behalf of the team, saying it was a "teachable moment" for the players and that "no malice was involved... They just thought they were just singing along to a song".[9][10][11]

Credits and personnel

[edit]

Credits adapted from Tidal.[12]

  • Lil Dicky – composition, engineering
  • Chris Brown – composition
  • Cashmere Cat – composition
  • Lewis Hughes – composition
  • Wilbart McCoy III – composition
  • Ammo – composition
  • Mustard – composition, production
  • Benny Blanco – composition, production
  • Twice as Nice – composition, production
  • Serban Ghenea – mix engineering
  • Patrizio Pigliapoco – engineering

Charts

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Certifications

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Certifications and sales for "Freaky Friday"
Region Certification Certified units/sales
Australia (ARIA)[47] 3× Platinum 210,000‡
Brazil (Pro-Música Brasil)[48] 2× Platinum 80,000‡
Canada (Music Canada)[49] 3× Platinum 240,000‡
Denmark (IFPI Danmark)[50] Platinum 90,000‡
Germany (BVMI)[51] Gold 200,000‡
Netherlands (NVPI)[52] Platinum 80,000‡
New Zealand (RMNZ)[53] Platinum 30,000‡
United Kingdom (BPI)[54] 2× Platinum 1,200,000‡
United States (RIAA)[55] 5× Platinum 5,000,000‡

‡ Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone.

Release history

[edit]
Region Date Format Label Ref.
Various March 15, 2018 Digital download Dirty Burd [12]
United States March 20, 2018 Urban contemporary radio
[56]

