Nobody

Album: Mastermind (2014)
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Songfacts®:

  • This song is Ross' homage to The Notorious B.I.G's 1997 track "You're Nobody (Til Somebody Kills You)," which was a play off the 1944 popular tune "You're Nobody till Somebody Loves You." The track was featured on Biggie's second and final album, 1997's Life After Death, which was released two weeks after the rapper was killed in a drive-by shooting in Los Angeles.
  • The track begins with an audio mash-up of various news reports surrounding the drive-by shooting, which unsuccessfully targeted Ross in January 2013. We then hear Diddy launch into a motivation speech about steering clear of haters, before French Montana delivers the haunting hook and the Maybach leader spits some bars in which he addresses the attempt on his own life.
  • Diddy appeared on Biggie's 1997 original as both performer and executive producer. He not only supplied the instrumentation for this track but also executive produced Ross' entire Mastermind album. "Diddy is one of the greatest producers of all time and someone I respect," said Ross. "He has a proven track record of not only creating hit records but also classic albums. It just made sense for me to have him be a part of this process."
  • Speaking in a WorldStarHipHop.com video, Ross explained how he saw Biggie's prophetic contemplation of the effects that death has on one's legacy in a new light after the 2013 attempt on his own life. "I went back and listened to the Big record in a totally different way," he said. "At the end of the day, regardless of how graphic it may be, it's a beautiful piece of art. It's a beautiful art sculpture. Its original creator was the Notorious B.I.G.; I just came and I put my hands on it."
  • Ross explained to The Source magazine why he chose to reference his near-death shooting in a song. "Me being in that position that I was in, or that I'm in, it was like 'maybe the homie was really trying to tell us something, but we just took it as a record. We took it as a song,' he explained. "I was like that's why it was so powerful and meaningful to us as a culture. We're all fighting for our own existence. Every day we perform, every day you got to go to work, we're fighting the critics off you, your bosses, your managers, your co-workers of whatever it is. We all on some level relate to those records."

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