Get Up 10

Cardi B, whose real name is Belcalis Marlenis Almánzar is an American rapper, songwriter and television personality from The Bronx in New York City. She has been extremely vocal about her past, particularly when she was a stripper in her university years to be able to afford her education as well as a way for her to escape the abuse she was facing in a violent relationship. She has been the first female rapper in history to attain multiple number-one songs on the chart, and publication “Time 100” have included her in their annual list of the 100 most influential people in the world.

Her critically acclaimed studio album “Invasion of Privacy” opens up with the track “Get Up 10”, an ode to her difficult rise in the world of hip-hop. It discussed not only her experiences in regards to her controversial stripping history, but also topics such as poverty, appearance and fake friends and relationships. The track starts with the lines: “Look, they gave a b*tch two options: strippin’ or lose / Used to dance in a club right across from my school / I said “dance” not “f*ck” don’t get it confused / Had to set the record straight ’cause b*tches love to assume / Mama couldn’t give it to me, had to get it at Sue’s”. Cardi B dives straight into her highly discussed career path as a stripper, clearing up potential assumptions that she was paid to engage in sexual favours rather than just strip and dance for money. She also brutally says that she had no other choice but to strip in order not to lose her place at her university as she couldn’t ask for financial aid from her mother, which was right across from the strip club – names “Sue’s Rendezvous”. She also references the time when her videos of her speaking her thoughts and also telling her stories as a stripper went viral on Instagram, leading her to land a spot on the TV show: “Love and Hip Hop: New York”: “I started speakin’ my mind and trippled my views”. She also admits that her breasts are fake but everything else about her is genuine: “Real b*tch, only thing fake is the boobs”. Throughout the track she carries on discussing the same themes of going from poverty to wealth: “I went from rags to riches, went from WIC to lit, n***a”, and “WIC” stands for “Women, Infants, and Children” which is a federal aid program given to low-income mothers of young children. She also references how she was the only person in her family to make a lot of money: “Only person in my fam to see six figures”. Cardi B also calls out those who have insulted her behind her back, with lines like: “If you got a problem with me, say it now (say it) / Cause I don’t wanna hear no sneak dissin’ (huh?) / ‘Specially not from one of you weak b*tches”. The chorus is where the namesake of the song originates from: “We gon’ win / Knock me down nine times but I get up ten (woo) /Look myself in the mirror, I say we gon’ win”.

There is currently no music video for this track.

Release Date: 6th April 2018

Songwriter/s: DJ SwanQo, Math Allen, Cardi B

Album: Invasion of Privacy (2018)

Genre: Hip-hop

Label/s: KSR Group, Atlantic, Quality Control

Chart Rankings: #38 for two weeks on the US Billboard Top 100, on the 21st April 2018.