FML (song)
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"FML" is a song by American rapper
Kanye West Ye ( ; born Kanye Omari West ; June 8, 1977) is an American rapper, singer and record producer. One of the most prominent figures in hip-hop, he is known for his varying musical style and polarizing cultural and political commentary. After ...
from his seventh studio album ''
The Life of Pablo ''The Life of Pablo'' is the seventh studio album by American rapper Kanye West. It was released on February 14, 2016, through GOOD Music and distributed by Def Jam Recordings. Recording sessions took place from 2013 to 2016, in Italy, Mexico, ...
'' (2016), which features vocals from Canadian singer
the Weeknd Abel Makkonen Tesfaye (; born February 16, 1990), known professionally as the Weeknd, is a Canadian singer-songwriter, record producer, and actor. He is best known for adding Pop music, pop, electronic music, electronic and hip-hop stylings ...
. It contains a sample of "Hit" by Section 25, which two of the band members praised West for sampling. In the song, West references his issues with mental health. The song charted in the
United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...
,
United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Northwestern Europe, off the coast of European mainland, the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...
and
Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its Provinces and territories of Canada, ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, making it the world's List of coun ...
in 2016.


Background

In October 2016, a demo of the track, alongside one of " I Am a God" from West's sixth studio album ''
Yeezus ''Yeezus'' is the sixth studio album by the American rapper Kanye West. It was released on June 18, 2013, through Def Jam Recordings and Roc-A-Fella Records. West gathered a number of artists and close collaborators for the production, includi ...
'' (2013), was uploaded to
SoundCloud SoundCloud is a German audio streaming service owned and operated by SoundCloud Global Limited & Co. KG. The service enables its users to upload, promote, and share audio. Founded in 2007 by Alexander Ljung and Eric Wahlforss, SoundCloud is ...
, which featured vocals from
Travis Scott Jacques Bermon Webster III (born April 30, 1991), known professionally as Travis Scott (formerly stylized as Travi$ Scott), is an American rapper, singer, songwriter, and record producer. Scott has had five number-one hits on the U.S. ''Bil ...
instead of the Weeknd and included a new sample. A remix of the song was released by
Alvin Risk Marcio Alvarado, better known by his stage name Alvin Risk, is an American electronic music producer, singer and DJ from Washington, D.C., US. He has released music on Owsla, Dim Mak, and Ministry of Sound. He has also released under the labe ...
.


Composition and lyrics

A sample of "Hit" by Section 25 is heavily used to compose the outro, along with vocals from West. In response to West sampling their work, Section 25 members Bethany and Vincent Cassidy praised him highly. The sample was also used in a leaked track by West titled "Fall Out of Heaven". After making changes in the album in June 2016, the song's vocals were made louder and the background vocals were added in the second round of the Weeknd's hook. "FML" is titled to stand for two meanings: "For My Lady", since West raps in the first verse "I been waiting for a minute/For my lady" and "Fuck My Life (up)" since the Weeknd sings on the chorus "I wish I would go ahead and fuck my life up/Can't let them get to me/And even though I always fuck my life up/Only I can mention me." West mentions the
antidepressant Antidepressants are a class of medications used to treat major depressive disorder, anxiety disorders, chronic pain, and addiction. Common side effects of antidepressants include Xerostomia, dry mouth, weight gain, dizziness, headaches, akathi ...
drug Lexapro in reference to his issues with mental health, a subject West mostly touched on in the song "I Feel Like That" from the end of his and
Steve McQueen Terrence Stephen McQueen (March 24, 1930November 7, 1980) was an American actor. His antihero persona, emphasized during the height of counterculture of the 1960s, 1960s counterculture, made him a top box office draw for his films of the late ...
's
music video A music video is a video that integrates a song or an album with imagery that is produced for promotion (marketing), promotional or musical artistic purposes. Modern music videos are primarily made and used as a music marketing device intended to ...
for West's 2015 single " All Day".


Critical reception

''Pitchfork'''s Jayson Greene viewed the song as where West "alludes to something that sounds an awful lot like a manic episode". Jake Indiana of ''
Highsnobiety ''Highsnobiety'' is a global fashion and lifestyle media brand founded in 2005 by David Fischer. The youth-focused company is difficult to pigeonhole, as it straddles the line between a media company that reviews fashion and lifestyle products, ...
'' wrote in response to it that "there's a lot to love here, particularly in Ye's lyrics", but he had a mixed reaction to the Weeknd's appearance, describing it as where he "gives a massive assist on this guest spot, but by song's end his refrain becomes a bit whiny". ''
NME ''New Musical Express'' (''NME'') is a British music, film, gaming and culture website, bimonthly magazine, and brand. Founded as a newspaper in 1952, with the publication being referred to as a "Rock music, rock inkie", the ''NME'' would be ...
'' writer Larry Bartleet listed it 13th in his top 50 songs about depression list.


