Both of Us
Strange Clouds (B.o.B. Album) | 2012
Table of Contents
Background and Collaboration
«I was like, 'This isn't Taylor Swift.' She invited me to her show, to bring me out to her show to do 'Airplanes.' Lucky for me, I'm a really trusting person so I moved forward. Usually, if someone's like, 'This is Tupac,' you're gonna be like 'Whatever.' I wasn't in Atlanta at the time so she arranged for me to come to Dallas. I remember I had a show in Alabama and they let me use her tour bus to come to her show in Dallas. When I played her ['Both of Us'] even before the first verse even dropped, she was onboard. She was like, 'I love it already.' I was like 'She'd be perfect for it.' She recorded her vocals in L.A. I recorded my vocals in Atlanta. [When I first heard the song with both our parts] it instantly felt magical. Actually, I had to re-sing some of my parts so they could really blend with her [vocals]. I rewrote one of my verses as well. It started as a blueprint and it really continued to grow into something tremendous.»
B.o.B.
Lyrical Theme
«It’s not even a song. It’s more like a project. This is bigger than just B.o.B and Tayor Swift. No, this is about all walks of life and all classes of the society. It’s about everybody.»
B.o.B
Music Video
Live Performances
«As you may know, Atlanta has quite the music scene. And it turns out that one of my friends is in town. And so I called him up and I said, 'Do you want to be the surprise special guest at my show?' And I know him as Bobby Ray, but the world knows him as B.o.B!»
Taylor Swift
Critical Reception
Commercial Performance
Lyrics
[Chorus: Taylor Swift]
I wish I was strong enough to lift not one but both of us
Some day I will be strong enough to lift not one but both of us
[Verse 1: B.o.B.]
Ever thought about losing it
When your money’s all gone and you lose your whip
You might lose your grip when the landlord tell ya that you’re due for rent
And the grass so green on the other side
Make a n**** wanna run straight through the fence
Open up the fridge bout twenty times
But still can’t find no food in it
That’s foolishness
And sometimes I wonder, why we care so much about the way we look
And the way we talk and the way we act
And the clothes we bought, how much that cost?
Does it even really matter?
‘Cause if life is an uphill battle
We all tryna climb with the same ol’ ladder
In the same boat, with the same ol’ paddle
Why so shallow? I’m just asking
What’s the pattern for the madness
Everybody ain’t a number one draft pick
Most of us ain’t Hollywood actors
But if it’s all for one, and one for all
Then maybe one day, we all can ball
Do it one time for the underdogs
Sincerely yours, from one of y’all
[Chorus: Taylor Swift]
I wish I was strong enough to lift not one but both of us
Some day I will be strong enough to lift not one but both of us
[Verse 2: B.o.B.]
I can feel your pain, I can feel your struggle
You just wanna live, been everything so low
That you could drown in a puddle
That’s why I gotta hold us up, yeah hold us up
For all the times no one’s ever spoke for us
To every single time that they play this song
You can say that that’s what Bobby Ray wrote for us
When the tides get too high
And the sea up underneath get so deep
And you feel like you’re just another person
Getting lost in the crowd, way up high in the nosebleed
Uh, because we won’t be near yet, both of us
But we still stand tall with our shoulders up
And even though we always against the odds
These are the things that have molded us
And if life hadn’t chosen us
Sometimes I wonder where I would’ve wound up
‘Cause if it was up to me, I’d make a new blueprint
Then build it from the ground up, hey
But if it’s all for one, and one for all
Then maybe one day, we all can ball
Do it one time for the underdogs
From Bobby Ray, to all of y’all
[Chorus: Taylor Swift]
I wish I was strong enough to lift not one but both of us
Some day I will be strong enough to lift not one but both of us
Artist | B.o.B. |
---|---|
Feature | Taylor Swift |
Released | May 22, 2012 |
Recorded | 2011 |
Genre | Alternative Hip Hop |
Length | 3:36 |
Label | Grand Hustle Rebel Rock Atlantic |
Songwriters | B.o.B. Taylor Swift Ammar Malik Lukasz Gottwald Henry Walter |
Producers | Dr. Luke Cirkut |