References

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  1. ^ a b "Official Singles Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved April 7, 2018.
  2. ^ "NZ Top 40 Singles Chart". Recorded Music NZ. April 9, 2018. Retrieved April 6, 2018.
  3. ^ DeVille, Chris (March 29, 2018). "Lil Dicky Is Making A Career Out Of Being Charismatic And Problematic In Equal Measure". Stereogum. Retrieved April 3, 2018.
  4. ^ Zidel, Alex (March 15, 2018). "Lil Dicky Woke Up In Chris Brown's Body On "Freaky Friday"". HotNewHipHop. Retrieved April 3, 2018.
  5. ^ "WATCH: Chris Brown and Lil Dicky switch places in "Freaky Friday" video". Thegrio.com. 16 March 2018. Retrieved 20 January 2022.
  6. ^ Trust, Gary (27 March 2018). "Lil Dicky on Top 10 Hot 100 Debut With 'Freaky Friday': 'It's Validating to See a Song Be Mainstream While Being So Quirky & Weird'". Billboard.com. Retrieved 20 January 2022.
  7. ^ "Ed Sheeran appears in Lil Dicky's 'Freaky Friday' video with Chris Brown". The Independent. 16 March 2018.
  8. ^ "Lil Dicky – Freaky Friday feat. Chris Brown (Official Music Video)". March 15, 2018. Retrieved January 1, 2020 – via YouTube.
  9. ^ "White College Girls Slammed For Singing N-Word In Chris Brown's 'Freaky Friday' Verse". Bet.com. Retrieved 20 January 2022.
  10. ^ Mark Berman. "Virginia Tech 'apologetic' after video of lacrosse team posted". Roanoke Times. Retrieved 20 January 2022.
  11. ^ "Virginia Tech's Lacrosse Team Rapped The N-Word On Lil Dicky's Song". Uproxx.com. 27 March 2018. Retrieved 20 January 2022.
  12. ^ a b "Freaky Friday (feat. Chris Brown) / Lil Dicky". Tidal. 28 February 2018. Retrieved 20 January 2022.
  13. ^ "Lil Dicky feat. Chris Brown – Freaky Friday". ARIA Top 50 Singles. Retrieved August 17, 2018.
  14. ^ "Lil Dicky feat. Chris Brown – Freaky Friday" (in German). Ö3 Austria Top 40. Retrieved April 25, 2018.
  15. ^ "Lil Dicky feat. Chris Brown – Freaky Friday" (in Dutch). Ultratop 50. Retrieved April 27, 2018.
  16. ^ "Lil Dicky feat. Chris Brown – Freaky Friday" (in French). Ultratip. Retrieved April 27, 2018.
  17. ^ "Lil Dicky Chart History (Canadian Hot 100)". Billboard. Retrieved April 3, 2018.
  18. ^ "Lil Dicky feat. Chris Brown – Freaky Friday". Tracklisten. Retrieved August 17, 2018.
  19. ^ "Lil Dicky feat. Chris Brown – Freaky Friday" (in French). Les classement single. Retrieved April 2, 2018.
  20. ^ "Lil Dicky feat. Chris Brown – Freaky Friday" (in German). GfK Entertainment charts. Retrieved April 27, 2018.
  21. ^ "Greece Official IFPI Charts Digital Singles Chart: 11/2018". IFPI Charts. Retrieved April 11, 2018.
  22. ^ "Archívum – Slágerlisták – MAHASZ" (in Hungarian). Stream Top 40 slágerlista. Magyar Hanglemezkiadók Szövetsége. Retrieved April 14, 2018.
  23. ^ "IRMA – Irish Charts". Irish Recorded Music Association. Retrieved April 21, 2018.
  24. ^ "Lil Dicky Ft. Chris Brown – Freaky Friday". Dutch Top 40 (in Dutch). Retrieved May 9, 2022.
  25. ^ "Lil Dicky feat. Chris Brown – Freaky Friday" (in Dutch). Single Top 100. Retrieved April 20, 2018.
  26. ^ "Lil Dicky feat. Chris Brown – Freaky Friday". Top 40 Singles. Retrieved August 17, 2018.
  27. ^ "Lil Dicky feat. Chris Brown – Freaky Friday". VG-lista. Retrieved August 17, 2018.
  28. ^ "Lil Dicky feat. Chris Brown – Freaky Friday". AFP Top 100 Singles. Retrieved April 27, 2018.
  29. ^ "Official Scottish Singles Sales Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved April 21, 2018.
  30. ^ "Lil Dicky feat. Chris Brown – Freaky Friday". Singles Top 100. Retrieved August 17, 2018.
  31. ^ "Lil Dicky feat. Chris Brown – Freaky Friday". Swiss Singles Chart. Retrieved April 23, 2018.
  32. ^ "Official Hip Hop and R&B Singles Chart Top 40". Official Charts Company. Retrieved December 14, 2023.
  33. ^ "Lil Dicky Chart History (Hot 100)". Billboard. Retrieved April 3, 2018.
  34. ^ "Lil Dicky Chart History (Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs)". Billboard. Retrieved April 2, 2018.
  35. ^ "Lil Dicky Chart History (Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Airplay)". Billboard. Retrieved December 19, 2023.
  36. ^ "Lil Dicky Chart History (Rhythmic)". Billboard. Retrieved May 15, 2018.
  37. ^ "ARIA Top 100 Singles Chart". Aria.com.au. Retrieved 20 January 2022.
  38. ^ "Canadian Hot 100". Billboard.com. Retrieved 20 January 2022.
  39. ^ http://hitlisten.nu/2018_track_t100.html%7Ctitle=Track Top-100 2018
  40. ^ White, Jack. "Ireland's Official Top 40 biggest songs of 2018". Officialcharts.com. Retrieved January 20, 2022.
  41. ^ "Annual Top 50 Singles 2018". Recorded Music NZ. Retrieved November 2, 2024.
  42. ^ "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 2020-08-21. Retrieved 2020-08-12.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  43. ^ "End of Year Singles Chart Top 100 – 2018". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 20 January 2022.
  44. ^ "Hot 100 Songs – Year-End 2018". Billboard. Retrieved December 4, 2018.
  45. ^ "Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs – Year-End 2018". Billboard. Retrieved December 5, 2018.
  46. ^ "Rhythmic Songs – Year-End 2018". Billboard. Retrieved August 26, 2019.
  47. ^ "ARIA Charts – Accreditations – 2021 Singles" (PDF). Australian Recording Industry Association. Retrieved February 4, 2022.
  48. ^ "Brazilian single certifications – Lil Dicky – Freaky Friday" (in Portuguese). Pro-Música Brasil. Retrieved January 19, 2022.
  49. ^ "Canadian single certifications – Lil Dicky – Freaky Friday". Music Canada. Retrieved October 17, 2021.
  50. ^ "Danish single certifications – Lil Dicky feat. Chris Brown – Freaky Friday". IFPI Danmark. Retrieved October 2, 2019.
  51. ^ "Gold-/Platin-Datenbank (Lil Dicky; 'Freaky Friday')" (in German). Bundesverband Musikindustrie. Retrieved January 23, 2021.
  52. ^ "Dutch single certifications – Lil Dicky feat. Chris Brown – Freaky Friday" (in Dutch). Nederlandse Vereniging van Producenten en Importeurs van beeld- en geluidsdragers. Retrieved November 11, 2020. Enter Freaky Friday in the "Artiest of titel" box. Select 2020 in the drop-down menu saying "Alle jaargangen".
  53. ^ "New Zealand single certifications – Lil Dicky feat. Chris Brown – Freaky Friday". Recorded Music NZ. Retrieved 2024-11-20.
  54. ^ "British single certifications – Lil Dicky ft. Chris Brown – Freaky Friday". British Phonographic Industry. Retrieved July 24, 2020.
  55. ^ "American single certifications – Lil Dicky – Freaky Friday". Recording Industry Association of America. Retrieved February 15, 2023.
  56. ^ "Urban/UAC Future Releases". All Access. Archived from the original on March 16, 2018. Retrieved April 2, 2018.
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