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Nasty (Tinashe song)

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"Nasty"
Single by Tinashe
from the album Quantum Baby
ReleasedApril 12, 2024
RecordedNovember 2023
Genre
Length2:56
Label
Songwriter(s)
Producer(s)
  • Ricky Reed
  • Zack Sekoff
Tinashe singles chronology
"Needs"
(2023) 		"Nasty"
(2024) 		"Getting No Sleep"
(2024)
Music video
"Nasty" on YouTube
Match My Freak EP cover

"Nasty" is a song by American singer and songwriter Tinashe. It was released on April 12, 2024, via producer Ricky Reed's Atlantic Records imprint Nice Life Recording Company, as the lead single from her seventh studio album, Quantum Baby, which was released in August 2024. A sexual R&B song written by Tinashe and Reed and produced by Zack Sekoff and Reed, it has a sparse beat and various innuendos, with Tinashe rap-singing in a deadpan tone about looking for a lover who has an equivalent sex drive to hers. Its release coincided with her performance at the 2024 Coachella Valley Music & Arts Festival and with the release of its music video.

Critics acclaimed "Nasty" for its hooks and its catchiness, with many identifying it as the best song from Quantum Baby. A video of TikTok user Nate Di Winer dancing with "Nasty" edited over it became a meme on Twitter in April 2024, causing a surge in streams for the song. Other memes involving the song, particularly those surrounding its line "Is somebody gonna match my freak?", also propelled the song's popularity. It peaked at number 61 on the Billboard Hot 100 in June 2024, making it Tinashe's first entry on the chart as a lead artist since her 2014 single "2 On" and her first-ever solo entry.

Background, release, and promotion

[edit]
Tinashe performing in 2023

Before releasing "Nasty", Tinashe released three studio albums through her record label RCA Records (Aquarius, Nightride, and Joyride) before going independent in 2019, citing creative differences, then self-releasing her next two albums (Songs for You and 333) and releasing her sixth studio album (BB/Ang3l) through producer Ricky Reed's Atlantic Records sublabel Nice Life Recording Company.[1][2][3] In April 2024, she signed a worldwide publishing deal with Position Music, obtaining the publishing rights to her future releases from that point forward and her previous album BB/Ang3l.[4] Tinashe teased "Nasty" in an Instagram Live video on Valentine's Day in 2024 and teased her forthcoming seventh studio album, Quantum Baby—the second in a trilogy of albums following BB/Ang3l—with a trailer shared on her various social media platforms on April 8.[5] "Nasty", the lead single from Quantum Baby, and its music video were both released on April 12, 2024 through Nice Life.[6][7][8] Quantum Baby was released on August 16, 2024, with "Nasty" as its closing track.[9]

On June 18, 2024, Tinashe released the Match My Freak extended play (EP), comprising the single version of "Nasty" and five remixes, including a Jersey club remix by Uniiqu3 (the "Match My Speed" remix), an EDM remix by Wuki (the "Match My Peak" remix), a "hyperactive, chopped-up" rave remix by Jane Remover (the "Match My Tweak" remix),[10] a chopped and screwed remix by OG Ron C and DJ Candlestick (the "Match My Sleek" remix), and a remix by DJ Tunez.[11][12] Later that month, she released a capsule collection of "Nasty"-themed merchandise, including condoms, temporary tattoos, boxers, hockey jerseys, socks, towels, pendants, tank tops, t-shirts, and hoodies.[13] On July 19, 2024, she extended the EP by releasing two more remixes: the "Nasty Girl Remix" featuring the singer Chlöe and the "Nasty XXX Remix" featuring rapper Tyga.[citation needed]

Writing and composition

[edit]
Ricky Reed (pictured) co-produced and co-wrote "Nasty".

