Anxiety
by Sleepy Hallow (featuring Doechii)

Album: Boy Meets World (2023)
Charted: 15 45
Play Video

Songfacts®:

  • On "Anxiety," Sleepy Hallow dives deep into mental struggles, laying it bare for his fans. He's lost in this maze, wrestling with relentless demons. It's like nobody gets what he's going through.

    But Hallow keeps it real, admitting his mind's a tricky gamester, but he's determined to bounce back from the mental chaos.
  • "Anxiety" samples Doechii's earlier track of the same name, recorded in 2019 and initially self-released on YouTube. Both versions prominently sample Gotye and Kimbra's 2011 hit "Somebody That I Used To Know."
  • The chorus incorporates elements from Doechii's track, creating a layered sampling effect. We hear Doechii sing of the inner voice that keeps bugging her:

    Feel it quietly
    Tryna silence me
    Anxiety
    Shake it off of me
    Somebody's watchin' me
    It's my anxiety
  • Sleepy Hallow, Doechii and Great John co-wrote the song with Karel Jorge, co-owner of Hallow's Winners Circle Entertainment label. The Australian singer-songwriter Gotye also gets credited, as does Brazilian musician Luiz Bonfá because "Somebody That I Used To Know" samples the guitar break from the latter's track "Seville."
  • Sleepy Hallow recorded "Anxiety" for his second album, Boy Meets World. Back in 2020, he laid down a track with a similar theme, "Anxiety Freestyle," for his mixtape Sleepy For President.
  • Sleepy Hallow's mainstay producer, New Jersey-based Great John, created the beat.
  • When Doechii's original rendition of "Anxiety" went viral in early 2025, it re-ignited interest in Sleepy Hallow's version, sending it back into the charts.

Comments

Be the first to comment...

Editor's Picks

Little Richard

Little RichardFact or Fiction

Was Long Tall Sally a cross-dresser? Did he really set his piano on fire? See if you know the real stories about one of rock's greatest innovators.

Dr. John

Dr. JohnSongwriter Interviews

The good doctor shares some candid insights on recording with Phil Spector and The Black Keys.

Devo

DevoSongwriter Interviews

Devo founders Mark Mothersbaugh and Jerry Casale take us into their world of subversive performance art. They may be right about the De-Evoloution thing.

Booker T. Jones

Booker T. JonesSongwriter Interviews

The Stax legend on how he cooked up "Green Onions," the first time he and Otis Redding saw hippies, and if he'll ever play a digital organ.

Paul Williams

Paul WilliamsSongwriter Interviews

He's a singer and an actor, but as a songwriter Paul helped make Kermit a cultured frog, turned a bank commercial into a huge hit and made love both "exciting and new" and "soft as an easy chair."

Brandi Carlile

Brandi CarlileSongwriter Interviews

As a 5-year-old, Brandi was writing lyrics to instrumental versions lullabies. She still puts her heart into her songs, including the one Elton John sings on.