Commercial performance

The track debuted at number 84 on the US ''Billboard'' Hot 100 within the same week that ''The Life of Pablo'' was released. "FML" charted on the UK Singles Chart at exactly the same position upon the album's release and then never charted again on it. On the
Canadian Hot 100 The Canadian Hot 100 is a music industry record chart in Canada for songs, published weekly by ''Billboard (magazine), Billboard'' magazine. It was launched on the issue dated March 31, 2007 as the standard record chart in Canada; a new chart ...
, the song debuted at number 97 in the same week. This made the song stand along with "
Ultralight Beam "Ultralight Beam" is a song by American recording artist Kanye West from his seventh studio album ''The Life of Pablo'' (2016). The song features vocals by Contemporary R&B, R&B singers The-Dream and Kelly Price, rapper Chance the Rapper, Gospe ...
" and "
Waves United States Naval Reserve (Women's Reserve), better known as the WAVES (for Women Accepted for Volunteer Emergency Service), was the women's branch of the United States Naval Reserve during World War II. It was established on July 21, 1942, ...
" as one of only three non-single releases from West's album to chart in
Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its Provinces and territories of Canada, ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, making it the world's List of coun ...
. Alongside its debut on the US ''Billboard'' Hot 100, "FML" charted at number 30 on the US
Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs The Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart ranks the most popular R&B and hip hop songs in the United States and is published weekly by '' Billboard''. Rankings are based on a measure of radio airplay, sales data, and streaming activity. The chart had 100 ...
chart and spend a total of three weeks on it.


In family culture

West's sister-in-law
Kylie Jenner Kylie Kristen Jenner (born August 10, 1997) is an American media personality, socialite and businesswoman. She starred in the E! reality television series ''Keeping Up with the Kardashians'' from 2007 to 2021 and then the Hulu reality televisi ...
named the track as her favourite song from ''The Life of Pablo'' in March 2016. His ex-wife
Kim Kardashian Kimberly Noel Kardashian (born October 21, 1980) is an American media personality, socialite, and businesswoman. She first gained media attention as a friend and stylist of Paris Hilton, but received wider notice after the celebrity sex tape ...
listed the track in August 2016 among her top 28 favorite songs by her husband.


Credits and personnel

Credits adapted from West's official website. *Vocals –
the Weeknd Abel Makkonen Tesfaye (; born February 16, 1990), known professionally as the Weeknd, is a Canadian singer-songwriter, record producer, and actor. He is best known for adding Pop music, pop, electronic music, electronic and hip-hop stylings ...
*Keyboards – Mike Dean *Production – Kanye West and Mitus *Co-production –
Metro Boomin Leland Tyler Wayne (born September 16, 1993), known professionally as Metro Boomin, is an American record producer and music executive. Widely acclaimed for his dark and cinematic production style, he is regarded as one of the most influential p ...
,
Noah Goldstein Noah Goldstein is an American record producer, film composer, and audio engineer. He is known for his work with Kanye West, having engineered his albums ''My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy'' (2010), ''Yeezus'' (2013) and ''The Life of Pablo'' (20 ...
, Dean *Additional production –
Charlie Heat Ernest Brown (born November 10, 1989), known professionally as Charlie Heat, is an American record producer. He signed with Very GOOD Beats, the in-house production wing of Kanye West's GOOD Music in 2015. During and after his departure from the ...
, Hudson Mohawke and Andrew Dawson *Engineering – Goldstein, Dawson, Anthony Kilhoffer and Dean *Vocal recording – Shin Kamiyama *Mix engineer –
Manny Marroquin Manny Marroquin (born September 21, 1971) is a Guatemalan-American record mixing engineer. He has been credited on albums for high-profile pop, R&B, hip hop and rock acts. He has worked with artists including Rihanna, Kanye West, Katy Perry ...
at Larrabee Studios, North Hollywood, California *Mix assistants – Chris Galland, Ike Schultz and Jeff Jackson


Charts


Certifications


Notes


References

{{authority control 2016 songs Kanye West songs Song recordings produced by Hudson Mohawke Song recordings produced by Kanye West Song recordings produced by Metro Boomin Song recordings produced by Mike Dean (record producer) Songs written by Charlie Heat Songs written by Cyhi the Prynce Songs written by Kanye West Songs written by Metro Boomin Songs written by Mike Dean (record producer) Songs written by the Weeknd Songs written by Travis Scott The Weeknd songs Songs written by Noah Goldstein