"Nasty" was written by Tinashe with Reed, who produced the song with Zack Sekoff.[14] The song's title was inspired by a necklace she made around Christmas of 2023, which bore the word "nasty" on it based on "Nasty Nashe", a nickname and alter ego she created for herself.[15][16] She came up with the phrase "match my freak" while driving and decided to incorporate it into the song.[8] "Nasty" is an understated[17] R&B[18] and rhythmic pop song on which Tinashe "rap-sings" in a deadpan[9] about searching for someone to match her sexual energy, which she alternately calls her "freak" and her "nasty", and repeatedly asks, "Is somebody gonna match my freak?"[19] while also using several double entendres and innuendos.[20][17][21] The song has "robotic" hooks[18] and, in its second verse, she details a sexually charged date night, singing "Shotgun, my thighs on his seat/I ain't got nothing underneath/Looks like you're 'bout to spend the night/Looks like I'm 'bout to change your life".[16] Variety's Steven J. Horowitz called the song's instrumental "sparse" and "hollow" and Chris Kelly of the Washington Post wrote that it was made up of "a barely-there beat and dial tone melody".[5][22]

Its beat was described by Alex Gonzalez of Uproxx as "punchy" and "futuristic".[23] Tinashe described "Nasty" as "fun, sexy, empowered and cute" and as a celebration of "be[ing] hot and hav[ing] fun" in the summer.[6][24] Stereogum's Tom Breihan jokingly likened the song to a "horny-robot mating call".[10]

Virality

[edit]

"Nasty" first became popular online due to the virality of a video from February 2023 of British TikTok user Nate Di Winer,[15] also known as Nates.Vibe—who wears glasses[25] and whom critics described as looking nerdy[26]—wining, gyrating his hips, biting his finger, and sticking his tongue out to the soca song "Bind" by Hey Choppi alongside his dance instructor. It was reposted on Twitter by user @grruessome with "Nasty" playing over it in April 2024, causing it to quickly become an Internet meme, including on TikTok, and gain over 10 million views on Twitter by May 2024.[27] Tinashe also posted several videos of her recreating the dance over the original video, while other artists, including Omar Apollo and Kehlani, also recreated the dance on TikTok.[28][29] Nate Di Winer and his instructor recreated the dance in a video for Marc Jacobs's TikTok account in May 2024.[30] The video's popularity online led to a 48 percent increase in streams for the song in early May.[31]

"Nasty" found further viral success due to a tweet asking, "Who are 2 people that actually did match each others freak?" by user @hugetulip, which was retweeted over 31 thousand times by the end of May 2024; its use in video edits of the 2024 film Challengers; and a mashup of it with the Beach House song "Space Song" on TikTok, which users used to describe their ideal relationship as "match[ing] their freak".[32][33][34] For Variety, Stephen J. Horowitz deemed "Nasty" a "cultural event" that had been "memeified across social media" by May 2024, while Tinashe stated that RCA Records was likely "gagging" at its success without them.[5][35]

Commercial performance

[edit]

On the chart dated June 15, 2024, "Nasty" debuted at number 90 on the Billboard Hot 100, becoming Tinashe's overall fifth entry on the chart—preceded by 2014's "2 On" featuring Schoolboy Q and her features on the Kid Ink song "Body Language" (2015), the Enrique Iglesias song "Duele el Corazón", and the Britney Spears song "Slumber Party" (both 2016)—her second entry as a lead artist after "2 On" in 2014, and her first solo song on the chart.[14] It rose to number 69 on the chart the following week, prompting Tinashe to tweet that "Billboard matched [her] freak", referencing the sex position of the same name.[36] It later peaked at number 61.[37] The song also peaked at number 15 on the US Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs on the chart dated August 3, 2024.[38]

Critical reception

[edit]

