Erykah Badu and Her Son Turn Drake's "Hotline Bling" Into a Whole New Gem
Drake scooped up DRAM's "Cha Cha" and made it into his chart-dominating "Hotline Bling," and now Erykah Badu's adopted that one and grown it into "HOTLINE BLING BUT U CAINT USE MY PHONE MIX." It's really Badu's own thing, with the chorus being tweaked to the goofy, shuddery, "You used to call me on my cell—u—lar—de—vice—at—night."
Starting at the three-minute mark, we get a long voicemail with a bunch of humorous options to dial. ("If you're calling to ask for some free tickets in a city near you, and know she don't really fuck with you like that, press 7.") The back half tones down the punchy backing melody, keeps the burbling beat and eventually brings in dreamy bells, warm guitar, brushed drums and some keyboard noodling.
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