BMF
by SZA

Album: Lana (2024)
Charted: 21 29
Play Video

Songfacts®:

  • "BMF" is a bossa nova-inspired track where SZA lays out her intense attraction and admiration for a love interest.
  • The title, "BMF," most likely stands for "Blowin' Money Fast," a phrase SZA repeats in the lyrics like a mantra for indulgence. It's not hard to imagine the money flying as fast as the emotions in this whirlwind relationship.

    Blowin' money fast, it won't last
    Tryna make it last, ooh-oh


    The refrain, tinged with both urgency and inevitability, underscores the fleeting nature of material pleasures and tumultuous romances. It's not just cash that's going up in smoke - there's a sense that the entire affair might implode even as it burns brightly.
  • Some fans have speculated that "BMF" nods to the TV series Black Mafia Family, set in Detroit, bolstered by the lyric:

    The boy from South Detroit keep bossing
  • There's a reference to Los Angeles's Slauson Avenue, where SZA's love interest takes her for a memorable (if not entirely PG-rated) outing. The line may nod to Nipsey Hussle, a rapper raised in the nearby Crenshaw neighborhood who was shot dead at the same road.
  • Musically, the track is rooted in bossa nova, with SZA interpolating Stan Getz and João Gilberto's classic "The Girl From Ipanema" in the chorus. Where the 1964 hit admired a love interest with poetic restraint, SZA takes the gloves off, serving her compliments with a provocative edge.
  • Co-written by SZA with Blake Slatkin, Carter Lang, and Omer Fedi, "BMF" originally carried the title "Boy From South Detroit." It was met with less-than-enthusiastic responses from key figures like Rob Bisel, a producer and engineer on SZA's SOS album, and Punch, CEO of her label, Top Dawg Entertainment. "They weren't really excited about it," SZA confessed to Rolling Stone. But she stuck to her guns, insisting, "No, I really believe in this."

    Her conviction paid off - sort of. The song didn't make the initial SOS album, though it became a fan-favorite outtake, eventually earning a spot on the deluxe edition, Lana.

Comments: 1

  • I Am A Huge Fan Of Bmf! from AmericaI love BMF I did a research project about that song and it was so fun!
see more comments

Editor's Picks

Harry Shearer

Harry ShearerSongwriter Interviews

Harry is Derek Smalls in Spinal Tap, Mark Shubb in The Folksmen, and Mr. Burns on The Simpsons.

Glen Burtnik

Glen BurtnikSongwriter Interviews

On Glen's résumé: hit songwriter, Facebook dominator, and member of Styx.

Creedence Clearwater Revival

Creedence Clearwater RevivalFact or Fiction

Is "Have You Ever Seen the Rain" about Vietnam? Was John Fogerty really born on a Bayou? It's the CCR edition of Fact or Fiction.

We Will Rock You (To Sleep): Pop Stars Who Recorded Kids' Albums

We Will Rock You (To Sleep): Pop Stars Who Recorded Kids' AlbumsSong Writing

With the rise of Kindie rock, more musicians are embracing their inner child with tunes for tots - here, we look at pop stars who recorded kids' albums.

Phil Hurtt ("I'll Be Around")

Phil Hurtt ("I'll Be Around")Songwriter Interviews

Phil was a songwriter, producer and voice behind many Philadelphia soul classics. When disco hit, he got an interesting project: The Village People.

Graham Bonnet (Alcatrazz, Rainbow)

Graham Bonnet (Alcatrazz, Rainbow)Songwriter Interviews

Yngwie Malmsteen and Steve Vai were two of Graham's co-writers for some '80s rock classics.