"RAPSTAR" is a braggadocios track where Polo G boasts about being a "rapstar" while lamenting that despite his riches he's still not happy. "It's about the ups and downs of this lifestyle," he told
Complex. "You know, you can be winning, and even through all of the good s--t that's happening, you can still have those emotional battles."
The Chicago rapper starts off with the chorus where he celebrates the money and luxuries he has earned from his successful career.
In spite of all those riches, Polo doesn't have any peace. On the first verse he reveals himself to be lonely.
Only b---h I give a conversation to is Siri
Perpetually tired.
Every day a battle, I'm exhausted and I'm weary
And depressed.
Make sure I smile in public, when alone, my eyes teary
The second verse finds him fearful.
Anxiety killin' me, I just want to leave Earth
And unable to trust many of the people he deals with.
Stabbed me in my back with a clean smirk
The overall message behind the song is that there's more to life than fame, materialism, and wealth.
Polo G first teased the then-untitled song in May 2020 via a shorter acoustic version with ukulele player Einer Bankz. The rapper released "Rapstar" on April 9, 2021 as the lead single from his third album, Hall of Fame.
Einer Bankz came up with the ukulele-based trap beat alongside Synco. San Francisco hip-hop producer Synco previously worked with Polo G on Blueface's "Murder Rate."
Polo G originally wanted to title the song "Amiri," but had clearance issues. He told Complex he changed it to "Rapstar" because "it seemed like that fit the song the most perfectly."
Einer Bankz first worked with Polo G when they recorded and uploaded an acoustic version of the rapper's "Battle Cry" track. They continued to film videos together, but "Rapstar" is the first time they linked up for an actual song. Bankz told Complex it originated when the pair met up at a house to film promotional material.
"It had been a long day," Bankz recalled. "Polo had just run through a bunch of interviews, and I was playing this melody on my ukulele as the background set design was getting taken down. Polo looked over at me and he goes, 'What's that?' I was like, 'Just something I've been playing.' And he goes, 'Oh yeah, let's do that.' The way he is, I can play a melody, and he'll just one-take something on it. So he came in and just crushed it, one take."
After Polo G and Bankz uploaded their acoustic version of "Rapstar," it quickly became a hit on social media. Polo decided he needed to elevate it into a full song, so he hit up Synco to help flesh out a studio version. The Bay Area producer admitted he felt the pressure. "Fans want it to be the best thing ever, and Polo G's one of the hottest artists out, so I didn't want to disappoint. I'm trying my best to not do too much on the beat, but also do enough to where it gives the song some more depth. And of course, I wanted to give my own take on it, as opposed to just throwing some drums over the ukulele. So I went in and I added some chords, some little counter-melodies on piano, some pads, and some vocal chops."
Polo loved Synco's beat, recorded the track, and released it as a single.
The song debuted at #1 on the Hot 100 dated April 24, 2021. Polo G's only previous top 10 appearance had been as a featured artist on Juice WRLD's #10 peaking "
Hate The Other Side."
Polo G received some blowback by comparing himself to Tupac Shakur in this song.
They say I'm Pac rebirth, never put out a weak verse
Homicides when we lurk, I'ma step 'til my feet hurtThe Chicago rapper's mom explained to
Complex her son is taking inspiration from Tupac's legacy rather than claiming to be on his level. "He was somebody that anyone in our community would look to," she said. "In a lot of ways, 2Pac was a blueprint when it was not okay to speak out on social issues and when it was not okay to talk about what we experience now with the overwhelming surge of police brutality and so on. 2Pac was aware and conscious of those social issues, and he used his platform to speak as much, even if it was not popular at the time. So yes, he's someone that [Polo] looks to for inspiration on many levels."
