Back That Up to the Beat

"Back That Up to the Beat" is a song by American singer Madonna. It was released on digital and streaming platforms on December 30, 2022, and impacted radio in Italy on January 20, 2023. Originally titled "Back That Up (Do It)", the demo was recorded for Madonna's 13th studio album Rebel Heart (2015), but did not make it onto the final track listing. The song was leaked to the internet on December 23, 2014.^[1][2] The reworked final version appears as a bonus track on the international deluxe edition of Madonna's fourteenth studio album Madame X (2019).

"Back That Up to the Beat"
Single by Madonna
Released	December 30, 2022 (2022-12-30)
Recorded	2014
Length	3:31 (demo) 3:50 (Madame X version)
Label	Interscope
Songwriter(s)	Madonna Ciccone Brittany Hazzard Pharrell Williams
Producer(s)	Madonna Jeff Bhasker Mike Dean Williams
Madonna singles chronology
"Break My Soul (The Queens Remix)" (2022) "Back That Up to the Beat" (2022) "Popular" (2023)
Lyric video
"Back That Up to the Beat" on YouTube

Background and release

"Back That Up to the Beat" was written by Madonna, Pharrell Williams, and Starrah, while its production was handled by Madonna, Williams, Jeff Bhasker, and Mike Dean.^[3] Originally titled "Back That Up (Do It)", the song was first recorded in 2014 and intended for inclusion on Madonna's 13th studio album Rebel Heart (2015). Its demo leaked to the internet on December 23, 2014, and eventually did not made it onto the final track listing of the album.^[4] The song was later reworked in 2019 and appeared as a bonus track on the 2-CD deluxe edition of Madonna's 14th studio album Madame X.^[5][6] The Madame X version features a radically different composition, filled with Arabic musical instruments and complex drums.^[7]

In September 2022,^[8] the original demo version went viral on social media app TikTok, and appeared among the most-searched songs on Shazam globally. The song was also illegally released to Spotify, along with the slowed down and accelerated versions.^[9] Interscope Records officially released the demo and sped-up version of "Back That Up to the Beat" on digital and streaming platforms on December 30, 2022.^[10] Madonna announced its release by posting a clip of the sped-up version of the song set to a video of her dancing with kids in Malawi and Kenya, including her four children who joined her visit in Africa as part of her Raising Malawi charity campaign.^[11] The official lyric video of the song was uploaded to Madonna's YouTube channel on January 7 2023, which features an extended version of the original clip with a filtered montage of her Instagram reels, videos and pictures.^[12] The song was also released to Italian radio on January 20, 2023.^[13]

Reception

In a review for Wonderland magazine, its editor said that the song "sounds as if it was plucked straight out of an Eastern European discotheque circa 2006. It harnesses the same nostalgia that ignited the Y2K trend; its addictive guitar hooks and carnal bassline has us smashing the replay button into oblivion."^[14] Jon Bream from Star Tribune picked the song as one of the week's "6 cool things in music", calling it a "cleaner arrangement [w]ith a staccato, snappy beat..."^[15] Upon its release to digital outlets, the song entered the top 40 digital charts of Canada, the United Kingdom, and the United States.^[16][17][18]

Track listing

Digital single^[19]

1. "Back That Up to the Beat" (demo version) – 3:31
2. "Back That Up to the Beat" (sped up version) – 3:12

Charts

Weekly chart performances for "Back That Up to the Beat"

Chart (2022–2023)	Peak position
Canadian Digital Song Sales (Billboard)[16]	24
Hungary (Single Top 40)[20]	5
Lithuania (AGATA)[21]	84
San Marino (SMRRTV Top 50)[22]	23
Turkey International Airplay (Radiomonitor)[23]	4
UK Singles Downloads (OCC)[17]	14
US Digital Song Sales (Billboard)[18]	33

Certifications

Certifications for "Back That Up to the Beat"

Region	Certification	Certified units/sales
Poland (ZPAV)[24]	Gold	25,000‡
‡ Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone.

