Though it took days for the U.S. presidential election results to be officially projected, many voters were already saying how they felt through their music playlists. On Tuesday, Nov. 3 (Election Day), YG and Nipsey Hussle’s “FDT” song skyrocketed in sales and streams, according to Billboard.
Short for “F**k Donald Trump,” FDT was originally released in 2016 prior to the presidential election. Data from Nielsen Music shows the song netted over 1,000 sales, a 221 percent increase, and over 1 million streams, a 338 percent spike.
The song also hit No. 1 on the iTunes chart after media networks called Joe Biden and Kamala Harris as the winners of the election and increased another 740 percent in digital sales, Daily Mail reported. It quadrupled in streams on Amazon.
Initially a single released on Soundcloud, YG included the hit song in his 2016 “Still Brazy” album.
Both YG and the late Hussle have always been outspoken about being proud L.A. natives. After FDT’s release, YG told the Los Angeles Times he felt it necessary to voice his concerns about Trump in a protest song.
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“The situation is [screwed] up, but I feel good for speaking up,” YG told The Times in 2016, just after Trump’s election. “We spoke up because no one else was speaking up. That’s what rap is made for. Too many rappers keep saying [stuff] with no substance. I told Nip that if we do this together, we gotta speak on Trump and go right to the streets.”
Though YG didn’t get his wish in 2016 when he rapped, “I’m ‘bout to turn Black Panther / Don’t let Donald Trump win, that n— cancer,” 2020 delivered his desired outcome.
Excited Americans blasted the song all day Saturday, even in front of the white house where a large crowd gathered. YG retweeted some of the footage from the scene in front of the White House and shared a viral video that had been edited to show Biden, Harris, former President Barack Obama and civil rights legend John Lewis dancing at various occasions while FDT played n the background.
Mary J. Blige’s song “Work That” also saw a major increase in digital downloads after Vice President-elect Kamala Harris walked out to it Saturday night to deliver her victory speech and introduce President-elect Joe Biden.
YG acknowledged how he felt is friend and collaborator Hussle would feel if he were here right now. “I know @NipseyHussle goin crip krazy right now!” YG tweeted.
