Three weeks after Paul McCartney and Kanye West released their surprise collaboration “Only One,” the duo have linked up with Rihanna for the soft, acoustic track “FourFiveSeconds.” The song is available at RihannaNow.com.
“I think I’ve had enough,” sings Rihanna over the percussion-less, acoustic guitar-driven track. “I might get a little drunk / I say what’s on my mind / I might do a little time / ‘Cause all of my kindness is taken for weakness.” West takes over on vocals, crooning, “Woke up an optimist/ Sun was shining, I’m positive/ Then I heard you was talkin’ trash / Hold me back, I’m bout to spaz.” West and Rihanna handle all of the song’s vocals, duetting on the chorus with McCartney providing keyboards on the song.
Two days after “Only One” was released, rapper Ty Dolla $ign stoked anticipation for the track, stating that the then-unnamed song was “gonna drop soon.” It’s unclear if “FourFiveSeconds” will appear on an album by any of the artists, though Ty Dolla $ign told Billboard earlier this month that the song would likely appear on West’s upcoming album.
West previewed “FourFiveSeconds” at the IHeartRadio Summit music industry event in Los Angeles on Thursday, where the rapper surprised the audience with a 45-minute, stream-of-consciousness speech about his “responsibility to innovate.” (The same speech in which he revealed that he asked McCartney, “What was pussy like in the Sixties?”) West played “FourFiveSeconds” straight off his computer, promptly slamming his laptop shut and walking offstage before announcing the song’s release date.
Fans of West shouldn’t be too surprised to hear McCartney on another of his tracks. When “Only One” was released, a spokesperson for the rapper said that the song would be the first “publicly available recording from what has become a prolific musical collaboration between these two legendary artists.”
McCartney and West began work on “Only One” earlier last year in Los Angeles, starting with, as the statement notes, “a simple brainstorming session between the two, with McCartney improvising on the keyboards and Kanye vocally sketching and shaping ideas in a stream-of-consciousness riff.” It’s unclear if “FourFiveSeconds,” with its similar mellow vibe, was also a result of these sessions.
