Jem Aswad Senior Music EditorCardi B may not have released a ton of music in the past couple of years, but when she has, she’s made them count: Following “WAP,” her 2020 smash with Megan Thee Stallion, and last year’s “Up” comes “Hot Shit,” a truth-in-advertising new track featuring Kanye West and Lil Durk with a fiery beat from Memphis-born producer Tay Keith, who also co-produced Travis Scott’s “Sicko Mode” and Drake’s “Nonstop.”It’s a true collaborative single, with each rapper taking a verse and super-spare production — consisting almost entirely of vocals and beat, with the occasional sound effects — and in the hands of lesser rappers it wouldn’t be anywhere near as strong.
Cardi’s comes out swinging, referencing professional wrestler Jimmy Snuka and a legendary photo of Tupac in a bathtub in her first three lines:Now this that hot shit Jimmy Snuka off the top rope, superfly shit Might get in the tub with all my ice on some ‘Pac shit Either way you slice it, bottom line, I’m the top bitchLil Durk follows with a hot verse that name-drops Future and pledges solidarity with 21 Savage:They just came outside in 2020, pull up in that ’21 I pick my side, switches fully and I’ma die for 21 (Slaughter Gang)Each one delivers, but of course it’s West who grabs the headlines with a reference-loaded feature that mentions God, the late designer Virgil Abloh, Jay-Z, Pusha T, his controversial “MAGA” hat, his custody arrangement with estranged wife Kim Kardashian and how the ensuing headlines get on his nerves.The verses referencing Abloh and God are immediately followed by lines about shopping:Why you playin’?
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