"Cap" is a song by British YouTuber and rapper

KSI Olajide Olayinka Williams "JJ" Olatunji (born 19 June 1993), known professionally as KSI, is an English YouTuber and rapper. He is a co-founder and member of the British YouTube group known as the Sidemen. He is the CEO of Misfits Boxing and ...

featuring American rapper

Offset Offset or Off-Set may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media * "Off-Set", a song by T.I. and Young Thug from the '' Furious 7: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack'' * ''Offset'' (EP), a 2018 EP by singer Kim Chung-ha * ''Offset'' (film), a 200 ...

from the former's debut studio album, '' Dissimulation'' (2020) It was produced by Diego Ave, Go Grizzly, and Mally Mall. The song was released for digital download and

streaming Streaming media is multimedia that is delivered and consumed in a continuous manner from a source, with little or no intermediate storage in network elements. ''Streaming'' refers to the delivery method of content, rather than the content i ...

RBC Records RBC Records is an American online independent record label and management company founded by partners Brian Shafton and Bob Grossi. It provides artists and independent labels with a full-service "virtual label" alternative to signing with a maj ...

and

BMG BMG may refer to: Organizations * Music publishing companies: ** Bertelsmann Music Group, a 1987–2008 division of Bertelsmann that was purchased by Sony on October 1, 2008 *** Sony BMG, a 2004–2008 joint venture of Bertelsmann and Sony that wa ...

upon the release of the album. "Cap" is a hip hop and

trap A trap is a mechanical device used to capture or restrain an animal for purposes such as hunting, pest control, or ecological research. Trap or TRAP may also refer to: Art and entertainment Films and television * ''Trap'' (2015 film), Fil ...

song. In both his verse and the

chorus Chorus may refer to: Music * Chorus (song) or refrain, line or lines that are repeated in music or in verse * Chorus effect, the perception of similar sounds from multiple sources as a single, richer sound * Chorus form, song in which all verse ...

, KSI addresses fake people and those who have deceived, "back-stabbed" or "snaked" him in the past, with an

auto-tune Auto-Tune (or autotune) is an audio processor introduced in 1996 by American company Antares Audio Technologies. Auto-Tune uses a proprietary device to measure and alter pitch in vocal and instrumental music recording and performances. Auto-T ...

-heavy delivery. "Cap" was met with mixed reviews from music critics. KSI received some criticism for his excessive use of auto-tune and he was also accused of "blatantly ripping off Travis Scott". The song debuted at number 24 on the

UK Singles Chart The UK Singles Chart (currently titled Official Singles Chart, with the upper section more commonly known as the Official UK Top 40) is compiled by the Official Charts Company (OCC), on behalf of the British record industry, listing the top-s ...

and it additionally entered the music charts of Greece, Ireland, Lithuania and New Zealand. The

music video A music video is a video of variable duration, that integrates a music song or a music album with imagery that is produced for promotional or musical artistic purposes. Modern music videos are primarily made and used as a music marketing devi ...

was released alongside the album on 22 May 2020. The

black and white Black-and-white (B&W or B/W) images combine black and white in a continuous spectrum, producing a range of shades of grey. Media The history of various visual media began with black and white, and as technology improved, altered to color. ...

video shows the two rappers surrounded by women in a warehouse filled with candles, before they perform the song on a stage in front of an audience.

Writing and production

"Cap" was produced by American record producers Diego Ave, Go Grizzly and Mally Mall.

wrote and recorded a verse to the

instrumental An instrumental is a recording normally without any vocals, although it might include some inarticulate vocals, such as shouted backup vocals in a big band setting. Through semantic widening, a broader sense of the word song may refer to instr ...

was played the instrumental with Offset's verse during a

recording studio A recording studio is a specialized facility for sound recording, mixing, and audio production of instrumental or vocal musical performances, spoken words, and other sounds. They range in size from a small in-home project studio large en ...

session with the song's producers and American songwriter Ivory Scott in

Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the wor ...

, United States, towards the end of 2019. KSI "fucked with it a lot" and wrote and recorded both a

and a verse to the instrumental. Offset "thought it was sick" and subsequently gave KSI authorisation to include the song on his debut studio album at the beginning of 2020. Speaking about collaborating with Offset, KSI said, "Offset has always been someone who I would love to have on a song, but I never thought I'd get the opportunity to have him on a song." KSI continued, "It was quite surreal

hat A hat is a head covering which is worn for various reasons, including protection against weather conditions, ceremonial reasons such as university graduation, religious reasons, safety, or as a fashion accessory. Hats which incorporate mech ...

he said yes to me in the first place because I’m a YouTuber. I didn’t think he’d say yes. I thought he’d say, 'I’m not sure this is a good thing for me.' uthe heard ymusic and he fucked with it. He thought it was sick. He wanted to be a part of t He sees my hype. He sees

I’m taking usicseriously."

