Infrared

Album: Daytona (2018)
Charted: 65
Play Video

Songfacts®:

  • In 2015 Meek Mill accused Drake of not writing his own raps, alleging Drake employed Quentin Miller as his ghostwriter. The pair then exchanged a series of diss tracks aimed at each other. Here, Pusha T fires a number of direct shots at Drake, which include the ghostwriter accusations.

    The lyric pennin' equal the Trumps winnin'
    The bigger question is how the Russians did it
    It was written like Nas but it came from Quentin
    .

    In the same way that Donald Trump allegedly had outside help from the Russians in becoming President, Pusha claims that Drake gets assistance from ghostwriters.
  • Infrared light has longer wavelengths than those of visible light, and is therefore generally invisible to the human eye. However, using special kinds of film or devices, we can see things we wouldn't normally see. Pusha uses infrared light to illustrate the way he sees such rappers as Drake who he believes aren't real.
  • Drake and Pusha have been trading shots at each other for years on different tracks. "Two Birds, One Stone," for instance finds the Toronto MC calling out the Virginia Beach native for relying on his drug dealing past for much of his content. Explaining to Genius' On The Record why he mentions Quentin Miller during this song Pusha pointed to Drake's disses on "Two Birds." He said: "You know I heard it, I felt like, 'Okay.' I can't have an argument about how real I am. It all depends on what you know, what you claim to be, you know what I'm saying?"
  • Jay-Z is credited as a writer on the track as it interpolates Hova's Kingdom Come song "The Prelude."
  • Within 24 hours of Daytona's release, Drake responded to "Infrared" by dropping a song titled "Duppy Freestyle." During the joint he responds to Pusha's ghostwriting allegations and mocks him for exaggerating his drug dealing past in his rhymes.
  • Pusha has some regrets about referencing Quentin Miller's name during this song. "[Quentin] doesn't want no parts of it. He's really trying to chase his dream. If there was anything that I didn't like about 'Infrared' it would probably be that," King Push told Hot 97's Funkmaster Flex. "Just because I know somebody is really trying to do something outside of all this fiasco."

Comments

Be the first to comment...

Editor's Picks

Sarah Brightman

Sarah BrightmanSongwriter Interviews

One of the most popular classical vocalists in the land is lining up a trip to space, which is the inspiration for many of her songs.

Al Kooper

Al KooperSongwriter Interviews

Kooper produced Lynyrd Skynyrd, played with Dylan and the Stones, and formed BS&T.

Reverend Horton Heat

Reverend Horton HeatSongwriter Interviews

The Reverend rants on psychobilly and the egghead academics he bashes in one of his more popular songs.

90210 to Buffy to Glee: How Songs Transformed TV

90210 to Buffy to Glee: How Songs Transformed TVSong Writing

Shows like Dawson's Creek, Grey's Anatomy and Buffy the Vampire Slayer changed the way songs were heard on TV, and produced some hits in the process.

Van Dyke Parks

Van Dyke ParksSongwriter Interviews

U2, Carly Simon, Joanna Newsom, Brian Wilson and Fiona Apple have all gone to Van Dyke Parks to make their songs exceptional.

Richard Marx

Richard MarxSongwriter Interviews

Richard explains how Joe Walsh kickstarted his career, and why he chose Hazard, Nebraska for a hit.