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“XO TOUR Llif3”

By Matthew Strauss

self-released

February 28, 2017

Lil Uzi Vert may as well be a cartoon character. It’s an image he embraces with his anime-inspired album artwork and twitchy songs. But he resists total caricature with his liberal use of dark, manic details, and on “XO TOUR Llif3” he channels the indulgence of dulled senses perfected by Future at his DS2  peak. Uzi’s nihilistic hook (“Push me to the edge/All my friends are dead”), at first relatively muted, picks up steam by the end of the triumphant first verse, becoming less of a death wish and more of an urgent request. TM88 ’s slightly psychedelic minor key production, gives Uzi’s nonchalance the feeling of a daydream. “XO TOUR Llif3” locates Uzi’s highs and lows—finding the uneasy middle between dire circumstances and party boy antics.

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Songs That Defined the Decade: Lil Uzi Vert’s ‘XO TOUR Llif3’

Billboard is celebrating the 2010s with essays on the 100 songs that we feel most define the decade that was -- the songs that both shaped and reflected the music and culture of the period -- with…

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Billboard  is celebrating the 2010s  with essays on the 100 songs that we feel most define the decade that was — the songs that both shaped and reflected the music and culture of the period — with help telling their stories from some of the artists, behind-the-scenes collaborators and industry insiders involved.

Lil Uzi Vert

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The story behind Lil Uzi Vert ’s nihilistic 2017 smash, “XO TOUR Llif3,” is a classic tale of triumph through tragedy. It starts in 2016, when after creating potential hits with Future and Gucci Mane in a Miami studio, producer TM88 was ready to head back to his native Atlanta to master his soon-to-be successes. But he would get caught up in what would become January’s Fort Lauderdale airport shooting, where a perpetrator flew in from Alaska and took the lives of five victims.

“I was trying to board my flight and then we see a stampede of people just running towards us and we just ran on the plane,” he recalls. In the midst of the panic, TM88 let go of all his prized possessions — including the beloved laptop that held all of his hard work. “I ended up just dropping all my shit … I got back home and was like, ‘D–n bro, I have nothing.’”

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So he had no choice but to remake all the beats on a cracked computer screen. “I was like, ‘Man, I’m finna make the best beats I’ve ever made in my life.’ I guess God blessed me with ‘XO TOUR Llif3.’”

After receiving a call from Uzi, who was in dire need of inspiration, TM88 dug up one of his old beats and began remixing it. A month later, Uzi surprised fans with the Luv Is Rage 1.5 EP release on SoundCloud. It featured “XO TOUR Llif3,” a song that helped change the course of an entire genre.

Its somber strings ushered in the Philadelphia rapper’s elegy, which put the remains of the cheerful feelings he had on Migos’ “Bad and Boujee” to rest, following the break-up with then-girlfriend Brittany Byrd. “I was speaking authentic on ‘XO Tour Llif3,’” Lil Uzi Vert told Billboard in 2017. “Anyone can relate: I was in a dark space, so I went with it.”

2017 No. 1s: Lil Uzi Vert on How Being 'Authentic' Took 'XO Tour Llif3' to Pop Radio

But it was much more than a dark space usually saved for the deepest corners of one’s diary. The rapper revealed heartache, suicidal thoughts and issues with Xanax abuse to the world. And with a singular lyric — “Push me to the edge/ All my friends are dead” — Uzi temporarily halted the exorbitant themes of rap’s What a Time to Be Alive era.

“I think it affected people in general,” Reggie Rouse, program director at Atlanta radio station V-103, explains. “Whether you’re into hip-hop, R&B or pop, you heard this record on the radio or downloaded the song. You didn’t see a ton of that [at that time] but now it’s par for the course.”

How Rappers Like Lil Uzi Vert & Travis Scott Made Moshing & Metal Tees Mainstream in Hip-Hop

That painfully honest revelation garnered Uzi’s highest-charting single to date (it peaked at No. 7 on the Billboard Hot 100) and has been certified seven times Platinum by the RIAA. But pushing all of its grand accolades aside, “XO” helped open the floodgates of a surging subgenre: emo-rap. Its influence can be heard in a handful of millennial rappers, from Juice WRLD to the late XXXTentacion. With Uzi (who professed his fandom for Marilyn Manson and created massive mosh pits at shows) at the front line, these new-gen stars took rock’s teen angst and unabashedly claimed it for themselves.

“Lil Uzi changed the whole landscape of where music was starting to go. Ever since [its release], you started seeing more people, even producers use my [melodic] cadences,” TM88 explains. “I feel like the bigger the song got, it just made everybody want to be on that type of sound.”

That experimental sound is what Rouse attributes to the timelessness of “XO Tour Llif3”: “It’s one of those songs that still sounds great on radio. Not every hit can be played 5-10 years down the road and people still nod their heads to it.”

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XO Tour Llif3

Lil uzi vert.

