Amidst The Music: Official Girl
Released: April 10th, 2008
Genre: Electro-R&B
Length: 3m 35s
Label: Bad Boy/NextSelection/Atlantic
Recorded: 2007–08; Legacy Studios (New York City)
Mixed: 2008; Hit Factory Criteria (Miami)
Songwriters: The Clutch, Nathaniel Hills, Marcella Araica
Producer: Danja
Recording Engineer: Dave Hyman
Mixing Engineers: Marcella Araica/Chad Jolley
“Official Girl” is a song recorded by singer Cassie. The original composition was written by members of a collective called The Clutch, which includes Balewa Muhammad, Candice Nelson, Ezekiel Lewis, along with Marcella Araica and Nathaniel “Danja” Hills. Production was also handled by Hills. A solo version of “Official Girl” was made available for streaming on Cassie’s MySpace page on April 10, 2008. It was finally made available for digital download on August 5, 2008, via the iTunes Store, featuring a collaboration with Lil’ Wayne. The video premiered online in late July 2008. It was released through Bad Boy and NextSelection, in association with Atlantic Records, who then serviced it to rhythmic contemporary radio stations on September 22, 2008. The single was issued on vinyl as well, with a promotional record being released that month.
This song is so intense, masterfuly arranged and brilliantly produced it’s ridiculous. The selection of sounds used reveals Danja in his bag of creative and emotional genius like no other. I can’t comprehend what the heck he was thinking, but I wanna know. What was the inspirational muse that caused such a timeless composition? There is literally so much going on with this song, in production, lyrics, vocal style, context and more, that it literally can not be written in it’s entirety in this passage alone. It has haunted me in the most beautiful, ethereal way that a song could for a long time now. Provoking thoughts and feelings and responses far beyond the context of the song itself. It may be safe to say that it has earned close to 1,000 rotations since my first listen, and it’s still spinning! And it hasn’t lost it’s effect or impact. As a producer and engineer, I have studied this song in and out. It has caused a heavy paradigm shift in my musical approach and perspective. One of those joints that send you back to the lab, standing in front of your console stuck, taking a deep breath; Thinking, “*Sigh*, What the f*ck did I just hear?… And feel?… It’s off the charts, to say the least. And in my opinion, is one of the most soul stirring, mysterious tracks I’ve ever heard. Especially in modern Hip-Hop and R&B. I truly think it was way ahead of it’s time and went right over people’s head. Otherwise, it would have been number 1 for 100 weeks easy.
A demo version of the track had been originally recorded by singer Karina Pasian, but did not become the final version. If you understand the spirit of the song, it becomes very apparent why. And it has nothing to do with any talent deficiency of either artist.
This song needed to be expressed in a very particular way to manifest the essence of a balanced woman. One who presents herself in a way that is submissive but assertive and strong when she needs to be. Able to stress her point in the most feminine way without bruising her man or his manhood, with disrespect. This is critical in the male/female dynamic. The way that it is done here causes you to have empathy, sympathy and support for the woman, as opposed to seeing her as a nag or a being a b*tch about it. To be so bold towards her man is powerful and makes it clear that she has true feelings and needs, and she isn’t playing about them anymore. But she balances it out with a gracefulness of a woman, even though she is apparently very hurt. This song mastered the art of pulling this off, in essence. Ladies, I know you can relate to her stance, but you need to be taking notes as well. It is not only a song that expresses “girl power”. It is so much more intricate and involved than that, being for both the women and men alike. It stands out from the others because of this. In the usual song of this type, you will find the woman trying to get her point across and put her foot down, but the way it was done comes off harsh, disrespectful, naggy and/or ‘unlady like’. You can clearly hear it leaning towards this in the Pasian version. And you can easily distinguish the difference in the two versions. For the Cassie version, The lyrics were changed to reflect less harshness and more gracefulness. And Cassie’s vocal style is clearly more suitable for conveying that precisely as it needed to be. Karinas vocal are very good, yet her vox box has a more harder, aggressive sound, and she speaks with a different accent. She has a more belting, intense voice. Those things, along with the more demanding wording in her version would have taken the song in a darker, more cold blooded direction. Nothing extreme it that direction, but just enough to make it a bit too forceful. It borders on Karina telling her man with sincerity and passion, but with an attitude and kinda downing him. Almost like she has lost the love for him already and is just telling him off before she leaves him. Cassie is asking her man, with a passionate yearning. Making it clear that she still desires him with sincerity and intensity, like an emergency of the heart, trying to prevent the love that is apparently still there from leaving if he does not recognize her worth. I wonder how much of this was done on purpose. Or did it just come together that way in the end incidentally. Either way, that key difference is still there in black and white.
