Pick Up the Phone

"Pick Up the Phone" is a song by American rapper Lupe Fiasco, released exclusively to his website on July 20, 2016. Fans could access it by entering their email address and zip code.Slavik, Nathan (July 21, 2016). "Lupe Fiasco & The Hidden Power of Fan Data for Artists". DJBooth. Being the lead single and eleventh track from his album, Drogas Light (2017), it was intended to be on his previous album, Tetsuo & Youth."Lupe Fiasco (@LupeFiasco)". Twitter. February 10, 2022. It features uncredited guest vocals from Sebastian Lundberg of Trinity Music on the pre-chorus and hook.Rollings, Maya (July 20, 2016). "Lupe Fiasco Drops New Track "Pick Up the Phone"". Vibe.
== Music video ==
The official music video premiered to Fiasco's YouTube channel on August 29, 2016. It depicts communication troubles between a couple, Tony and Sonya, resulting in a tragic end.Ivey, Justin (August 29, 2016). "Lupe Fiasco Premieres New "Pick Up the Phone" Video". XXL.
The visual begins with Tony, who starts off his morning by scrolling through messages he sent to Sonya. The texts reveal he wrote a song for her, called "You," and Sonya replies that she's hanging out with her girlfriends and for him to call later. He now asks what she's doing, though there's no immediate response. He goes on to play a video game to pass time, then checks his phone. After four missed calls, he goes outside to shoot hoops with his friends. When he browses her Snapchat, he sees her being recorded by another person, where she holds a baseball cap. The clip moves to the side to display a pill bottle. Next, Tony calls Sonya whilst driving but gets pulled to the side by a traffic cop. A guy happens to drive by, wearing the very same hat Sonya was holding in the Snapchat video. This leads to him believing Sonya lied about her whereabouts, and gets upset. Upon entering Sonya's house, there's no response. He notices her phone with missed notifications. His girlfriend is found on the bathroom floor, frothing at the mouth from a drug overdose, with pills scattered around her. He goes to her side on the phone, presumably to call the ambulance, then holds her in his arms.
As the lyrics observe, communication with a loved one can be a game of Russian Roulette, where he compares one's emotions are tied to a life or death outcome: they would or would not answer. Tony is concerned with his girlfriend not replying, thinking she's ignoring him. Despite discovering she may have lied about where she was from the Snapchat video, the state he finds Sonya in makes him worried about her wellbeing over anything else. It suggests how even with technology (smartphones, social media) made to make communication efficient and quicker, it still has drawbacks as one relies on the other to respond, and we still don't know what is really happening in their life. From one side, we form our own assumptions from contextual cues, which can result in misunderstandings.Mench, Chris (August 29, 2016). "Premiere: Lupe Fiasco Explores Love and Technology in His New Video for "Pick Up the Phone"". Complex.
== Personnel ==
* Bob Horn – mixer
* David Kutch – masterer
* Eshraque "iSHi" Mughal – writer, producer
* Sebastian Lundberg – writer
* Wasalu "Lupe Fiasco" Jaco – lead artist, vocals, writer
== Lyrics ==
== References ==
Category:2016 songs
Category:Drogas Light
Category:Explicit songs
Category:Lupe Fiasco songs
Category:Singles
Category:Songs
Category:Songs with music videos