Switch
by Iggy Azalea (featuring Anitta)

Album: Single release only (2017)
Play Video

Songfacts®:

  • Here, Iggy Azalea delivers a swaggering tune with lightning-quick rhymes full of braggadocio, laced with some sexually charged euphemisms. Many of the rhymes are aimed at an unnamed ex.

    He don't love you, that ring ain't big enough

    As soon as the song was released, fans started speculating the song is aimed at Azalea's former fiancé Nick "Swaggy P" Young. The rapper split from him in 2016 after discovering he was fathering a baby with an ex-girlfriend.
  • Azalea told People the track is primarily a women's empowerment anthem. "I wanted to make a song that could be fun to dance to, but the lyrics when you really listen to them are very powerful," she said, adding "it's not a victimized sexualization" but instead more a matter of "a woman being in control of what I want to do and when I want to go and when I want to stop."
  • AzaIea recruited Brazilian pop star Anitta to join her on the song. She said Anitta's feature was a natural fit. "[The song] has that tropical vibe and a Latin flavor people are really enjoying right now," she said. "I wanted to find the perfect girl who already had that kind of style and as soon as I saw her videos on YouTube, I was like 'This is the perfect person!' She's very unapologetic and strong but super feminine. We clicked straight away."
  • The track's breezy Latin production is courtesy of Eric Weaver and The Family, who also worked on songs like Fifth Harmony's "Top Down" and JoJo's "Save My Soul."
  • Azalea also went all-out tropical for the song's music video, which features custom-made costumes and real-life toucans. "It's sort of this fantasy safari of badass women," she said. "Some of the stuff I would see back on camera and think to myself, 'Wow, this must seem like it's all green-screen,' but it's really happening! I feel really nostalgic thinking about the music videos I liked as a child and not knowing how much was reality or what was computer-generated. I want to be able to give that to the kids and adults of my generation."

Comments

Be the first to comment...

Editor's Picks

Chris Rea

Chris ReaSongwriter Interviews

It took him seven years to recover from his American hit "Fool (If You Think It's Over)," but Chris Rea became one of the top singer-songwriters in his native UK.

Hawksley Workman

Hawksley WorkmanSongwriter Interviews

One of Canada's most popular and eclectic performers, Hawksley tells stories about his oldest songs, his plentiful side projects, and the ways that he keeps his songwriting fresh.

Gentle Giant

Gentle GiantSongwriter Interviews

An interview with Ray and Derek Shulman of the progressive rock band Gentle Giant to discuss counterpoint, polyrhythms, and... Bon Jovi.

When Rock Belonged To Michelob

When Rock Belonged To MichelobSong Writing

Michelob commercials generated hits for Eric Clapton, Genesis and Steve Winwood in the '80s, even as some of these rockers were fighting alcoholism.

Annie Haslam of Renaissance

Annie Haslam of RenaissanceSongwriter Interviews

The 5-octave voice of the classical rock band Renaissance, Annie is big on creative expression. In this talk, she covers Roy Wood, the history of the band, and where all the money went in the '70s.

Sam Phillips

Sam PhillipsSongwriter Interviews

Collaborating with T Bone Burnett, Leslie Phillips changed her name and left her Christian label behind - Robert Plant, who recorded one of her songs on Raising Sand, is a fan.