For Vulture, Jennifer Zhan wrote that "Nasty" was "a perfect example of what Tinashe does best: making sexy dance tracks with near-hypnotic hooks".[3] Tom Breihan, writing for Stereogum, called it "very horny" and "very good".[26] Kitty Empire of The Observer, in a review of Quantum Baby, called "Nasty" the "standout" of the album; Rolling Stone's Rob Sheffield named it the album's highlight and "one of the most indelible hits of summer 2024" that "got everyone walking around for months with the hook 'I've been a nasty girl' stuck in our heads".[25][39] Steven J. Horowitz of Variety also called it "one of the most unshakeable anthems on this side of the year" and Nick Seip, for Slant, identified "Nasty" as an outlier on Quantum Baby for its "catchy hooks" and "endlessly meme-able lyrics".[9][40]

Tarisai Ngangura of Pitchfork praised "Nasty" as "the platonically great Tinashe song: easy and exquisite, an evolution without a departure".[41] Chris Kelly of The Washington Post also dubbed it "the platonic ideal of a Tinashe song" that "feels much bigger than its Billboard chart position" on which "beat, bass, melody, message and attitude sync like clockwork".[22] Kyann-Sian Williams of NME wrote that "Nasty" had "multiple sinfully addictive lines, like 'Is somebody gonna match my freak?'" and an "addictive spark" that other songs on Quantum Baby lacked.[42]

Music video

[edit]

The accompanying music video for "Nasty" was released the same day as the single on April 12, 2024. It was directed by Jonah Haber and choreographed by Jojo Gomez.[43][3] In it, Tinashe dances in a desert near a futuristic modified Mitsubishi Lancer while being chased down by robots with surveillance cameras attached. At the end, she fires at them with a gun and escapes.[26][44]

Following its release, Ivan Guzman of Paper described the video as "a study in sexy surveillance, shot in the desert and intentionally timed around the recent eclipse".[6] Taylor Henderson of BET wrote that the video was "Mad Max-inspired", while Alex Gonzalez, for Uproxx, praised the video's choreography as "next-level".[45][23]

Live performances and other appearances

[edit]
Janet Jackson (pictured) performed a mashup of "Nasty" with her 1986 song "Nasty" on her Janet Jackson: Together Again tour in 2024.

Tinashe performed "Nasty" live for the first time during her debut performance at the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival at the Mojave stage in April 2024.[6][46] She then performed the song on Jimmy Kimmel Live! on June 12.[47] Janet Jackson performed a mashup of "Nasty" with her own 1986 song, also titled "Nasty", while performing at the Utah First Credit Union Amphitheatre in Utah on her Janet Jackson: Together Again tour in June 2024.[48] Also that month, Beyoncé used the song on her Instagram Stories while promoting her hair care brand, Cécred.[49]

Credits and personnel

[edit]
  • Tinashe – vocals, songwriting
  • Ricky Reed – production
  • Zack Sekoff – production
  • Ike Schultz – vocal production, mixing engineering
  • Ethan Shumaker – mixing engineering
  • Chris Gehringer – master engineering

Charts

[edit]
Chart performance for "Nasty"
Chart (2024) Peak
position
Australia (ARIA)[50] 83
Canada (Canadian Hot 100)[51] 61
Global 200 (Billboard)[52] 84
Ireland (IRMA)[53] 75
New Zealand Hot Singles (RMNZ)[54] 10
Philippines (Philippines Hot 100)[55] 24
UK Singles (OCC)[56] 66
UK Hip Hop/R&B (OCC)[57] 25
UK Indie (OCC)[58] 14
US Billboard Hot 100[37] 61
US Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs (Billboard)[38] 15
US Pop Airplay (Billboard)[59] 25
US Rhythmic (Billboard)[60] 1

Release history

[edit]
Release dates and formats for "Nasty"
Region Date Format(s) Version Label Ref.
Various April 12, 2024
Original
[61]
United States May 28, 2024 Rhythmic contemporary radio [62]
Various June 18, 2024
  • Digital download
  • streaming
 Match My Freak EP [63]
July 19, 2024
  • Nasty Girl Remix
  • Nasty XXX Remix
 [64][65]
United States November 11, 2024 7-inch single Original [66]

