Shut Up (Stormzy song)

"Shut Up"
Song by Stormzy
Released 11 September 2015
Format Digital download
Genre Grime
Length 3:00
Label Stormzy
Writer(s) Michael Omari
Producer(s) XTC

"Shut Up" is a song by English MC Stormzy. The song was released independently for digital download in the United Kingdom on 11 September 2015 as the B-side to the "WickedSkengMan 4" single.[1] It was produced by XTC and written by Stormzy.[2] "Shut Up" was originally released as a freestyle video in May 2015 but gained popularity over the year.

The song initially entered at number 59 on the UK Singles Chart in September 2015, however following a Christmas number one campaign the song rose to number 8.[3][4][5]

Background

The instrumental to the song was produced by grime producer XTC, titled "Functions on the Low", originally released by grime collective Ruff Sqwad in 2004, it became one of the most well-known and popular grime instrumentals.[6] "Shut Up" was initially only available as a freestyled performance on YouTube in May 2015. Due to the popularity of the song, a studio version was recorded and released alongside the "WickedSkengMan 4" single, which entered and peaked at number 18 on the UK Singles Chart. It became Stormzy's first top 40 entry.

At the 2015 BRIT Awards, Kanye West called upon Skepta to invite "30 goons" onstage during his performance of "All Day". Skepta chose to invite a collective of grime MCs and British rappers to represent their music scene, and among these was Stormzy. Fellow British rappers Big Narstie and J Spades downplayed this achievement, calling Stormzy a "backup dancer" during the performance.[7] Stormzy directly acknowledges this in the opening lyrics of "Shut Up".

The line "Mention my name in your tweets / Oi rudeboy, shut up" is widely believed to be addressing Cadell, an East London MC and the younger half-brother of Wiley.[8] Throughout 2015, Cadell released a series of diss tracks entitled "Hotline", in which he directly insulted and "sent" for Stormzy.[9] These were accompanied by a series of insulting tweets. "Shut Up", as well as Stormzy's other songs "Standard" and "Hear Dis", are regarded as being diss tracks in response to Cadell.

Christmas number one campaign

On 12 December 2015 Stormzy performed "Shut Up" during British heavyweight boxer Anthony Joshua's ring-walk for his fight versus Dillian Whyte.[10] After the performance, the song climbed up the iTunes chart and into the top 40. As a result, Stormzy launched a Christmas number one campaign on 13 December to get the song to number one in order to rival with The X Factor winner's single "Forever Young" by Louisa Johnson.[11] "Shut Up" ultimately entered higher than "Forever Young" by one position.

Freestyle video

On 17 May 2015 a performed version of "Shut Up" was uploaded onto Stormzy's YouTube channel. The freestyle video was shot by Jaiden Ramgeet in a South London car park. The video gradually gained millions of views and has reached just under 40 million views as of October 2016.[12][13][14][15]

Track listing

Digital download[1]
No. TitleWriter(s)Producer(s) Length
1. "WickedSkengMan 4 (Studio Version)"  Michael OmariJme 3:14
2. "Shut Up (Studio Version)"  Michael OmariXTC 3:00
Total length:
 6:14

Chart performance

On 24 September 2015 "Shut Up" entered the UK Singles Chart at number 59, while its partnered single "WickedSkengMan 4" entered and peaked at number 18 in the same week. Following the Christmas number one campaign, "Shut Up" rose from number 99 to number 8 on 18 December 2015, becoming Stormzy's highest-charting single. The song charted at number one on the UK R&B Chart and number 3 on the UK Indie Chart.[16]

Charts

Chart (2015) Peak
position
Ireland (IRMA)[17] 79
Scotland (Official Charts Company)[18] 18
UK Indie (Official Charts Company)[19] 3
UK R&B (Official Charts Company)[20] 1
UK Singles (Official Charts Company)[21] 8

Certifications

Region Certification Certified units/Sales
United Kingdom (BPI)[22] Gold 400,000double-dagger

*sales figures based on certification alone
^shipments figures based on certification alone

Release history

Region Date Label Format
Worldwide 11 September 2015 Stormzy Digital download

References

  1. 1 2 "WickedSkengMan 4 - Single by Stormzy". iTunes. December 18, 2015. Retrieved September 11, 2015.
  2. ↑ "The lost grime anthem behind Stormzy's Shut Up". Red Bull. December 18, 2015. Retrieved December 8, 2015.
  3. ↑ "Grime MC Stormzy launches campaign for Christmas No 1". The Guardian. December 14, 2015.
  4. ↑ "Stormzy And Twitter Want #ShutUpForXmasNo1". Capital XTRA. December 14, 2015.
  5. ↑ "Odds on Stormzy getting Christmas Number One cut following 'Shut Up' boxing performance". NME. December 14, 2015.
  6. ↑ "Who is Stormzy sending for on new freestyle 'Shut Up'?". GRMDaily. December 18, 2015. Retrieved May 17, 2015.
  7. ↑ Oke, Tobi (31 October 2015). "Stormzy Is One Of The Most Exciting Live Performers Of Our Time". Complex UK.
  8. ↑ "Cadell sends for Stormzy on new track "Hotline 3"". GRM Daily. 23 November 2015.
  9. ↑ Gibbins, Paul. "#TheLowdown - Sending Season [Full Chronology]". SB.TV. Retrieved 27 April 2016.
  10. ↑ "Watch Stormzy Perform 'Shut Up' During British Heavyweight Title Boxing Match". Capital XTRA. December 14, 2015.
  11. ↑ "#ShutUpForXMasNo1 LET'S DO THIS BUN X FACTOR!!!". Twitter. December 18, 2015. Retrieved December 13, 2015.
  12. ↑ "STORMZY [@STORMZY1] - SHUT UP". YouTube. December 18, 2015. Retrieved May 17, 2015.
  13. ↑ "Stormzy freestyles new song 'Shut Up'". NME. December 18, 2015. Retrieved May 18, 2015.
  14. ↑ "Stormzy Sets Pace With A New Freestyle Called "Shut Up"". Complex. December 18, 2015. Retrieved May 17, 2015.
  15. ↑ "Stormzy drops new freestyle 'Shut Up'". Crack Magazine. December 18, 2015. Retrieved May 18, 2015.
  16. ↑ "Stormzy - Official Chart History". Official Charts. December 18, 2015. Retrieved March 21, 2015.
  17. ↑ "Chart Track: Week 4, 2016". Irish Singles Chart. Retrieved 30 January 2016.
  18. ↑ "Archive Chart: 2015-12-18". Scottish Singles Top 40. Retrieved 28 April 2016.
  19. ↑ "Archive Chart: 2015-12-18" UK Indie Chart. Retrieved 19 December 2015.
  20. ↑ "Archive Chart: 2015-12-18" UK R&B Chart. Retrieved 19 December 2015.
  21. ↑ "Archive Chart: 2015-12-18" UK Singles Chart. Retrieved 19 December 2015.
  22. ↑ "British single certifications – Stormzy – Shut Up". British Phonographic Industry. Retrieved May 6, 2016. Enter Shut Up in the field Keywords. Select Title in the field Search by. Select single in the field By Format. Select Gold in the field By Award. Click Search
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