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PnB Rock worked with XXXTentacion several times during the late rapper’s lifetime, and today he unleashed their latest collaboration, “Middle Child.” Produced by DatKidChris, “Middle Child” is a sober, melodic reflection on the Philly artist’s upbringing. It’s a cut off Trapstar Turnt Popstar, PnB’s latest album.
On the song’s chorus, PnB Rock sings about growing up in a large, chaotic family and getting into trouble as a teenager:
Mama had five boys, me, I was the middle child
By the age of 13, bitch, I was young and wild
Caught my first case, then I got kicked out my mama house
Got nowhere to stay, bitch, I’m runnin' in your fuckin' house (Bitch)
In a 2018 episode of Verified, PnB Rock opened up about his mother’s struggles. “My mom she a single parent. She had five boys, no girls,” he said. “So my moms was struggling. She did a lot for us, really was out there trying to get to a dollar to feed her kids.”
As Genius contributor NYLLOCK points out, PnB Rock was sentenced to more than two years behind bars in his early 20s on drug charges. On the song’s only verse, he references back to the actions that landed him there:
I had to jugg and finesse, was just standing on corner
Was selling them drugs and shit
They used to be on some other shit
Now they see me coming up and shit
X handles the song’s chorus, where he mostly keeps it to boasts about his cash and high end clothes:
So much cash in my jeans, Louis V., pocket wallet
Niggas hate, niggas bitches, niggas bitches, pocket watchin'
Uh, not talkin' ‘bout no pistol, I’m talkin’ 30s now (30s now)
Hey, hey, 30s now, 30 bands, 30 now (Hey)
PnB Rock and X previously collaborated on “Changes” and “SMASH!” from X’s ? (Question Mark), as well as a handful of unreleased tracks.
“Middle Child” is the second major rap song with that title to drop this year, following J. Cole’s Top 5 hit from January. Although the two artists seemed to have some bad blood early in X’s career, Cole opened up about his opinions on the controversial Florida MC in a recent XXL cover story:
Even if I [initially] knew what [XXXTentacion] did, I wouldn’t have cut him off, like, ‘Hey, man, why are you putting your hands on women or why the fuck did you do these sick things to this girl?’ I would’ve asked a series of questions that hopefully would’ve sparked something in his mind. It would’ve been towards the direction of healing. It wouldn’t have been in the direction of punishment, judgment, cancellation.
PnB’s Trapstar Turnt Popstar arrived today, with features from A Boogie wit da Hoodie, Quavo, Lil Skies, Tory Lanez, and more.
Listen to the song above and read all the lyrics to PnB Rock’s “Middle Child” featuring XXXTentacion on Genius now.