References

[edit]
  1. ^ Walker, Calvin (May 31, 2024). "Love 'Nasty'? Get To Know Tinashe With 10 Songs That Show Her Honesty & Artistry". Grammy.com. Retrieved July 7, 2024.
  2. ^ Ocho, Alex (May 18, 2024). "Tinashe's 'Nasty' Reaching Hit Status Following TikTok of White Guy Dancing and Whining His Hips". Complex. Retrieved August 20, 2024.
  3. ^ a b c Zhan, Jennifer (May 30, 2024). "Is Somebody Gonna Match Tinashe's Freak?". Vulture. Retrieved August 20, 2024.
  4. ^ Wild, Stephi. "Position Music Signs Tinashe To Worldwide Publishing Deal". BroadwayWorld.com. Retrieved April 24, 2024.
  5. ^ a b c Horowitz, Steven J. (May 28, 2024). "Tinashe Reflects on the Runaway Viral Success of Summer Anthem 'Nasty': 'Ten Years Later, Who Would Have Thought?'". Variety. Retrieved August 20, 2024.
  6. ^ a b c d Guzman, Ivan (April 12, 2024). "Tinashe Gets 'Nasty' Before Coachella". Paper. Retrieved June 27, 2024.
  7. ^ Cao, Katie (May 20, 2024). "Tinashe Is Finding Her Own Success With 'Nasty'". Billboard. Retrieved August 20, 2024.
  8. ^ a b Saponara, Michael (August 14, 2024). "Tinashe Talks Summer of 'Nasty,' Feeling Validated & If She'd Want to Star in the Britney Spears Biopic". Billboard. Retrieved August 20, 2024.
  9. ^ a b c Horowitz, Steven J. (August 16, 2024). "Tinashe Searches for Truth on the Brief Yet Satiating 'Quantum Baby': Album Review". Variety. Retrieved August 20, 2024.
  10. ^ a b Breihan, Tom (June 18, 2024). "Jane Remover Remixes Tinashe's 'Nasty,' Makes It Nastier: Listen". Stereogum. Retrieved July 9, 2024.
  11. ^ "Tinashe Announces 'Match My Freak' EP In Promotion Of Her Viral Track "Nasty"". Rap-Up. June 17, 2024. Retrieved June 18, 2024.
  12. ^ Curto, Justin (June 18, 2024). "You Now Have Five More Chances to Match Tinashe's Freak". Vulture. Retrieved July 7, 2024.
  13. ^ Inman, DeMicia (June 24, 2024). "Tinashe Issues 'Nasty' Condoms, Socks, And Hoodies In Capsule Collection". Vibe. Retrieved July 7, 2024.
  14. ^ a b Samuels, Keithan (June 10, 2024). "Tinashe's 'Nasty' Debuts on Billboard Hot 100". Rated R&B. Retrieved August 20, 2024.
  15. ^ a b Kaur, Brahmjot (June 6, 2024). "Tinashe Reveals the Surprising Inspiration Behind Her Viral Song 'Nasty'". E! News. Retrieved August 20, 2024.
  16. ^ a b Denis, Kyle; Saponara, Michael (April 15, 2024). "R&B/Hip-Hop Fresh Picks of the Week: PARTYNEXTDOOR, Maiya the Don, Kalan.FrFr & More". Billboard. Retrieved June 27, 2024.
  17. ^ a b Lipshutz, Jason (April 15, 2024). "Sabrina Carpenter's Delicious 'Espresso' and 4 More Cool New Pop Songs This Week". Billboard. Retrieved June 27, 2024.
  18. ^ a b Wang, Steffanee (April 16, 2024). "Tinashe's Spacey Jam & 9 Other New Songs Out This Week". Nylon. Retrieved June 27, 2024.
  19. ^ Mendez II, Moises (May 24, 2024). "Tinashe on the Takeover of 'Nasty'". Time. Retrieved August 20, 2024.
