Photo by Sam Balaban
Brent Faiyaz has the spotlight to himself on “Demonz (Interlude)” from Juice WRLD’s album Death Race for Love, handling lead vocals without an appearance from the 20-year-old main artist. According to the track’s co-producer Paperboy Fabe, who spoke to Rolling Stone about the making of the album, that’s because it originally began as a solo track for Faiyaz.
Fabe explained to Rolling Stone that Juice’s A&R Aaron “Dash” Sherrod was the one who wanted to get the song on the project.
“It ended up getting in the hands of Juice WRLD’s A&R through [Faiyaz]’s manager,” Fabe says. “Dash wanted Brent on the project as an interlude. Because of what Juice WRLD was talking about in the previous song, it leads right into ‘Demonz’ — A lot of people have inner darkness that they’re trying to overcome.”
Production on the song is credited to Fayaz, Fabe, and Atu who is in the group Sonder with Faiyaz. Juice WRLD also receives a writing credit on “Demonz.”
On “Demonz,” Faiyaz sings about needing strength to overcome personal obstacles. He says:
I think I need new beginnings
I think the demons are winning
They beat me up
Don’t wish me away, wish me luck, yeah yeah
As Fabe says, Death Race’s previous track “HeMotions” does see Juice WRLD address similar ideas of inner turmoil. Towards its conclusion, he sings about using prescription drugs to dull the pain of heartache:
Got my girl by my side and they callin' us goals
Numb the pain, take these Percs to the mouth and the nose
I’m not a drug addict, got it all wrong
I’m just a love addict ‘til my heart gone
Genius broke down the first single from Death Race for Love, “Robbery,” in the episode of Song Stories below.
Read the lyrics to “Demonz (Interlude)” and the respective discographies of Juice WRLD and Brent Faiyaz on Genius now.
