YG has a lot to celebrate this week. The rapper’s song “FDT” featuring the late Nipsey Hussle is rising in the charts after the United States’ presidential election took place this week. Fans rushed to stream and buy the song on Election Day, and the song has also been heavily used in memes, during protests, and even as a celebration on Saturday (Nov. 7).
Billboard reported that the song racked up 1,000 sales on Election Day (Nov. 3), an overall gain of 221%. According to Nielsen Music/MRC Data, it also leapt from 240,000 to 1,050,000 streams over the same period, a 338% rise. The Twitter page Chart Data also reported that “FDT” entered the United States iTunes charts’ top 10.
After the counting of votes in Pennsylvania was completed on Saturday, Joe Biden and Kamala Harris were named as the projected winners of the 2020 election. People rushed to the streets all over the country to celebrate the victory, and many of them were heard blasting the track on videos shared on social media.
The song can even be heard in the background of a moment CNN was covering the gatherings outside in Atlanta, Georgia.
“FDT” was originally released by YG and Nipsey Hussle before the 2016 presidential election, with lyrics denouncing the politician. “Yeah, yeah, f-ck Donald Trump. I got a question. How’d he make it this far? How the fuck did it begin? A Trump rally sounds like Hitler in Berlin,” YG raps on the track. The song was originally shared as a standalone track on his SoundCloud page, and then included on his Still Brazy album. The song that appeared on the album was lightly censored version after the Secret Service intervened.
The song has become the go-to anthem for people who are against Trump and his policies. A man who was playing “FDT” in Texas was punched by a Trump supporter after he refused to stop playing the song in October. YG also kicked a fan out of his show for refusing to say, “F-ck Donald Trump” in 2019.
Press play below.