Rich Flex

"Rich Flex" is a song by Canadian rapper Drake and Atlanta-based rapper 21 Savage. It was released on November 4, 2022, as the opening track from their collaborative studio album Her Loss. The song interpolates "Savage" (2020) by Megan Thee Stallion, "24's" (2003) by T.I., and "Red Opps" (2016) by 21 Savage, as well as sampling "I Want You, Girl" (1973) by Sugar and "Nora's Transformation" (1973) by Charles Bernstein. The song spent its first three weeks on the Billboard Hot 100 chart at number two (tying "My Life" as 21 Savage's highest-charting song as a lead artist), blocked from reaching the top spot by Taylor Swift's "Anti-Hero" and peaked at number one on the Canadian Hot 100 chart where it became Drake's eleventh number one single.[1][2]

"Rich Flex"
Song by Drake and 21 Savage
from the album Her Loss
ReleasedNovember 4, 2022 (2022-11-04)
Genre
Length3:59
Label
Songwriter(s)
Producer(s)
Audio video
"Rich Flex" on YouTube

Background

On November 3, 2022, the song was announced as part of the tracklist reveal for Her Loss.[3] Shortly after release, the track garnered attention and went viral due to the chorus's lyrical content.[4] The track in particular was widely picked out since it features an interpolation of Megan Thee Stallion's "Savage", including writing credits, while another song on the album titled "Circo Loco" sparked controversy as Drake allegedly accused Stallion of lying about the 2020 shooting incident, involving her and rapper Tory Lanez.[5][6][7] However, Lil Yachty, who contributed to numerous tracks on Her Loss, confirmed on behalf of Drake that the lyric was in fact about women who lie about getting butt injections (hence the words 'shot' and 'stallion', which is slang for a woman with large buttocks).[8]

Composition

Serving as the "tough, bass-driven"[9] opener for the album, "Rich Flex" sees the two rappers "going back and forth" after a spoken intro performed by rapper Young Nudy.[4] The track starts out with Drake repeatedly asking Savage to do him a favor over a "typically spare Tay Keith beat", while the latter "raps about strip club exploits at Magic City and pistol-whipping an enemy", occasionally imitating the flow of Stallion's "Savage".[10] Similar to their previous collaboration on "Jimmy Cooks", the song makes use of a beat switch over halfway through the track, with Drake riding "a crashing piano beat".[10] The song was seen as a return to "rap-mode" for Drake after having ventured into house music with Honestly, Nevermind (2022).[11]

Critical reception

21 Savage in particular was praised for his appearance on the song.[4] In a track review for the song, Matthew Ritchie at Pitchfork opined that the presence of Savage "makes Drake confront the idea of his own rap mortality" and lets him realize that he cannot "coast on vibe alone" when met with "real skill" alongside his appearance.[10] Rolling Stone's Mosi Reeves pointed out the track for letting the album start out "promisingly", stating that it serves as a "decent introduction that allows [21 Savage] to skate around impropriety".[12] Marcus Shorter of Consequence noted that, by taking turns, the rappers "mirror each other's cadences and rhyme patterns while attacking the same subject matter from slightly different angles".[13]

Charts
Chart performance for "Rich Flex"
Chart (2022–2023) Peak
position
Australia (ARIA)[14] 3
Austria (Ö3 Austria Top 40)[15] 10
Belgium (Ultratop 50 Flanders)[16] 50
Canada (Canadian Hot 100)[17] 1
Croatia (Billboard)[18] 13
Czech Republic (Singles Digitál Top 100)[19] 23
Denmark (Tracklisten)[20] 12
France (SNEP)[21] 74
Germany (Official German Charts)[22] 42
Global 200 (Billboard)[23] 1
Hungary (Stream Top 40)[24] 21
Iceland (Plötutíðindi)[25] 2
Ireland (IRMA)[26] 3
Italy (FIMI)[27] 40
Latvia (LAIPA)[28] 7
Lithuania (AGATA)[29] 3
Luxembourg (Billboard)[30] 4
MENA (IFPI)[31] 14
Netherlands (Single Top 100)[32] 12
New Zealand (Recorded Music NZ)[33] 2
Nigeria (TurnTable Top 100)[34] 41
Norway (VG-lista)[35] 10
Poland (Polish Streaming Top 100)[36] 93
Portugal (AFP)[37] 5
Romania (Billboard)[38] 9
Singapore (RIAS)[39] 11
Slovakia (Singles Digitál Top 100)[40] 7
South Africa (RISA)[41] 1
Sweden (Sverigetopplistan)[42] 16
Switzerland (Schweizer Hitparade)[43] 4
UK Singles (OCC)[44] 3
UK Hip Hop/R&B (OCC)[45] 1
UK Indie (OCC)[46] 4
US Billboard Hot 100[47] 2
US Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs (Billboard)[48] 1
US Mainstream Top 40 (Billboard)[49] 36
US Rhythmic (Billboard)[50] 1

Certifications
Certifications for "Rich Flex"
Region CertificationCertified units/sales
Italy (FIMI)[51] Gold 50,000‡
New Zealand (RMNZ)[52] Gold 15,000‡
Poland (ZPAV)[53] Gold 25,000‡
United Kingdom (BPI)[54] Gold 400,000‡
Streaming
Greece (IFPI Greece)[55] Platinum 2,000,000†

‡ Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone.
† Streaming-only figures based on certification alone.

