Don't Play
by Anne-Marie (featuring KSI)

Album: Therapy (2021)
Charted: 2
Play Video

Songfacts®:

  • Anne-Marie is fed up with her lover playing games with her heart. The dude is not devoting enough time to her and not speaking the truth. She warns him in this song, telling him every game he's playing she's played before and won them all.
  • KSI raps from the guy's point of view. He responds by recalling early days of their romance when they played games on the Xbox 360 together and he used to sneak from his school to spend time with her. Now, Anne-Marie is spending all her time online and isn't communicating with him. KSI tells the songstress he still cares for her and isn't ready to "wrap" their relationship.
  • Nick Gale, aka Digital Farm Animals, supplied the garage-pop production. It is the first time he teamed up with Anne-Marie, but the producer previously collaborated with KSI on his hit single "Really Love."
  • Anne-Marie, KSI and Digital Farm Animals wrote the song with:

    Andrew "PopScar" Murray, who started his career writing some major hits in Germany for X Factor/The Voice winners including a 2013 #2 hit with Andreas Kummert's "Simple Man."

    Sam "S-X" Gumbley, who is a frequent KSI collaborator. He co-executive produced the rapper's 2020 debut album Dissimulation and featured on his hit single "Down Like That."

    Richard Boardman and Pablo Bowman, who are both members of the Manchester songwriting collective The Six. Their other credits include Louis Tomlinson's "Back to You" and Marshmello (featuring Anne-Marie)'s "Friends."

    The production duo Mojam (Mustafa Omer and James Murray). They are known for their work with Emeli Sandé ("Next To Me"), Naughty Boy ("La La La") and Aitch ("Buss Down"). They co-produced this track with Digital Farm Animals.
  • Both the artists have combat skills. Anne-Marie is a black belt in Shotokan karate, and the winner of three gold medals at the Funakoshi Shotokan Karate Association World Championships. KSI fought two high-profile boxing bouts versus American YouTuber Logan Paul. Utilizing their fighting backgrounds, the Troy Roscoe-directed video shows a bullied Anne-Marie being trained to box by KSI. Digital Farm Animals helps out by tossing tennis balls to the duo.
  • Speaking on BBC Asian Network's Yasser, KSI said he based his lyrics on a true-life experience where somebody broke his heart.
  • KSI included this on his All Over The Place album.

Comments

Be the first to comment...

Editor's Picks

Songs Discussed in Movies

Songs Discussed in MoviesSong Writing

Bridesmaids, Reservoir Dogs, Willy Wonka - just a few of the flicks where characters discuss specific songs, sometimes as a prelude to murder.

Gary Brooker of Procol Harum

Gary Brooker of Procol HarumSongwriter Interviews

The lead singer and pianist for Procol Harum, Gary talks about finding the musical ideas to match the words.

Rick Astley

Rick AstleySongwriter Interviews

Rick Astley on "Never Gonna Give You Up," "Cry For Help," and his remarkable resurgence that gave him another #1 UK album.

Joan Armatrading

Joan ArmatradingSongwriter Interviews

The revered singer-songwriter talks inspiration and explains why she put a mahout in "Drop the Pilot."

Taylor Dayne

Taylor DayneSongwriter Interviews

Taylor talks about "The Machine" - the hits, the videos and Clive Davis.

Wolfgang Van Halen

Wolfgang Van HalenSongwriter Interviews

Wolfgang Van Halen breaks down the songs on his debut album, Mammoth WVH, and names the definitive Van Halen songs from the Sammy and Dave eras.