Check out the lyric comparison to see the difference in detail.
Official Girl - Lyric Comparison
{Intro: Danja}
Ah, Danja and the Clutch
I miss you girl, I miss you girl
I'ma make you my official girl
{Verse 1: Karina}
Listen, I ain't tryna hear it
Listen up while I make it clear?
You wasn't up on your biz
Let me tell you what it ain't what it is, can you handle it?
Don't know what you take me for
But ya game was lame from my door
Matter fact, don't react, just relax, I'm fall back
{Chorus: Karina}
Get so tired, tired, so tired
I won't be your (Your) unofficial girl (Unofficial girl)
So quit trying, trying, stop trying
To make me your (Your) unofficial girl
(You gotta learn to love me)
You gotta love me in the light and the dark
You gotta give me, give me all of your heart
I gotta be your (Be your) official girl (Official girl)
Said I gotta, gotta, gotta be your (Be your) official girl
I gotta be your official girl
I gotta be your official girl (Official girl), official girl
{Verse 2: Karina}
If you keep this up, there's bound to be a mess
'Cause I ain't really like the rest
Put to the test, I'ma surely pass (Yeah)
You better do the math
I'm stylish (Click), so bossy (Check)
It would be a shame to say you lost me
But if you want that, it's a wrap and I won't look back
(I won't look back)
{Chorus: Karina}
Get so tired, so tired, so tired
I won't be your (Your) unofficial girl (Unofficial girl)
So quit trying, trying (Hey) stop trying
To make me your (Your) unofficial girl (Unofficial girl)
(You gotta learn to love me)
You gotta love me in the light and the dark (Ooh)
You gotta give me, give me all of your heart
I gotta be your (Be your) official girl (Official girl)
Said I gotta, gotta, gotta be your (Be your) official girl
I gotta be your official girl
I gotta be your official girl (Official girl)
{Bridge: Karina & Danja}
Uh, I miss you girl, I miss you girl
I'ma make you my official girl
You better act right
I'm two seconds from being out the door
Uh, I miss you girl, I miss you girl (yeah)
I'ma make you my official girl
Step to me officially or not at all anymore
And I can't make you choose
Long as you're cool on knowing
You're missing out on a good thing
And I ain't making ultimatums
I'ma tell you like this verbatim
{Chorus: Karina}
Get so tired, said I'm tired, so tired
I won't be your (Not gonna be unofficially yours) your unofficial girl
So quit trying, trying, stop trying
To make me your (your) unofficial girl
You gotta learn to love
You gotta love me in the light and the dark (yeah)
You gotta give me, give me all of your heart
I gotta be your (Be your) official girl (Official girl)
Said I gotta, gotta, gotta be your (Be your) official girl
I gotta be your official girl
I gotta be your official girl (Official girl), official girl
{Outro: Danja}
Uh, I miss you girl, I miss you girl
I'ma make you my official girl
{Intro: Danja}
Ah, Danja and the Clutch
I miss you girl, I miss you girl
I'ma make you my official girl
{Verse 1: Cassie}
Listen, today makes it a year
Don't you think it's time that you made it clear?
