Did It On'em

"Did It On'em"
Single by Nicki Minaj
from the album Pink Friday
Released	March 7, 2011
Recorded	2010
Genre	Hip hop
Length	3:32
Label	Young Money, Cash Money
Writer(s)	O. Maraj, Shondrae Crawford, J. Ellington, Samuels
Producer	Bangladesh
Nicki Minaj singles chronology
"The Creep" (2011) "Did It On'em" (2011) "Girls Fall Like Dominoes" (2011)

"Did It On'em" is a song by Trinidadian-American rapper Nicki Minaj. It was written by Minaj with J. Ellington, Safaree Samuels, and Shondrae "Bangladesh" Crawford, who produced the track. The song served as the fourth single from her debut album, Pink Friday, in the United States while "Girls Fall like Dominoes" was released in the British Isles, Australia, and New Zealand. The song has a distinct sound when compared to the rest of the tracks on the album, in that it contains a harder, "massive, ungainly" beat, reflecting her prior work on mixtapes. It also features hi-hats in "overdrive" and multiple synth patterns sounding as if a car-alarm siren was going off. Lyrically, Minaj delivers explicit phrases talking about winning over her competition. Critics positively reviewed the song, noting it as a highlight of the album

Background and composition

"Did It On'em" has instrumentally been described as having a massive, ungainly beat.^[1] Producer Bangladesh creates hi-hats that have been described as on overdrive.^[1] Multiple synths are heard on the track that have been described as blowing up like "a car-alarm siren."^[1][2] One of Minaj's more lyrically explicit songs, the lyrics speak of Minaj winning over her competition, in phrases such as saying she "shitted on 'em" or "pissed on 'em."^[3] Brad Wete of Entertainment Weekly said Minaj was "ordering her Barbies to put up two fingers if they’re crapping on their competition."^[3] Lyrically Minaj remains vulgar as ever, ordering her Barbies to put up two fingers if they’re crapping on their competition.^[3] Mark Hogan of Spin also reviewed the lyrics, commenting "she pulls out an imagined 'dick' and pisses on a washed-up rival."^[2]

Reception

"Did It On'em" garnered very positive reviews from critics, most of which found the song reminiscent of an "old Minaj" from the mixtape-days. Scott Plagenhoef of Pitchfork Media gave the song a positive review naming it the record's best track, due to the fact that it features Minaj going "toe-to-toe with a huge beat."^[4] Additionally from Pitchfork, Tom Breihan stated that Minaj's voice is meant more for rapping than singing and favored "Did It On'em" on that thought.^[1] Breihan continued complimenting Minaj, stating that the song recognizes how "beautifully, effortlessly weird she is," and how she is willing to "contort her voice and persona into pretzel shapes just to induce that oh-shit face in anyone listening."^[1] Margaret Wappler of Los Angeles Times called the song "aggressively scatological," and compared the song to the Bangladesh-produced "A Milli" from label-mate Lil Wayne, stating that it fares better musically.^[5] In a list of the "50 Best songs of 2010" by Rolling Stone, "Did It On'em" came in a number twenty-five additionally stating that the song is a "hazy, synapse-butchering throwdown."^[6] Marc Hogan of Spin stated that the track features Minaj's best rapping.^[2] Sam Wolfson of New Musical Express stated that the song is so vulgar that Minaj could have permanetally placed herself on the "Teen Choice Awards blacklist," adding that the song is a "post-dubstep cry."^[7] The song peaked at number forty-nine on the US Billboard Hot 100 and spent sixteen weeks on the chart.^[8] It also peaked inside the top five of the Billboard component charts Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs and Rap Songs, reaching number three on the previous and number four on the latter chart.^[8]

Music video

In April 2011, during an interview with KIIS-FM's DJ JoJo, Minaj revealed that she had shot a music video for "Did It On'em".^[9] Director DJ Scoob Doo revealed to MTV News that Minaj and himself pieced the video together within two weeks.^[10] In an interview with MTV News on May 31 2011, director DJ Scoob Doo discussed the music video's styling and development:

"She's family to me and I'm family to her, but this is the first time us working together was a priority on both of our lists. So we just had to dig in and put everything to the side and really work on something ... [and] we had no idea that it would turn out as good as it did. It was a great experience[...] It took me about a good two weeks to put all of the ideas that we had together. The good thing about the video is that we went in knowing we were gonna shoot the video onstage a few times. I was actually able to get my camera crew onstage"^[10]

The video premiered exclusively to fans with accounts on Minaj's official website on May 27, 2011, and later premiered worldwide.^[11] The video was directed by Young Money affiliate DJ Scoob Doo and is a video compiled of clips from the I Am Still Music Tour, backstage moments with Drake and Lil Wayne, and candids of past photo shoots.^[12] The video additionally features Minaj performing the track on stage, a stream of magazine photo shoots cut together with footage of Minaj signing fans’ chests, and perfecting the “helicopter” move with a nearby dildo.^[13] Minaj said that the video was a way of saying thanks to her fans, and their support for her on the I Am Still Music Tour.^[12]