Music and lyrics

"Cap" is a hip hop and

song. Offset performs the first verse, while KSI performs both the chorus and the second verse, with an

-heavy delivery. In the song, KSI addresses fake people and those who have deceived him in the past, with lyrics including, "I can tell the fake from the fraud" and "I can't be no friends with no cap". Speaking to

Genius Genius is a characteristic of original and exceptional insight in the performance of some art or endeavor that surpasses expectations, sets new standards for future works, establishes better methods of operation, or remains outside the capabilit ...

about the inspiration for "Cap", KSI explained, "I wrote 'Cap' about certain people in my life; people who have back-stabbed me; people who are snakey with their movements." KSI continued, "I'm pretty good at spotting what their true agendas are... ecauseI've been fucked over in the past."

Critical reception

"Cap" was met with mixed reviews from music critics. In his review,

Anthony Fantano Anthony Fantano ( ; born October 28, 1985) is an American music critic and YouTuber who runs the YouTube channel The Needle Drop and its tie-in website. He discusses and reviews music from a variety of genres in his YouTube videos and on his we ...

of The Needle Drop criticised KSI for "really abusing the auto-tune" on "Cap". Fantano highlighted that the track's sound was evidently inspired by that of American rapper Travis Scott and he consequently accused KSI of "blatantly ripping off Travis Scott" on "Cap". Nevertheless, Fantano acknowledged that the song should "catch on because 'cap' and 'no cap' are such popular slang terms right now". Writing for ''

Metro Metro, short for metropolitan, may refer to: Geography * Metro (city), a city in Indonesia * A metropolitan area, the populated region including and surrounding an urban center Public transport * Rapid transit, a passenger railway in an urban ...

'', Louise Griffin remarked that Offset is an "iconic feature" for KSI. In her review of ''Dissimulation'' (2020) for ''

The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper A newspaper is a periodical publication containing written information about current events and is often typed in black ink with a white or gray background. Newspapers can cover a wide ...

'',

Kitty Empire Kitty Empire is the pen name of a British writer and music critic, currently writing for ''The Observer''. Early life Empire says that she was born in Montreal, Quebec in 1970 and brought up in Canada, Italy and Egypt before arriving in Britain ...

acclaimed that "KSI just about holds his own against Offset on 'Cap'".

Music video

The

for "Cap" was directed by TajvsTaj. It was filmed in a warehouse in Los Angeles in March 2020. KSI announced the music video via

social media Social media are interactive media technologies that facilitate the creation and sharing of information, ideas, interests, and other forms of expression through virtual communities and networks. While challenges to the definition of ''social me ...

on 18 May 2020 and a trailer for the music video was released on the same day. The music video was released to KSI's YouTube channel on 22 May 2020 at 15:00 BST. The video is shot in

and comprises shots of KSI and Offset surrounded by women in a warehouse filled with candles, before they perform the song on a stage in front of an audience. When asked about his favourite moment of the music video shoot, KSI responded, "Me and ffsetgoing ard as a motherfuckeron the chorus... Performing there was so sick."

Commercial performance

In the United Kingdom, "Cap" sold 17,496 track-equivalent units in its first week of release. It debuted at number 24 on the

, making it the second highest-placed new entry of that week. The song also debuted at number 14 on the UK Hip Hop and R&B Singles Chart. In the Republic of Ireland, "Cap" debuted at number 26 on the

Irish Singles Chart The Irish Singles Chart is the Republic of Ireland's music industry standard singles popularity chart issued weekly by the Irish Recorded Music Association (IRMA) and compiled on their behalf by the Official Charts Company. Chart rankings are b ...

, making it the second highest-placed new entry of that week. Elsewhere in Europe, the song charted at number 98 on the

Greek Singles Chart International Federation of the Phonographic Industry Greece, or simply IFPI Greece, is the Greek branch of the International Federation of the Phonographic Industry (IFPI) and is the official charts provider and recording sales certification bo ...

and number 98 on the Lithuanian Singles Chart.

Credits and personnel

Credits adapted from

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. *

songwriting, vocals *

songwriting, vocals * Diego Aveproduction, songwriting * Go Grizzlyproduction, songwriting * Mally Mallproduction, songwriting * Ivory Scottsongwriting * Michalis Michaelmixing * Henkka Niemistömastering

Charts

Release history

References

{{Offset (rapper) 2020 songs 2020 singles KSI songs Offset (rapper) songs Songs written by KSI Songs written by Offset (rapper) Songs written by Mally Mall RBC Records singles BMG Rights Management singles