You gotta get on your biz
Tell me what it ain't or what it is, I can handle it
I've had it up to here, I don't wanna pressure you dear
I've sent back to back dudes away from my door
Thinking I was spoken for, not anymore
{Chorus: Cassie}
And I'm tired, I'm tired, I'm tired
Of being your (Your) unofficial girl (Unofficial girl)
And I'm tired, I'm tired of trying (Ooh, but I'm still your)
I'm still your (Your) unofficial girl
(You gotta learn to love)
You gotta love me in the light and the dark
You gotta give me, give me all of your heart
I wanna be your (Be your) official girl (Official girl)
Said I wanna, wanna, wanna be your (Be your) official girl
I wanna be your official girl
I wanna be your official girl (Official girl), official girl
{Verse 2: Cassie}
If you keep this up, there's bound to be a mess
'Cause I ain't really like the rest
Put to the test, I can surely pass (Yeah)
You better do the math
I'm so stylish (Click), so bossy (Check)
It would be a shame to say you lost me
But if you want that, it's a wrap and I won't look back
(And I won't look back)
{Chorus: Cassie}
And I'm tired, I'm tired, I'm tired
Of being your (Your) unofficial girl (Unofficial girl)
And I'm tired, I'm tired of trying (Hey, oh whoa)
I'm still your (Your) unofficial girl (Unofficial girl)
(You gotta learn to love me)
You gotta love me in the light and the dark (Ooh, yeah)
You gotta give me, give me all of your heart
I wanna be your (Be your) official girl (Official girl)
Said I wanna, wanna, wanna be your (Be your) official girl
I wanna be your official girl
I wanna be your (Said I wanna be yours) official girl
{Bridge: Cassie & Danja}
Uh, I miss you girl, I miss you girl
I'ma make you my official girl
You better act right
I'm two seconds from being out the door
Uh, I miss you girl, I miss you girl
I'ma make you my official girl
Said I won't be with you unofficially anymore
And I can't make you choose
Long as you're cool on knowing
You're 'bout to blow a good thing
And I ain't making ultimatums
I'ma tell you like this verbatim
{Chorus: Cassie}
And I'm tired, I'm tired, I'm tired
Of being your (Don't wanna be unofficially yours) your unofficial girl
And I'm tired, (Ah, and I'm so tired of trying to make you see me)
I'm still your (Don't wanna be unofficially) unofficial girl
You better learn, learn, learn (You gotta learn to love)
You gotta love me in the light and the dark
You gotta give me, give me all of your heart
I wanna be your (Be your) official girl (Official girl)
Said I wanna, wanna, wanna be your (Be your) official girl
I wanna be your official girl (Cassie)
I wanna be your official girl (Official girl), official girl
{Outro: Danja}
Uh, I miss you girl, I miss you girl
I'ma make you my official girl
Subtle changes to voice tone can dramatically shift what someone is trying to express. It can play a dominant role in how your message or point is perceived and received. A few words changed in the right places can make a world of difference. The masterful writing of the The Clutch and nem proved this clear enough already, with the lyrics alone.
The pitch shifting and time stretching in this special rendition of the song makes an even bigger difference. Especially if you like your samples chopped the smooth way. No lean required.
The low-end bass line is literally and absolutely electrifying! Which is exactly why this version was amped with 7.3dB at 60Hz on the EQ. The sparkling upper-mid range was pushed back a nudge to keep it breezy, no fatigue.
Dipped in hall reverb, gently dripping with echos, ultramaximized without losing dynamic range. Put it on repeat a few times and meditate til you're star traveling with the frequencies of Neter. If you only listen once you'll miss all the sonic bliss it has to offer. I swear this is GAGUT in a beat form!
You might wanna full screen this, and turn it up to star traveling volumes, if you got it like that...
This Post Has 2 Comments
Peace be. This is definitely one cipher specifically for producers and engineers. Honestly, I prefer the sounds of live instruments. This track didn’t “hit” me like others. But I definitely respect your analysis. I did attempt to disregard the typical visuals and even searched for the instrumental by itself.
Here’s one that “hit” my spirit and took me soaring…plus the visuals are truly organic.
Your thoughts?
https://youtu.be/dfODh6ztWpw?feature=shared
Mos def. It definitely is more suitable for modern producers, sound creators and the likes. And trust. I didn’t even begin to get into an analysis of the actual musical composition behind this. I wish I could have and did do that. If I did, it would have become more technical and metaphysical. But if I did do that, it would likely be much more understood why I chose this track. It SOUNDS very simple but it is not. Unless you know what you are doing in such an area, this type of track would fly right over your head and miss you, as it probably did. But I mainly focused on the context behind the entire record, including the lyrical points vs the musical production. Although the lyrics, their arrangement, performance and mix are so well done that they become an instrument in the song themselves and add some amazing rhythmic patterns that are on another level.. But I digress. I had too much to cover and I wanted to convey a message about relationships, women and their attitudes. Uh Oh! Danger zone!
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The instrumental goes just as hard and goes somewhere completely different! Danja is a dimensional producer to say the least. Him, The clutch and Araica did their thing on this and were terribly under-rated to me. I may do a part 2 for all that, but it’s very unlikely. As far as feeling it and the record hitting you, to each their own.
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And I listened to the track you shared. Very nice. Especially that string intro! I can dig it! From the looks of the video it seems they were showcasing a recording being done using a Slate Audio Raven System. Looks like they were talking about it and experimenting with it in the session. Also Steven Slate was there. 🙂 Again, something you’d likely have to be involved in to realize. Anyway, thanks for Ciphering with me!