About XO Tour Llif3

"XO Tour Llif3" (stylized as "XO TOUR Llif3" and pronounced "XO Tour Life") is a single by American rapper Lil Uzi Vert from his extended play Luv Is Rage 1.5 (2017) and debut album Luv Is Rage 2 (2017). It was released on Soundcloud on February 26, 2017., and later on all music streaming platforms on March 24, 2017. The track was produced by TM88, with co-production by JW Lucas. It peaked at number seven on the US Billboard Hot 100, becoming Lil Uzi Vert's highest-charting single as a solo artist at the time, as well as his second top 10 entry overall after his feature on "Bad and Boujee" by Migos. It is Lil Uzi Vert's most popular song, and has amassed over 1 billion streams on Spotify.   more »

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Symere Woods (born July 31, 1994), better known by his stage name Lil Uzi Vert, is an American hip hop recording artist. Based in Philadelphia, he gained recognition after releasing his debut single, "Money Longer", and several mixtapes, including Luv Is Rage, Lil Uzi Vert vs. the World and The Perfect Luv Tape. Lil Uzi Vert has also collaborated with a several prominent rappers, most notably his appearance on Migos' "Bad and Boujee", which became Lil Uzi Vert's first US Billboard Hot 100 number-one single. more »

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Written by: Symere Woods, John Lucas, Bryan Simmons

Lyrics © BMG Rights Management, Warner Chappell Music, Inc.

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Know any other songs by lil uzi vert don't keep it to yourself, image credit, the web's largest resource for, music, songs & lyrics, a member of the stands4 network, watch the song video, top hot 100 songs 2017, billboard #7, more tracks from the album, luv is rage 2 [deluxe].

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Song Meanings and Facts

• Lil Uzi Vert

“XO Tour Llif3” by Lil Uzi Vert

by SMF · Published March 10, 2020 · Updated March 10, 2020

We can say that “XO Tour Llif3” features three major themes. First and foremost, as detailed by the chorus, is a troubled romance Lil Uzi Vert had with his significant other at the time, a lady by the name of Brittany Byrd.  This is someone whom he dated for a couple of years  beginning in 2014 . And whereas it is clear he truly loves her and vice versa, it is also quite evident that they had some very-serious issues. And the way the terse storyline detailed in the chorus reads, she deceived him in a way that really hurt his feelings.

It should be noted that Lil Uzi himself had confirmed that said deception  was not based on her cheating . But either way, as a result of being hurt so, he likewise caused her significant emotional pain. And honestly, the way the lyrics read is as if she is actually threatening to take her own life as a result. So the popular hypothesis is that Uzi was on the verge of dumping her. And in response she let him know that if he actually did so, she would commit suicide.

Lil Uzi Vert cheated on Brittany

The above is not to imply that Lil Uzi was the good guy in the relationship. In fact at the beginning of the first verse a brief story is told where “Brittany got mad” and almost dumped him. And apparently this was due to Uzi Vert being sensually intimate with some random chick.

Song’s Chorus

Now also in the chorus, the rapper states that ‘all his friends are dead’. This statement actually lends to the other two themes of this track, which are Uzi’s wealth and his depression. You see this term is meant to be more metaphorical than literal. For instance, it has been put forth that said “dead friends” is actually a reference to  dead presidents . Such is a popular colloquial term for dollars, which tend to feature the images of deceased American presidents on the monetary notes. Or looked at through a different lens, money has taken on the role of friends in Uzi Vert’s life. And indeed throughout the song he makes numerous references to his wealth, perhaps even more so than the aforementioned relationship with Brittany.

Uzi Vert is Depressed

And as for the final theme, that would be his depression. So going back to the statement that all his friends are dead, it is literal in the sense that many of homeys have in fact been fatal victims of street violence. But it is also his way of saying that he is not looking for any new homeys neither. Rather, as stated earlier, he is cool with his wealth serving the role of a faithful companion.

But said wealth does not mean he doesn’t suffer from his fair share of mental issues. Indeed at the end of the first verse he admits to being a user of a very dangerous drug which many abusers utilize as a form of stress relief. And that is the same manner in which the rapper is using it, to “help the pain” and “make it go away”. However, he also contends that he is not an addict.  Instead it just serves the purpose of helping to alleviate his depression.

In Conclusion

So comprehensively, we can say that this is a song which is reflective of prominent factors in Lil Uzi Vert’s life at the time he wrote. He was in a serious yet troubled romance with a certain lady, whom he respects and loves enough to actually namedrop. He was also dealing with an affliction akin to general depression and related issues. Additionally, we all know Uzi Vert is quite paid.

Now as for the title of this track,  XO  is in fact a popular term  associated with romance . However, that is not the purpose it serves in this case. Rather it is a roundabout shoutout to The Weeknd, who founded a label in 2012 called XO Records. And the reason Uzi Vert was compelled to give a shoutout to the Canadian crooner in such a fashion is that he actually served as one of Abel’s opening acts during his  Starboy: Legend of the Fall Tour  in 2017. In other words, he and The Weeknd are serious homeys. Moreover, we see that the word “tour” also made it into the title. But as for the “Llif3”, that obviously reads like some type of alternate spelling of the word “life”.