Credits and personnel

Credits are taken from Pink Friday liner notes.^[14]

• Vocals: Nicki Minaj, Safaree "Scaff Beezy" Samuels
• Writing: O. Maraj (Nicki Minaj), Shondrae Crawford (Bangladesh), J. Ellington, S. Samuels
• Producing: Bangladesh

Charts

Chart (2011)	Peak position
US Billboard Hot 100[8]	49
US Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs (Billboard)[15]	3
US Rap Songs (Billboard)[16]	4

Release dates

Country	Date	Type
United States	March 7, 2011[17]	Rhythm/Crossover airplay
	March 15, 2011	Urban airplay

References

1. ^ ^{a b c d e} "The Playlist: Nicki Minaj - "Did it on 'Em"". Pitchfork Media. http://pitchfork.com/reviews/tracks/12048-did-it-on-em/. Retrieved 2011-03-11. 
2. ^ ^{a b c} Hogan, Marc (2010-11-22). "Nicki Minaj, 'Pink Friday' (Young Money/Cash Money/Universal Motown)". Spin. http://www.spin.com/reviews/nicki-minaj-pink-friday-young-moneycash-moneyuniversal-motown. Retrieved 2011-03-11. 
3. ^ ^{a b c} Wete, Brad (2010-11-22). "Nicki Minaj's 'Pink Friday': Read EW's review | The Music Mix | EW.com". Entertainment Weekly. http://music-mix.ew.com/2010/11/22/nicki-minaj-pink-friday-review/. Retrieved 2011-03-11. 
4. ^ "Album Reviews: Nicki Minaj: Pink Friday". Pitchfork Media. 2010-11-24. http://pitchfork.com/reviews/albums/14898-pink-friday/. Retrieved 2011-03-11. 
5. ^ November 22, 2010  (2010-11-22). "Album review: Nicki Minaj's 'Pink Friday' | Pop & Hiss | Los Angeles Times". The Los Angeles Times. http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/music_blog/2010/11/album-review-nicki-minajs-pink-friday.html. Retrieved 2011-03-11. 
6. ^ "50 Best Songs of 2010: Nicki Minaj, Did It On'em | Rolling Stone | Lists". Rolling Stone. http://www.rollingstone.com/music/lists/50-best-songs-of-2010-20101214/nicki-minaj-did-it-onem-19691231. Retrieved 2011-03-11. 
7. ^ "Nicki Minaj - Album Review: Nicki Minaj, 'Pink Friday' (Island) - Album Reviews". New Musical Express. 2010-11-29. http://www.nme.com/reviews/nicki-minaj/11750. Retrieved 2011-03-11. 
8. ^ ^{a b c} "Nicki Minaj Album & Song Chart History" Billboard Hot 100 for Nicki Minaj. Prometheus Global Media. Retrieved 2011-11-06.
9. ^ "Nicki Minaj to Announce New Album in September". Rap-Up.com. 2011-04-22. http://www.rap-up.com/2011/04/22/nicki-minaj-to-announce-new-album-in-september/. Retrieved 2011-05-27. 
10. ^ ^{a b} "Nicki Minaj's 'Did It On'em' Video Reveals Backstage High Jinks". MTV News. 2010-5-31. http://www.mtv.com/news/articles/1664836/nicki-minaj-did-it-on-em.jhtml. Retrieved 2011-6-1. 
11. ^ by User (2011-04-12). "WORLD PREMIERE: Nicki Minaj - 'Did It On'em' Music Video : Nicki Minaj". Mypinkfriday.com. http://www.mypinkfriday.com/news/35121. Retrieved 2011-05-27. 
12. ^ ^{a b} "Video: Nicki Minaj – ‘Did It On ‘Em’". Rap-Up.com. 2010-10-18. http://www.rap-up.com/2011/05/27/video-nicki-minaj-did-it-on-em/comment-page-1/#comment-640961. Retrieved 2011-05-27. 
13. ^ "Nicki Minaj Releases “Did It On ‘Em” Video For Fans". Idolator. 2010-5-27. http://idolator.com/5880712/nicki-minaj-releases-did-it-on-em-video-for-fans. Retrieved 2011-6-1. 
14. ^ (2010) Album notes for Pink Friday. Young Money, Cash Money, Universal Motown.
15. ^ "Nicki Minaj Album & Song Chart History" Billboard R&B/Hip-Hop Songs for Nicki Minaj. Prometheus Global Media. Retrieved 2011-11-06.
16. ^ "Nicki Minaj Album & Song Chart History" Billboard Rap Songs for Nicki Minaj. Prometheus Global Media. Retrieved 2011-11-06.
17. ^ "Format Rooms: Available For Airplay". FMQB. http://www.fmqb.com/Article.asp?id=69239#2011. Retrieved 2011-04-01.