Lil Nas X is, of course, the force between "Old Town Road," the unstoppable pop juggernaut that has been the #1 single in America these past 11 weeks. Tonight, Lil Nas X will release 7, his debut EP. And today, he's shared another track from that EP. It's called "Panini," and apparently, it interpolates Nirvana.
"Old Town Road" is famously built from a sample of the 2008 Nine Inch Nails instrumental "34 Ghosts IV." And on Twitter, Lil Nas X claims that "Panini" "interpolates parts of Nirvana's 'In Bloom.'" He also personally thanks Frances Bean Cobain. Kurt Cobain is a credited co-writer on the track. I can't hear any of "In Bloom" in "Panini," but maybe you can.
In any case, "Panini" sounds nothing like "Old Town Road." It's an emotional, depressive half-sung rap song, and at least to my hears, it sounds more like Juice WRLD than anything else. Dot Da Genius and Take A Daytrip co-produced the song, and it's just under two minutes long. Talking to Genius, Lil Nas X claims that it's names after a character from the kids' TV show Chowder: "She’s a representation of fans of who love you when you’re small. Once you get the spotlight they aren’t feeling you as much." And the song does indeed call out disloyal supporters: "Now they need me, number one on streaming / Oh yeah, you used to love me / So what happened, what's the meaning?" Listen to "Panini" below. The 7 EP is out tonight on Columbia.panini interpolates parts of nirvana’s “in bloom”. special thank you to frances bean cobain for this!! 🖤
— nope (@LilNasX) June 20, 2019