Music Videos

There are three different music videos to this song, so to speak. The first was issued by Uzi Vert via his YouTube channel. It is an animated affair by an artist named Andrew William Ralph. The second, a lyric video, had Jered Harrison as its director. And the official music video was actually directed by Virgil Abloh, a prominent fashion designer who is especially popular in hip-hop circles. And it features The Weeknd as well as a Canadian rapper named Nav. The latter also participated in the aforementioned tour.

Facts about “XO Tour Llif3”

This track was officially released on 26 February 2017 as part of Uzi Vert’s second EP, “Luv Is Rage 1.5”. Also it was later issued as part of Uzi Vert’s first full-length studio album, which is “Luv Is Rage 2”. And “XO Tour Llif3” served as the lead single from both of those projects.

This track is the most-popular song of the early part of Uzi’s career. For instance, it was the first time that he, as a solo artist, broke the top 10 of the Billboard Hot 100 – where it peaked at number 7. It also made an appearance on the UK Singles Chart and charted in almost 20 countries overall. And it has been certified multi-Platinum in four countries, inducing Poland and Italy.  Moreover for the record, as of early 2020 “XO Tour Llif3” has actually been certified septuple-Platinum in the rapper’s home country of the United States.

“XO Tour Llif3” also blew up on social media. And its popularity spawned the  Lil Uzi Vert Challenge , where participants were tasked with  mimicking a dance move  that the artist created.

Moreover the tune proved to be so popular that Uzi Vert even  released a sequel , entitled “ P2 ”, in 2020.

Additionally the reputable crowdsourcing music site  Genius  actually deemed this track  “The Best Song of 2017” .

Production and Writing Credits

“XO Tour Llif3” was the first track TM88, who would go on to become a regular collaborator of Lil Uzi Vert, produced for the rapper. And as the story goes he completed the project using an outdated computer and a Bluetooth speaker called a Beats Pill. This was due to challenges he was facing with his normal laptop.

The other co-producer of the track is an artist by the name of JW Lucas. And “XO Tour Llif3” was written by Uzi in conjunction with TM88 and JW Lucas.

TM88 has acknowledged that he was actually sitting on the beat which ultimately served as the instrumental basis for “XO Tour Llif3” for a while.  He and JW Lucas had been shopping it, “but it didn’t reach”, as in it wasn’t actually purchased by any potential clients. So he reworked it for Uzi Vert.  More specifically, he sped up the tempo so that the track would appeal to club goers.

Related posts:

• “P2” by Lil Uzi Vert
• “Neon Guts” by Lil Uzi Vert (ft. Pharrell Williams)

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Tags: JW Lucas Lil Uzi Vert Luv Is Rage 1.5 Luv Is Rage 2 TM88 XO Tour Llif3

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Song Meanings & Facts

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XO TOUR Llif3

• Lil Uzi Vert

Lyrics submitted by Mellow_Harsher , edited by justin1058

XO Tour Llif3 Lyrics as written by John Lucas Symere Woods

Lyrics © BMG Rights Management, Songtrust Ave, Warner Chappell Music, Inc.

Lyrics powered by LyricFind

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Sounds like a fight between him and a girl, mentioning betrayal, addiction, and suicide.

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The song is about a guy who is trying to breakup with his suicidal girlfriend for cheating on him. He tells her he's done, it doesn't matter if she cries or begs. She shouldn't have lied. She looks him in the eye with utter devastation and says she doesn't care if she dies if she loses him. He lost his friends to death somehow, whether it be violence or suicide, and he feels at a loss again. It is assumed she self-harmed whether it led to death or not.

He feels like he's tainted in blood and violence but his heart is pure white, for his innocence he retained. He finds himself getting lost in the sex and the money, with random girls and the bands. He doesn't care for their story, he just wants to forget the pain. He resorts to Xanax, anything to get his mind off it. Even if the sex is mind-blowing for the girl he is with, it isn't enough. He feels lost and disoriented when he is alone.

He feels like he's different. His story and pain makes him unique. He doesn't agree with other artists spitting on his game. He feels his turmoil makes his creativity different from the rest. He is sick of the judgement because he's been through more than most have seen. He holds it in behind these material properties but it'll never heal the tragedy of losing her and his friends.

This song is about how he doesn't care about anybody cause all his friends are dead his friends are the president on the money and this song is also about a fan he met on tour you all sound dumb

He's saying fuck that lying ass bitch and bitch ass folks he had in the past that pushed him to the edge. All his friends are dead which means his friends are the dead presidents/money now. This is who he trusts now instead of trusting the personalities of "people" that he can't trust. Even though its truly a hurtful situation and reality that he knows,understands and feels, the money numbs the pain of his true emotions and of the knowledge of the truth. He's saying look what you turned me into, a monster with money.

Well, I'm pretty sure this is about his life. Because I saw this photo of Uzi and a group of friends, and most of his friends in the picture are dead. So I'm guessing he's writing a song about them..? </3

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