  20. ^ Henderson, Taylor (April 12, 2024). "New Music Friday: Willow, NLE Choppa, & Tinashe Are Ready for the Summer". BET. Retrieved June 27, 2024.
  21. ^ Hamilton, Gary Gerard (August 14, 2024). "There's more to Tinashe's new album, 'Quantum Baby,' than being 'Nasty'". Associated Press. Retrieved August 20, 2024.
  22. ^ a b Kelly, Chris (August 15, 2024). "Tinashe can't match her own freak on 'Quantum Baby'". Washington Post. Retrieved August 20, 2024.
  23. ^ a b Gonzalez, Alex (April 12, 2024). "Tinashe Drops Her 'Nasty' New Single And Video". Uproxx. Retrieved June 27, 2024.
  24. ^ Melendez, Miguel A. (June 13, 2024). "Tinashe on Success of Viral Hit 'Nasty,' Celebs Who Have Reached Out". Entertainment Tonight. Retrieved August 20, 2024.
  25. ^ a b Empire, Kitty (August 16, 2024). "Tinashe: Quantum Baby review – playful, featherlight 90s-trap fusion". The Observer. Retrieved August 20, 2024.
  26. ^ a b c Breihan, Tom (June 13, 2024). "Tinashe Performs Her Viral Smash "Nasty" On 'Kimmel': Watch". Stereogum. Retrieved August 20, 2024.
  27. ^ Ocho, Alex (June 22, 2024). "Tinashe Releases 'Match My Freak' Collection Including Condoms, Thongs, and More". Complex. Retrieved July 9, 2024.
  28. ^ Zhang, Cat (May 17, 2024). "Why Is Tinashe's 'Nasty' Going Viral?". The Cut. Retrieved July 9, 2024.
  29. ^ Henderson, Taylor (May 20, 2024). "We're hypnotized by Omar Apollo twirling his hips to Tinashe's 'Nasty'". Out. Retrieved August 20, 2024.
  30. ^ Elibert, Mark (May 20, 2024). "White Guy Whining His Hips to Tinashe's 'Nasty' Gets Marc Jacobs Co-Sign". Complex. Retrieved August 20, 2024.
  31. ^ Young, Danielle (May 20, 2024). "TikTok Sensation Nates.Vibe Propels Tinashe's 'Nasty' to Viral Stardom". BET. Retrieved August 20, 2024.
  32. ^ Cavender, Elena (May 19, 2024). "Tinashe's 'Nasty' goes viral just in time for summer". Mashable. Retrieved August 20, 2024.
  33. ^ Chelosky, Danielle (June 15, 2024). "Watch Janet Jackson Mix Tinashe's "Nasty" With Her Own 'Nasty' In Concert". Stereogum. Retrieved August 20, 2024.
  34. ^ Chavez, Paloma (June 12, 2024). "Why is everyone talking about matching their 'freak'? Viral TikTok sound explained". Miami Herald. Retrieved August 20, 2024.
  35. ^ Turner-Williams, Jaelani (June 13, 2024). "Tinashe Says Former Label RCA Is 'Gagging' at the Success of "Nasty"". Complex. Retrieved August 20, 2024.
  36. ^ Diaz, Angel (June 18, 2024). "Tinashe Reacts to 'Nasty' Reaching No. 69 on the Hot 100: 'Billboard Matched My Freak Wow'". Billboard. Retrieved August 20, 2024.
  37. ^ a b "Tinashe Chart History (Hot 100)". Billboard. Retrieved July 2, 2024.
  38. ^ a b "Tinashe Chart History (Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs)". Billboard. Retrieved July 30, 2024.
  39. ^ Sheffield, Rob (August 15, 2024). "Tinashe's Freak is Unmatchable on 'Quantum Baby'". Rolling Stone. Retrieved August 20, 2024.
  40. ^ Seip, Nick (August 19, 2024). "Tinashe 'Quantum Baby' Review: Effortlessly Cool but Too Short". Slant. Retrieved August 20, 2024.
