Down in The DM

Album: The Return (2015)
Charted: 13
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Songfacts®:

  • Originally included on Gotti's independent mixtape The Return in September 2015, this was released by Epic Records as a single the following month. It became the Memphis rapper's biggest hit to date.
  • DM stands for Direct Message, which is a tool where users on Instagram, Snapchat and Twitter can message each other privately. The function has a reputation as a forum for flirting and the song finds Gotti messaging another man's girlfriend after she posts a picture of her luxury car on Instagram.

    The song came from a true-life situation. Gotti explained to Billboard magazine: "One of my homies was Snapchatting and telling me how it worked. He was giving me the rules because I was new to it - how to check my DMs [direct messages], how to take screenshots. I was sitting at the [studio] console, hearing the beat in the background but listening to my little homie at the same time, and it came together."
  • The minimalist, bass-heavy beat was supplied by Florida-based musician Ben Billions, who also produced The Weeknd's Beauty Behind The Madness track "Often," and his frequent music partner Schife Karbeen.
  • The song's music video finds Yo Gotti playing the best man at a wedding, who is trying to keep the groom from looking at his DMs. The clip also features Cee-Lo Green playing the preacher, Machine Gun Kelly (a groomsman), DJ Khaled (a last-minute counselor) as well as Rae Sremmurd and YG.
  • A remix of the song was released online on February 4, 2016 featuring two racy verses by Nicki Minaj.
  • Ben Billions made the beat in less than 20 minutes. The startling ease with which he co-produced the track was somewhat unsettling. "It kind of f---ed me up for a minute," Billions admitted to Billboard magazine. "I was like, 'If I'm working on a beat for more than 45 minutes, am I putting too much into it?'"

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