4 thoughts I had while watching Da Baby fumble the beat for ‘Sittin’ On Top of the World (Freestyle)’

OPINION: Da Baby decided to toss some verses on the instrumental for Burna Boy’s single “Sittin’ On Top of the World’” and I don’t think it went how he thinks it went.

Editor’s note: The following article is an op-ed, and the views expressed are the author’s own. Read more opinions on theGrio.

For the record, this article isn’t my fault. I was minding my business the other day when I got a text from a fellow hip-hop head asking me if I’d seen this video of Da Baby doing a “freestyle” — we really need some rules as to what constitutes a freestyle — over Burna Boy’s single “Sittin’ On Top of the World.” The immediate answer was, “Of course not.” It’s a rare day when I’m enticed by a freestyle from rappers I don’t pay much attention to, but this one also happens to be over a beat for a song I think is terrible. Let’s be clear: the Brandy version of the song, “Top of The World,” was cool when it was released back in 1998, but I didn’t even love it back then. When Burna Boy dropped a version of the song earlier this year featuring 21 Savage that both sampled and used the same beat, I definitely didn’t like it. Point is, Da Baby over a beat I didn’t care for? I’ll pass. 

The homie was like, “Just check it out and get back.” Since I know when somebody doesn’t say anything more than check it out, one of two things are on the horizon: either the rapper BODIED the joint and I will be impressed, or, more likely, shenanigans are afoot. In this case, it’s the latter and it brought me joy. 

For 2 minutes and 42 seconds, Da Baby, (via a well-shot video) does a version of rapping over the beat that made me laugh. And since it brought me joy, I thought I’d welcome you to share in the joy for me, too, by pointing out four quick thoughts I had while watching and listening to this “freestyle.” 

1. There’s absolutely no way this is a freestyle. At least not in the traditional sense. 

One thing about freestyling that can obscure some, let’s say, lyrical limitations is that because it’s off the top of your head, the flow employed usually just rides the beat. Listen to me, there is no way Da Baby flows THIS badly off the top of his head. I’ve heard enough Da Baby songs to know he can rap. I’m not saying he’s Nas, but I’ve never heard a song of his and felt like “Silkk The Shocker called and wants his inability to ride a beat back.” That’s what happened here in tremendous fashion. You cannot freestyle “I’ve been in several different continents” more awkwardly than he did without doing that on purpose. It sounds SO bad that it has to be intentional. I’ve rewound that one line over and over because I cannot fathom why he didn’t fix that. It makes me cringe. As does how he speeds up over the beat in the next bars. Whew, chile. This is what happens when you don’t have any friends. 

2. Da Baby really seems to think he went off. 

The absolute glee and joy he seems to be expressing as he’s spitting this Dylan-level hot fire (sarcasm mine) seems to imply that he really thinks he is getting one off. Look at that smile in the video! And all I hear is a really bad decision seen all the way through execution … that didn’t have to be. He recorded this song before he shot a video and shared it with us; do his ears not work? How could anybody listen to this broken flow on a song and be like, “Yeah, I did that!” Ya know, not named Silkk or Bluface or any of a number of rappers for whom finding the beat seems a real challenge. Silkk is catching strays here, but man, the late ’90s were rough on some of those No Limit releases. And to think, I remember convos about whether Silkk or Mystikal was the better rapper. Ouch.

3. I cannot stress how bad he is on this song. 

But let me try. Da Baby is REALLY, REALLY bad on this song. Each bar is an actual lyrical display of failure. It doesn’t even matter what he’s saying because he sounds so bad saying it. He could be spitting the greatest lines of all time and all anybody can hear is how far off the beat he is. Of all the flows in all of the land, how he ended up using every wrong one is truly a testament to either his talent or ineptitude; I cannot decide which one it is. He released it so this has to be on purpose, no? Maybe this is a troll.

4. I wonder if the people in the background had any idea what was happening.

While Da Baby is spitting offbeat about sitting on top of the world, he’s dapping up a white dude who wants a picture with him; I wonder if that guy knows who he is or saw a Black man wearing a Suge Knight starter suit and was like, “He’s probably famous.” Even the folks on the beach walking their dogs are probably wondering what’s happening. I wonder if Da Baby had the music blasting so he could rap along to it, leaving more people confused as they heard bad rapping about drugs, mayhem and sex. Oh, and sitting on top of the world. These things keep me up at night, and I hope they walked away with as much joy as I had laughing at this display of tomfoolery. Then again, Da Baby is sitting on top of the world and has been to all of the continents so he’s probably getting the last laugh here. 

Panama Jackson is a columnist at theGrio. He writes very Black things and drinks very brown liquors, and is pretty fly for a light guy. His biggest accomplishment to date coincides with his Blackest accomplishment to date in that he received a phone call from Oprah Winfrey after she read one of his pieces (biggest), but he didn’t answer the phone because the caller ID said: “Unknown” (Blackest).

Make sure you check out the Dear Culture podcast every Thursday on theGrio’s Black Podcast Network, where I’ll be hosting some of the Blackest conversations known to humankind. You might not leave the convo with an afro, but you’ll definitely be looking for your Afro Sheen! Listen to Dear Culture on TheGrio’s app; download it here.

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