Needed Me
"Needed Me" is a song by Barbadian singer Rihanna from her eighth studio album, Anti (2016). It was written by Rihanna, Brittany Hazard, Charles Hinshaw, Derrus Rachel, the producer DJ Mustard, and the co-producers Twice as Nice and Frank Dukes. Roc Nation and Westbury Road sent "Needed Me" to US urban contemporary radio on March 30, 2016, together with "Kiss It Better". Afterwards, Def Jam sent "Needed Me" to contemporary hit radio. "Needed Me" is a "mellow" dubstep-influenced electro-R&B song, that contains a downtempo and loose production with synthetic sounds and hard heavy trap beats. The song's lyrics discuss romantic rejection.
This article is about the Rihanna song. For the Anne Murray song, see You Needed Me."Needed Me"
March 30, 2016
Westlake Recording Studios, (Los Angeles)
3:11
- Roc Nation
- Westbury Road
- Dijon McFarlane
- Robyn Fenty
- Nick Audino
- Lewis Hughes
- Khaled Rohaim
- Te Whiti Warbrick
- Adam Feeney
- Brittany Hazzard
- Charles Hinshaw
- Derrus Rachel
In the United States, the song peaked at number seven on the Billboard Hot 100 becoming Rihanna's 29th top 10 single on the chart, spending sixteen weeks in the top ten and later becoming the singer's longest-charting hit. The song's accompanying music video was directed by film producer Harmony Korine and premiered on April 20, 2016, in celebration of 420. The video is set in Miami and depicts Rihanna with a gun, riding on a motor bike, before attending a strip club where she kills a man. Rihanna performed "Needed Me" during the Anti World Tour. The song received a Grammy nomination for Best R&B Performance at the 59th ceremony.
Writing and production[edit]
On September 15, 2014, American producer DJ Mustard confirmed that he and Rihanna had collaborated on a song for the singer's eighth studio album, Anti: "We haven't got our club record just yet but we have a ballad that I really like and that she likes too."[1] DJ Mustard worked on fifty songs in an attempt for them to be included on Anti, "Needed Me" was one of the last songs that he worked on. Speaking about the writing and production process Mustard stated "I was at the studio and I was like "I don’t want to go, I don’t feel like going, I’ve done so many songs, she's not going to like it’... The next day they told me she liked it. It was great that I had a team (Twice as Nice) that could take me and actually get it done because if it wasn't for them I probably wouldn't have went. There would have been no ‘Needed Me’."[2]
"Needed Me" was written by Dijon McFarlane, Rihanna, Nick Audino, Lewis Hughes, Khaled Rohaim, Te Whiti Warbrick, Adam Feeney, Brittany "Starrah" Hazzard, Charles Hinshaw and Derrus Rachel. It was produced by DJ Mustard with co-production done by Twice as Nice & Frank Dukes.[3] "Needed Me" was recorded at the Westlake Recording Studios in Los Angeles. The vocal recording and production was done by producer Kuk Harrell while Blake Mares served as a recording and production assistant. "Needed Me" was mixed by Manny Marroquin at Larrabee Studios in Universal City, California and was assisted by Chris Galland & Ike Schultz. The song was mastered by Chris Gehringer at the Sterling Sound Studios in New York City.[3]
Release[edit]
On March 29, via her official Twitter account the singer confirmed that "Needed Me" alongside "Kiss It Better" would be released as follow up singles and impacted radios on March 30, 2016.[4] She also revealed the artwork for both singles, with "Needed Me" having Rihanna wearing a giant pair of jeans and "Kiss It Better" having a close-up of Rihanna's face.[5] Initially served to urban stations, following the single's success, Rihanna's former label, Def Jam (with whom she parted ways in 2014), confirmed they would be pushing "Needed Me" as an official single at pop radio.[6] On May 31, 2016, Rihanna released five official dance remixes for the song: R3hab remix, Salva remix, W&W remix, Attlas remix and Cosmic Dawn Club Mix.[7]
Composition and lyrical interpretation[edit]
"Needed Me" is a "mellowish" dubstep-flavored electro-R&B song[8] with "trippy, trappy production",[9] and a length of three minutes and five seconds.[10] The song is written in the key of G minor with a tempo of 111 beats per minute.[11] Rihanna's vocals span from F3 to C5 in the song. Her vocals throughout the verses consist of tuplets.[12] Instrumentally, "Needed Me" features "heavy bass triggers",[13] a "pulpy, throbbing beat"[14] and a "buzzing, grinding bassline."[15] It starts with Mustard's signature line "Mustard on the beat", before transforming into a "swirling, airy, atmospheric production" with "distorted, high-pitched vocal sample."[16] Neil McCormick of The Daily Telegraph described the track as a downtempo song with synthetic sounds, elements of electro, and a loose, casual vocal.[17] Lyrically, the song touches upon themes of romantic rejection,[17] with the singer talking "about a lover who obsessively lusts after her," and expected their relationship to advance much further than a one night stand[9] which can be seen in the lyrics: "Didn't they tell you that I was a savage? / Fuck your white horse and a carriage / Bet you never could imagine / Never told you, you could have it / You needed me".[17]
Many critics considered it a kiss-off track.[18][19] Forrest Wickman of Slate noted that lyrics stand for reversing stereotypical gender roles.[16] In the other hand, Erin Macleod of NPR Music stated that the song's lyrics were metaphors for anti-colonialism. Macleod picked up on the track's lyrics such as "Didn't they tell you that I was a savage?, Fuck ya white horse and ya carriage", and stated that the phrases seem to be that of a conversation between two lovers but could possibly be speaking against the larger narrative of colonialism.[20] Jon Caramanica of The New York Times declared that, on "Needed Me", she sings "about using men for sex and disposing of them like tissues,"[14] while Adam R. Holz of Plugged In added that Rihanna "obscenely and explicitly brushes off a clingy guy by demeaning his prowess in bed."[21] For Bianca Gracie of Idolator, the singer displays as "a confident, self-empowered woman who can throw away immature men as quickly as she changes her lipstick."[22]
Live performances[edit]
Rihanna included and performed "Needed Me" on the Anti World Tour.[57] Josh Duboff of Vanity Fair praised the "Needed Me" performance, noting that it "came alive more in the live setting than [it] do[es] on the album, perhaps due to Rihanna's evident passion in selling [it]."[58] On August 28, 2016, "Needed Me" was part of the third medley Rihanna performed at the 2016 MTV Video Music Awards, along with "Pour It Up" and "Bitch Better Have My Money".[59]
Credits adapted from Rihanna's official website.[3]