"Did It First" is a song by American rapper

Ice Spice Isis Naija Gaston (born January1, 2000), known professionally as Ice Spice, is an American rapper and songwriter. Born and raised in the Bronx, New York City, she began her musical career during college in 2020, after meeting record producer ...

and British rapper

Central Cee Oakley Neil Caesar-Su (born 4 June 1998), known professionally as Central Cee, is a British rapper from Shepherd's Bush, London. Regarded as a leading figure in UK rap, he rose to prominence in 2020 with the release of his drill singles "Day i ...

, released on July 11, 2024, as the fourth single from the former's debut studio album '' Y2K!''. It was produced by RiotUSA, Lily Kaplan and Nico Baran. It is a

Jersey club Jersey club (originally called Brick City club) is a style of electronic club music that originated in Newark, New Jersey, in the late 90s/early 2000s. It was pioneered by DJ Tameil, Mike V, DJ Tim Dolla, and DJ Black Mic of the Brick Bandits ...

song that has strong

drill A drill is a tool used for making round holes or driving fasteners. It is fitted with a drill bit for making holes, or a screwdriver bit for securing fasteners. Historically, they were powered by hand, and later mains power, but cordless b ...

elements.

Background

The rappers teased the song in the week before it was released, with Ice Spice posting a clip of her twerking against a fireworks backdrop. It led to the song going viral on the video-sharing app

TikTok TikTok, known in mainland China and Hong Kong as Douyin (), is a social media and Short-form content, short-form online video platform owned by Chinese Internet company ByteDance. It hosts user-submitted videos, which may range in duration f ...

, in which it amassed over 42 million views and was used in over 10,500 videos prior to being released.

Composition and lyrics

The production contains a

and

-inspired beat with a propulsive rhythm, stuttering drums and looping vocal sample. Ice Spice raps about retaliating against an ex-partner for cheating on her by doing the same to them; she declares in the chorus, "If he's cheatin', I'm doin' him worse / No Uno, I hit the reverse / I ain't trippin', the grip in my purse / I don't care 'cause he did it first". Central Cee raps from the man's perspective in his verse, in which he details attempting to conceal his infidelity but admitting that "If I went court for all the times I got caught / I'd have about 16 felons" and "I clearly ain't learn my lesson".

Critical reception

Elias Andrews of ''

HotNewHipHop ''HotNewHipHop'' (HNHH) is an online publication that covers daily news about hip hop and pop culture, including streetwear, sports, and Sneaker collecting, sneakers. In addition to its editorial content, HotNewHipHop also produces the video seri ...

'' wrote, "'Did It First' sounds like a pop-ified version of aughts

hyperdub __NOTOC__ Hyperdub is a British electronic music record label and former webzine based in London, founded by Kode9, Steve Goodman, a.k.a. Kode9. The label was formed in 2004, and grew out of the UK's early dubstep scene. Artists signed to the l ...

. It sounds pretentious to describe on these terms, sure, but there's something undeniably retro about the song that plays to its benefit. Yes, Ice Spice is using the Ice Spice flow, and unsurprisingly, it sounds good. She's trash talking her haters, and describing the ways in which she's going to disrespect them. Spice then passes the mantle off to Central Cee, who manages to ride the beat in a complimentary yet distinct manner. Cee is blowing up stateside, so linking up with him was a cagey decision. That's not to say the results are fun. These two have chemistry, as evidenced by Y2K-drenched music video."

Music video

An official music video was directed by Ice Spice, Edgar Estevez, and Nikita Vilchinski and premiered alongside the single. It shows Spice dancing in front of a corner store and twerking while lying on her pillow-filled bed, as well as scenes of her and Central Cee at a house party in the latter's hometown of

London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...

and a 2000s-era desktop computer with message windows. The two also lay together in the bed. The visual features an appearance of

Sol de Janeiro Sol de Janeiro is an American skincare and fragrance brand founded in 2015 by Heela Yang. Sol de Janeiro products are inspired by Brazilian beach culture and are known for its signature scent base of almond and vanilla. History Co-founder and C ...

's Cheirosa 68 Perfume Mist.

Track listing

* Streaming/digital download # "Did It First" (explicit) – 1:58 # "Did It First" (sped up) – 1:48 # "Did It First" (slowed down) – 2:12 # "Did It First" (instrumental) – 1:58 # "Did It First" (acapella) – 1:58 # "Did It First" (clean) – 1:58

Charts

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

Certifications

References

{{Central Cee 2024 singles 2024 songs Ice Spice songs Central Cee songs Songs written by Ice Spice Songs written by Central Cee 10K Projects singles Capitol Records singles Songs about infidelity Jersey club songs