On the Road
by Post Malone (featuring Lil Baby & Meek Mill)

Album: Hollywood's Bleeding (2019)
Charted: 22
Play Video

Songfacts®:

  • This defiant anthem finds Post Malone boasting about how he achieved his success through his own hard work. Other people claim to deserve a share of the rewards Post is reaping, but he recognizes them as fake.

    Cause I been on the road, been on the road, I
    Quit actin' like you been with me this whole time


    These fake friends weren't with Post when he hit the road at the beginning of his career. They flatter him by pretending to have been devoted to him since he started out, but he knows this isn't true. They only joined the Post bandwagon after he began accumulating hit records.
  • Post is joined on the song by Lil Baby and Meek Mill, who add verses pointing out some harsh truths to their fake friends. Meek Mill accuses people of dropping him when the hard work started only to return to his orbit once he began to reap the rewards. Lil Baby talks about how his "goin hard" has affected his relationships with women.
  • Post Malone explained to Spotify that the song's narrative about fake people is one that runs throughout Hollywood's Bleeding. He explained:

    "A lot of people act like they had something to do with everything, but you really worked your ass off and they kinda sat back and said, 'Yeah I was there, I helped out.' And really, it turns out you really were only around for the perks of being my friend, not really there for my genuine love and pure comedy that I give to you. You weren't there for me, really for me, you were there for ulterior motives."
  • Lil Baby and Meek Mill have worked together several times, including on DJ Khaled's 2019 song "You Stay." This is Post's first collaboration with both artists.
  • Post Malone, Lil Baby and Meek Mill wrote the song with:

    Canadian singer-songwriter Billy Walsh, who contributed to 15 out of the 17 Hollywood's Bleeding tracks.

    Post Malone's go-to producer Louis Bell, who contributed to all of the Hollywood's Bleeding tracks.

    Frequent Juice WRLD collaborator Nick Mira. He helmed the rapper's hit singles "Lucid Dreams (Forget Me)," "All Girls Are The Same" and "Robbery."

    American rapper Vory, whose other writing credits include Bryson Tiller's "Don't" and Drake's "Mob Ties."

Comments

Be the first to comment...

Editor's Picks

Daryl Hall

Daryl HallSongwriter Interviews

Daryl Hall's TV show is a hit, and he's been inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame - only one of these developments excites him.

Barry Dean ("Pontoon," "Diamond Rings And Old Barstools")

Barry Dean ("Pontoon," "Diamond Rings And Old Barstools")Songwriter Interviews

A top country songwriter, Barry talks about writing hits for Little Big Town, Tim McGraw and Jason Aldean.

Which Songs are About Drugs?

Which Songs are About Drugs?Fact or Fiction

"25 or 6 to 4" to "Semi-Charmed Life" - see if you can spot the songs that are really about drugs.

Taylor Dayne

Taylor DayneSongwriter Interviews

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

Donald Fagen

Donald FagenSongwriter Interviews

Fagen talks about how the Steely Dan songwriting strategy has changed over the years, and explains why you don't hear many covers of their songs.

Country Song Titles

Country Song TitlesFact or Fiction

Country songs with titles so bizarre they can't possibly be real... or can they?