References
  1. Trust, Gary (2022-12-05). "Taylor Swift's 'Anti-Hero' Atop Hot 100 for Sixth Week, Six Holiday Classics Scale Top 10". Billboard. Retrieved 2022-12-05.
  2. "Drake". Billboard. Retrieved 2022-12-05.
  3. Disalvo, Tom (November 4, 2022). "Drake & 21 Savage share collaborative album "Her Loss" featuring 'Rich Flex' and 'Major Distribution'". NME. Retrieved November 7, 2022.
  4. Hynes, Hayley (November 5, 2022). "Drake Goes Viral For His "Zesty" Lyrics On "Rich Flex" From "Her Loss" Album". HotNewHipHop. Retrieved November 7, 2022.
  5. Espinoza, Joshua (November 5, 2022). "Megan Thee Stallion Receives Writing Credit on Drake and 21 Savage's 'Her Loss'". Complex. Retrieved November 7, 2022.
  6. Curto, Justin (November 4, 2022). "Megan Thee Stallion Bodies Drake for Questioning Her Shooting". Vulture. Retrieved November 7, 2022.
  7. Rossignol, Derrick (November 4, 2022). "Drake's Controversial 'Circo Loco' Lyric Actually Isn't The Only Megan Thee Stallion Reference On 'Her Loss'". Uproxx. Retrieved November 7, 2022.
  8. Geraghty, Hollie (November 7, 2022). "Lil Yachty says Drake's 'Circo Loco' line is not about Megan Thee Stallion". NME. Retrieved November 7, 2022.
  9. Garratt-Stanley, Fred (November 7, 2022). "Drake and 21 Savage – 'Her Loss' review: exciting prospect marred by lazy songwriting". NME. Retrieved November 7, 2022.
  10. Ritchie, Matthew (November 4, 2022). "Drake / 21 Savage: "Rich Flex" Track Review | Pitchfork". Pitchfork. Retrieved November 7, 2022.
  11. Breihan, Tom (November 4, 2022). "Premature Evaluation: Drake & 21 Savage Her Loss". Stereogum. Retrieved November 7, 2022.
  12. Reeves, Mosi (November 6, 2022). "'Her Loss' Is A Misfire That Drake Will Hopefully Learn From". Rolling Stone. Retrieved November 7, 2022.
  13. Shorter, Marcus (November 4, 2022). "Her Loss Delivers on the Musical Promise of Drake and 21 Savage's Personal Relationship". Consequence. Retrieved November 7, 2022.
  14. "Drake & 21 Savage – Rich Flex". ARIA Top 50 Singles. Retrieved November 11, 2022.
  15. "Drake & 21 Savage – Rich Flex" (in German). Ö3 Austria Top 40. Retrieved November 16, 2022.
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  24. "Archívum – Slágerlisták – MAHASZ" (in Hungarian). Stream Top 40 slágerlista. Magyar Hanglemezkiadók Szövetsége. Retrieved November 17, 2022.
  25. "Tónlistinn – Lög" [The Music – Songs] (in Icelandic). Plötutíðindi. Archived from the original on 17 November 2022. Retrieved 17 November 2022.
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  28. "Mūzikas Patēriņa Tops/ 01. nedēļa" (in English and Latvian). LAIPA. January 4, 2023. Retrieved June 18, 2023.
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  31. Bayley, Jack (29 November 2022). "The Official MENA Chart launches – Calm Down by Rema region's first-ever #1". ifpi.org. International Federation of the Phonographic Industry. Retrieved 2 December 2022.
  32. "Drake & 21 Savage – Rich Flex" (in Dutch). Single Top 100. Retrieved November 12, 2022.
  33. "Drake & 21 Savage – Rich Flex". Top 40 Singles. Retrieved November 12, 2022.
  34. "TurnTable Nigeria Top 100". TurnTable. Retrieved December 30, 2022.
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  52. "New Zealand single certifications – Drake & 21 Savage – Rich Flex". Recorded Music NZ. Retrieved July 26, 2023.
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