Big Bank
by YG (featuring Big Sean & Nicki Minaj & 2 Chainz)

Album: Stay Dangerous (2018)
Charted: 16
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Songfacts®:

  • This DJ Mustard-produced song features guest verses from 2 Chainz, Big Sean and Nicki Minaj. The subject matter is all there in the title, as all four rappers spit braggadocious rhymes about their wealthy and luxurious lifestyles.
  • Nicki Minaj first playfully hinted she was dating Eminem in April 2018 when she dropped the single "Barbie Tingz," which contains the lyrics;

    I'm still fly
    Just bagged a white guy


    She goes into further detail about their "relationship" on this song, during which she plays on the letter 'M' (stemming from Eminem's real name is Marshall Mathers).

    Back to back Maybach, stack the Ms
    Told 'em I met Slim Shady, bag the M
    Once he go black, he'll be back again


    Eminem responded to Minaj's attempts to stir the gossip pot during his May 27 set at Boston Calling 2018 when he told the crowd. "I wanna take this time right now to give a shout-out to my bae Nicki Minaj. Sweetheart, I'll be home tonight, we'll figure this s--- out, how we're gonna deal with this publicly."

    "Yo, Boston, how many people in here want me to date Nicki Minaj?" he added "Nicki, if you get this message, just text me later, we'll talk about it."

    The only time that Eminem and Nicki Minaj worked together was on the Pink Friday song "Roman's Revenge." During that track, Em as his alter ego Slim Shady, heinously made clear his attraction to the Queen Barb.
  • This is YG's first time collaborating with all three guest rappers. However, Big Sean and 2 Chainz have worked together many times before because they are both on G.O.O.D. Music. Also, Nicki Minaj hopped on the hit remix of Big Sean's Finally Famous track "Dance (A$$)" back in 2011.
  • The music video for "Big Bank" was directed by Taj Stansberry, who has also worked with the likes of Rihanna, Usher, Jennifer Lopez. His visual for J Lo's "On The Floor" broke the record for the most watched female music clip of all time on YouTube. Stansberry told Genius it was the most literal video he'd ever done:

    "'Big Bank' was one of those videos where it was definitely a collaboration," the director explained. "He wanted to go lyric for lyric almost like, 'When I say this, we gon' see this. We gon' see this. We gon' see this.' And he kind of wanted to have this '90s feel to it where it was more literal than figurative. And I was like, 'That could be cool. It could be fun, especially for the summer, and not really give you too much to think about, but just let you celebrate being rich.'"
  • Nicki Minaj's scene was inspired by coming across some horse racing on TV when Stansberry was in bed flipping through the TV channels. It made him wonder if the Queens rapper had ever done any videos before with horses. He said: "She's kind of talking about winning and talking about who she is, so I wanted this all-pink horse and kind of bring her back to the original days of Nicki Minaj."
  • The song was birthed in a studio in Atlanta. YG was there with Mustard and his pal Nye "Nano" Lee and they started talking about what they wanted YG's new music to sound like.

    "I told Mustard I wanted to sound like the old us, the old YG and Mustard, 2011," the rapper told Billboard. "Heavy 808s… little friendly sounds and s--t… [Mustard] was making a beat, and he was about to pass up the beat. I'm like, 'No, that's the beat. That s--t fire right there.'"

    Having chosen the beat, Nano suggested making a track called "Big Bank," and the lyrics started flowing from there. "Man, when people hear this song, I just want them to have a good time," YG noted. "I want them to party to it. I want them to be motivated to get them some money. If you not from where I'm from, California, West Coast, LA, when that song come on, I want you to feel like that's where you at. And get you some money, most important."

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