  41. ^ Ngangura, Tarisai (August 16, 2024). "Tinashe: Quantum Baby". Pitchfork. Retrieved August 20, 2024.
  42. ^ Williams, Kyann-Sian (August 16, 2024). "Tinashe – 'Quantum Baby' review: a fun stepping stone". NME. Retrieved August 20, 2024.
  43. ^ Chelosky, Danielle (April 12, 2024). "Tinashe Shares New Song 'Nasty': Listen". Stereogum. Retrieved August 20, 2024.
  44. ^ Inman, DeMicia (April 12, 2024). "Larry June, Tink, Lenny Kravitz, And More Drop New Music Videos". Vibe. Retrieved June 27, 2024.
  45. ^ Henderson, Taylor (April 12, 2024). "New Music Friday: Willow, NLE Choppa, & Tinashe Are Ready for the Summer". BET. Retrieved June 27, 2024.
  46. ^ "Tinashe Reveals How She Uses Music & Social Media to "Create a Legacy"". Teen Vogue. April 21, 2024. Retrieved April 24, 2024.
  47. ^ Breihan, Tom (June 13, 2024). "Tinashe Performs Her Viral Smash 'Nasty' On 'Kimmel': Watch". Stereogum. Retrieved June 13, 2024.
  48. ^ Singh, Karan (June 16, 2024). "Tinashe's 'Nasty' Mixed With 1980s Classic By Janet Jackson In Concert". HipHopDX. Retrieved August 20, 2024.
  49. ^ Jones, Marchaund (June 19, 2024). "Tinashe receives accolades from music icons Beyoncé and Janet Jackson for her hit 'Nasty'". WVUE Fox 8. Retrieved August 20, 2024.
  50. ^ "The ARIA Report: Week Commencing 24 June 2024". The ARIA Report. No. 1790. Australian Recording Industry Association. June 26, 2024. p. 4.
  51. ^ "Tinashe Chart History (Canadian Hot 100)". Billboard. Retrieved June 25, 2024.
  52. ^ "Tinashe Chart History (Global 200)". Billboard. Retrieved June 25, 2024.
  53. ^ "IRMA – Irish Charts". Irish Recorded Music Association. Retrieved June 22, 2024.
  54. ^ "NZ Hot Singles Chart". Recorded Music NZ. June 10, 2024. Retrieved June 7, 2024.
  55. ^ "Tinashe Chart History (Philippines Hot 100)". Billboard. Retrieved July 12, 2024.
  56. ^ "Official Singles Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved June 21, 2024.
  57. ^ "Official Hip Hop and R&B Singles Chart Top 40". Official Charts Company. Retrieved June 21, 2024.
  58. ^ "Official Independent Singles Chart Top 50". Official Charts Company. Retrieved June 21, 2024.
  59. ^ "Tinashe Chart History (Pop Songs)". Billboard. Retrieved October 13, 2024.
  60. ^ "Tinashe Chart History (Rhythmic)". Billboard. Retrieved August 18, 2024.
  61. ^ "Tinashe Shares New Song "Nasty": Listen". Stereogum. April 12, 2024. Retrieved May 31, 2024.
  62. ^ "RadioWaveMonitor.com - Top 40/Urban 100 | RadioWave Monitor Charts". www.radiowavemonitor.com. Retrieved June 24, 2024.
  63. ^ "Match My Freak EP". Spotify. June 18, 2024. Retrieved June 18, 2024.
  64. ^ "Nasty Girl Remix (feat. Chlöe)". Spotify. July 19, 2024. Retrieved July 19, 2024.
  65. ^ "Nasty XXX Remix (feat. Tyga)". Spotify. July 19, 2024. Retrieved July 19, 2024.
  66. ^ "X.com". October 31, 2024.
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