Release history

"Back That Up to the Beat" release history

Region	Date	Format(s)	Label	Ref.
Various	December 30, 2022	Digital download streaming	Interscope	[19]
Italy	January 20, 2023	Radio airplay	Universal	[13][25]

References

1. Ramisetti, Kirthana (December 24, 2014). "Madonna's music from 'Rebel Heart' leaked for second time". Daily News. Archived from the original on June 11, 2017. Retrieved December 25, 2014.
2. Jeong, Saimi (December 26, 2014). "14 more Madonna songs leak from Rebel Heart". The Sydney Morning Herald. Archived from the original on January 23, 2023. Retrieved January 25, 2023.
3. Sexton, Paul (January 13, 2023). "Deluxe International Edition Of Madonna's 'Madame X' Now Available Digitally". Yahoo! Finance. Archived from the original on January 23, 2023. Retrieved January 23, 2023.
4. Lynch, Joe (December 24, 2014). "14 More Madonna Songs Leak From 'Rebel Heart,' Including Pharrell Collabo". Billboard. Archived from the original on December 25, 2014. Retrieved December 29, 2014.
5. "Madame X". January 23, 2019. Archived from the original on January 23, 2023. Retrieved January 23, 2023 – via Amazon.
6. "Madonna | Discography | Madame X". Madonna's official website. Archived from the original on 2016-03-09. Retrieved 2023-01-23.
7. "Madonna releases demo version of 'Back That Up To The Beat'". OutInPerth. January 1, 2023. Archived from the original on January 2, 2023. Retrieved January 23, 2023.
8. Savage, Mark (January 17, 2023). "Madonna announces a career-spanning greatest hits tour". BBC. Archived from the original on January 17, 2023. Retrieved January 25, 2023.
9. Alonso, Sebas E. (November 3, 2022). "Se viraliza en TikTok la maqueta de Madonna que menos esperabas" (in Spanish). Jenesaispop. Archived from the original on January 1, 2023. Retrieved January 1, 2023.
10. Major, Michelle (December 30, 2022). "Madonna Releases 'Back That Up to the Beat' Demo". BroadwayWorld. Archived from the original on January 1, 2023. Retrieved January 1, 2023.
11. Atad, Corey (30 December 2022). "Madonna Plays Soccer And Dances With Kids In Malawi, Plugs 'Back That Up To The Beat'". Entertainment Tonight Canada. Archived from the original on 31 December 2022. Retrieved 31 December 2022.
12. "Madonna - Back That Up To The Beat (Official Lyric Video)". 6 January 2023. Archived from the original on 2023-01-23. Retrieved 2023-01-23 – via YouTube.
13. "MADONNA "Back That Up To The Beat " | (Radio Date: 20/01/2023)" (in Italian). Radio Date. Archived from the original on 2023-01-19. Retrieved 2023-01-23.
14. "Stormzy, FLO, Drake & Madonna Star In This Week's Wonderlist". Wonderland. January 6, 2023. Archived from the original on January 23, 2023. Retrieved January 23, 2023.
15. Bream, Jon (January 20, 2023). "6 cool things in music this week include Madonna, Miley Cyrus and Rick Rubin". Star Tribune. Archived from the original on January 23, 2023. Retrieved January 23, 2023.
16. "Madonna". Billboard. Archived from the original on January 11, 2022. Retrieved January 23, 2023.
17. "Official Singles Downloads Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved January 23, 2023.
18. "Madonna Chart History (Digital Song Sales)". Billboard. Retrieved January 23, 2023.
19. "Back That Up To The Beat - Single by Madonna". Apple Music. 30 December 2022. Archived from the original on 31 December 2022. Retrieved 1 January 2023.
20. "Archívum – Slágerlisták – MAHASZ" (in Hungarian). Single (track) Top 40 lista. Magyar Hanglemezkiadók Szövetsége. Retrieved January 23, 2023.
21. "2023 4-os savaitės klausomiausi (Top 100)" (in Lithuanian). AGATA. January 27, 2023. Archived from the original on January 27, 2023. Retrieved January 27, 2023.
22. "Top 50 – Radio San Marino RTV – 10/02/2023" (in Italian). San Marino RTV. 10 February 2023. Archived from the original on 2023-02-10. Retrieved 25 July 2024.
23. @RadiomonitorTR (March 3, 2023). "Radiomonitor Türkiye Uluslararası Listesi Dinlenme Adedi bazında – 8. Hafta Top10" [Radiomonitor Turkey International Chart based on number of listens – Week 8 Top 10] (Tweet) (in Turkish). Retrieved August 26, 2024 – via Twitter.
24. "OLiS - oficjalna lista wyróżnień" (in Polish). Polish Society of the Phonographic Industry. Retrieved November 6, 2024. Click "TYTUŁ" and enter Back That Up to the Beat in the search box.
25. Antonucci, Gabriele (January 20, 2023). "La nuova musica di Madonna è ancora rilevante oggi?". Panorama (in Italian). Archived from the original on January 20, 2023. Retrieved January 25, 2023.