Beg for it (song)

## Beg For It

"**Beg for It**" is a song by Australian rapper Iggy Azalea, featuring Danish singer MØ. It was written by Azalea and Charli XCX. The song was released on 24 October 2014 as the lead single from the reissue of Azalea's debut studio album *The New Classic* (2014), titled *Reclassified* (2014). An initial live preview of the song in September 2014 resulted in widespread media speculation that it featured XCX as the sequel to "Fancy", XCX's previous collaboration with Azalea. However, it was later revealed that XCX wrote the track's hook for MØ, who Azalea discovered on YouTube. A pop-rap and electro-trap song, "Beg for It" contains a percolating, booming stark beat and solicits a sinuous, minimalist feel. Its lyrical content comprises themes of girl power and prominently figures the phrase "pussy power".

The song garnered generally favourable reviews from music critics, many of whom commended its catchiness. Others were, however, ambivalent towards its similarities with Azalea's previous singles "Black Widow" and "Fancy". "Beg for It" became a top 30 hit on the U.S. *Billboard* Hot 100 and in Australia, where it peaked at number 27 and number 29 respectively. It was more successful on the U.S. Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart where it peaked at number eight for five consecutive weeks and became Azalea's fourth top 10 hit of 2014. In May 2015, "Beg for It" was certified platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA).

## Music Video

An accompanying music video for the song, directed by David LaChapelle, was cancelled due to scheduling conflicts and Azalea's conflicting tour schedule. Instead, an accompanying lyric video for the song was released on Azalea's Vevo page. Their first live performance of the song on *Saturday Night Live* was panned by many critics, who commented extensively on MØ's vocal latency and poor performance timing, with one deeming it "one of the most cringe-worthy live moments in recent history". MØ uploaded a handwritten apology in response to the criticism, in which she explained that she experienced technical difficulties with her microphone. The singer was absent from all of Azalea's subsequent live performances of "Beg for It" on *The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon*, the 41st People's Choice Awards and the 2014 American Music Awards.

## Background

"Beg for It" was written by Azalea, Charli XCX,The Invisible Men, and Kurtis McKenzie and Jon Turner of The Arcade. The Invisible Men and The Arcade also produced the track, while Daniel Zaidenstadt and Paul Falcone did the recording. The song was recorded in four different studios; Record Plant in Los Angeles,Sarm West Studios and Grove Studios inLondon, and Downtown Music Studios in New York City. "Beg for It" was subsequently mixedby Anthony Kilhoffer with the assistance of Kyle Ross at The Mix Spot in Los Angeles, and then mastered by Miles Showell at Abbey Road Studios in London.

Azalea previewed "Beg for It" during her live show at the Shepherd's Bush Empire in London on 14 September 2014. The preview resulted in widespread media speculation that the song featured XCX, and would serve as a sequel to "Fancy", XCX's previous collaboration with Azalea. However, in Azalea's announcement of the song's single release on Twitter on 10 October 2014, it was revealed that Danish singer MØ was the track's featured vocalist instead. The rapper went on to post her view of MØ on the social media network, stating: "A lot of you may not know her, but she's super cool. I love her voice and her eyebrows". In an interview with Ryan Seacrest, Azalea said she wanted to assist a rising star with a guest feature on her album, and "fell in love" with MØ after discovering the singer on YouTube. XCX later revealed on Twitter that she specifically wrote MØ's hook in the song.

## Release

"Beg for It" served as the lead single from thereissue of Azalea's debut studio album *The New Classic*, titled *Reclassified* (2014), and was preceded by the promotional single, "Iggy SZN". The single's cover art was revealed by Azalea on Instagram on 17 October 2014.[9]The sketched cover depicts Azalea posing with a jacket draped over her shoulder, while accompanied by a white panther. Writing forIdolator, Bradley Stern praised the visual, stating that the rapper was "looking fierce".[10]John Walker of MTV News opined that the artwork was predominantly influenced by American artist Patrick Nagel and 1980s fashion.[9] "Beg for It" was released as digital download "instant grat" in the United States at 00:00 EST (15:00 UTC) on 24 October 2014, with the pre-order of *Reclassified* on theiTunes Store.[11] The song then received its radio premiere on iHeart Radio a few hours later, at 06:00 EST (11:00 UTC).[13] WJHMsubsequently played the song 16 times in its first day following its premiere.[14] "Beg for It" impacted contemporary hit radio andrhythmic contemporary radio in the United States on 28 October 2014.[15] The song's digital release was slated to 24 November 2014 in the United Kingdom, the same day as*Reclassified*.[16] A digital remixes EP was later commissioned in Australia on 18 December 2014,[17] and in the United Kingdom on 25 January 2015.[18]

## Composition

"Beg for It" is a pop-rap and electro-trapsong. It contains a percolating, booming stark beat, and solicits a sinuous, minimalist feel. The song's instrumentation comprises an impish, echoed synthesizer, hollowed-out bass, anddrums and keyboards played by members of The Invisible Men and The Arcade. "Beg for It" is set in the time signature of common time, with a moderately fast tempo of 94beats per minute. It is composed in the key ofE flat minor with Azalea and MØ's vocals spanning the tonal nodes of E♭4 to D♭5. A basic sequence of A# m–F#-C#-Gb is followed throughout the song as its chord progression.

The track opens with Azalea rapping the line, "Pull up looking picture perfect, baby / High price, but I'm worth it baby". MØ sings the chorus hook, "I know you like the way I turn it on / I'm out here with my friends / Imma make you beg, make you beg for it," with "swagger", and a playful and bubbly tone; in contrast with Azalea's cadence andbraggadocio in its verses. It was noted that MØ's vocal was heavily processed, with a jocose sample bound along with it. "Beg for It" also features additional vocals by XCX and background vocals by Antonia Karamani. The track garnered several comparisons with the rapper's two previous singles, "Black Widow" and "Fancy". It was also noted to share similarities with T.I.'s "No Mediocre", which features Azalea.

"Beg for It" contains themes of girl power, and prominently figures the phrase "pussy power". The lyric, "Iggy, Iggy, Iggy can't you see? / That everyone wants to put their hands on me" interpolates The Notorious B.I.G.'s "Hypnotize" (1997). Marissa G. Miller ofRadio.com noted that Azalea's verse, "That everybody wanna put their hands on me / See I be on this money why your man on me / And I need another hand with all these bandz on me," depicted the rapper as "headstrong". Throughout the song, the Azalea's lyrics tease and gloat about an ex-lover who "wants to bring the feeling back". "Beg for It" also explores a common pop theme of telling a man to work hard for the protagonist's attention.