Lil Tjay seems to have it all figured out. Not only poised to become one of the biggest hitmakers of the next generation — rooted in New York’s ever-growing drill scene — the young phenom’s stardom has greatly benefitted from his knack for generating hype around his music.
Seeing a handful of singles soar across the charts over the last few years, the budding NYC wordsmith’s marketing strategies have proven to be fool proof. For tracks like “Calling My Phone (feat. 6LACK)” last year, he built a monumental amount of buzz around the song by continually pushing the snippet on TikTok, Twitter and Instagram — with the track seeing viral acclaim before it officially released.
Another example in “None of Your Love” — which was released on YouTube in 2018 and on DSPs in 2020 — sees Tjay interpolating Justin Bieber‘s 2010 smash hit “Baby (feat. Ludacris),” repurposing the chorus, providing nostalgia for his fans and earned an instant hit off the back of his social following. These methods — along with his growing intention to craft smooth, romantic and passionately-crooned tracks — have all culminated with the release of “In My Head” on April 1.
Since introducing the teaser to his fans on TikTok on March 10, Tjay had been persistent about manufacturing noise “in his head.” He later announced his latest single by saying he would only drop the song if it had “10,000 videos made” with the TikTok sound of the snippet and had “100,000 pre-saves” from fans.
After finally surpassing both these milestones, “In My Head’s” release garnered as much attention as it did when fans were anticipating it. The sample of Iyaz‘s beloved 2009 hit “Replay” helps form the hook for the track, as the internal battle in Tjay’s head makes him contemplate his situationship.
Shawty’s like a melody in my head that I can’t keep out, got me singin’ like
Na-na-na-na, every day (Lil Tjay)
It’s like my iPod stuck on replay, replay-ay-ay-ay (Ooh, ooh, ooh)
I got some funny feelings in my head and, girl, I don’t know what to call it (Call)
Too iffy and quick, I can’t say that it’s love, but I know that I want some more of it (More)
These feelings been stuck in my head, ain’t too big on love, but with you, I’m all for it (No)
“In My Head” — Lil Tjay
Tjay’s troublesome relationship is portrayed by him and Rubi Rose in the music video, who he used to have a publicized relationship with. The exes hinted at a rekindling on TikTok, with Tjay saying “if it ain’t toxic I don’t want it.”
In the visuals, Rubi’s character ends up eventually trying to slay Tjay, since she caught him being unfaithful.
Overall, the execution of “In My Head” — from both a music and marketing standpoint — was flawless. Tjay paints a clear picture of the issues that circle his mind when he ponders his love interests, and how he can bring about his own downfall at times.
Check out the saucy new single from Lil Tjay titled “In My Head” below!
