Rumble (Skrillex, Fred Again and Flowdan song)

"Rumble" is a song by American record producer Skrillex, British record producer Fred Again, and British MC Flowdan. It was released as a single through Atlantic Records and Owsla on January 4, 2023, with production handled by Skrillex and Fred Again. The song also features uncredited vocals from American singer Elley Duhé, sampled from unfinished works from Fred Again and Skrillex, and Jamaican-American rapper Beam, sampled from Skrillex's track "Selecta".^[3] It is the first single from Skrillex's second studio album Quest for Fire, his first since 2014's Recess.^[4]

"Rumble"
Single by Skrillex, Fred Again and Flowdan
from the album Quest for Fire
Released	January 4, 2023
Genre	Dubstep[1] grime[2]
Length	2:26
Label	Atlantic Owsla
Songwriter(s)	Sonny Moore Fred Gibson Marc Veira Elley Duhé Jordan Douglas Tyshane Thompson
Producer(s)	Skrillex Fred Again
Skrillex singles chronology
"Torture Me" (2022) "Rumble" (2023) "Way Back" (2023)
Fred Again singles chronology
"Strong" (2022) "Rumble" (2023) "Baby Again…" (2023)
Flowdan singles chronology
"Run the Show" (2022) "Rumble" (2023) "Stone" (2023)

Background

In an interview with BBC Radio 1, Skrillex explained that "Rumble" was initially a collaboration between Fred Again and Flowdan from 2018. After meeting Fred and hearing the song for the first time, he asked for the song's stems and made his own version, which he disliked: "I did something. I didn't like it. I thought I ruined the song. I was scared to play it and then we started working on it like months ago."^[5] English producer Four Tet was also involved, but eventually was "kicked off" the track. During a live set at the Electric Ballroom in London on January 6, 2023, featuring all three producers, Skrillex explained that Four Tet's role "was the most important role, which was to make sure we didn't overproduce it and spoil it".^[6]

Composition

"Rumble" has been described as containing elements from grime, dubstep, jungle, and experimental electronic music.^[2][1]

Release and promotion

In July 2022, Fred Again played a set for Boiler Room in London, in which the song was included and played in public for the first time.^[2] The song became a fan-favourite from the set, creating excitement for a possible release and prompting unofficial uploads of the song to appear on YouTube in the weeks leading up to release.^[7]

On January 2, 2023, Skrillex posted a 15-second teaser of Rumble on social media, alongside the text "QFF/DGTC 23", announcing his two albums Quest for Fire and Don't Get Too Close, the former being his first studio album in nine years, following 2014's Recess. The announcement of the albums and song's release garnered positive reaction, including from fellow producers Tchami, Subtronics, Kill the Noise, Eptic, Deorro, and rapper Missy Elliot, among others.^[4][8]

Upon the song's release on January 4, Skrillex announced that another single, "Way Back", with American rapper and singer Trippie Redd and British singer and producer PinkPantheress, would release on January 6. On January 5, a live set with Skrillex, Fred Again, and Four Tet took place at the Electric Ballroom in London, where Rumble was played.^[6]

Critical reception

Upon release, the song received positive reviews from fans and critics. Jon Blistein of Rolling Stone wrote "Rumble lives up to its name, with Flowdan rapping over a steady, propulsive groove punctuated with menacing bass swells. The two-and-half-minute track builds steadily to a clever peak that drops with a deft, almost understated boom."^[9] Cameron Sunkel of EDM.com stated that Rumble "appropriately combines the best of [Skrillex and Fred Again's] respective worlds in flawless fashion", adding that "Skrillex's mission to make the club shake remains undeterred", and that "the spirit of the duo's collective penchant for deep dubstep and jungle-inspired electronic music shines through in spades."^[1] Katie Bain of Billboard wrote that despite its short length, "the song packs a heavy punch with a sinewy, stuttering beat simmered in the deepest vibrations of the low end and a bridge composed of a voice pitched all the way up", while also praising Flowdan's delivery and lyrical content.^[2]

Charts

Weekly charts Weekly chart performance for "Rumble" Chart (2023) Peak position Australia (ARIA)[10] 32 Canada (Canadian Hot 100)[11] 80 Global 200 (Billboard)[12] 169 Ireland (IRMA)[13] 29 Japan Hot Overseas (Billboard Japan)[14] 16 Latvia (LAIPA)[15] 15 Lithuania (AGATA)[16] 66 Netherlands (Single Tip)[17] 9 New Zealand (Recorded Music NZ)[18] 21 Sweden (Sverigetopplistan)[19] 73 UK Singles (OCC)[20] 19 UK Dance (OCC)[21] 6 US Hot Dance/Electronic Songs (Billboard)[22] 10

Year-end charts Year-end chart performance for "Rumble" Chart (2023) Position US Hot Dance/Electronic Songs (Billboard)[23] 35

Release history

Release dates and formats for "Rumble"

Country	Date	Format	Label	Ref.
Various	January 4, 2023	Digital download streaming	Atlantic Owsla	[24]

References

1. Sunkel, Cameron (January 4, 2023). "Skrillex and Fred Again.. Drop Long-Awaited Collaboration, "Rumble"". EDM.com. Archived from the original on January 7, 2023. Retrieved January 7, 2023.
2. Bain, Katie (January 4, 2023). "Skrillex Drops Ominous New Single 'Rumble' With Fred Again.. & Flowdan: Listen". Billboard. Archived from the original on January 7, 2023. Retrieved January 7, 2023.
3. "Rumble". Tidal. Archived from the original on January 7, 2023. Retrieved January 7, 2023.
4. Bain, Katie (January 3, 2023). "Skrillex's First Solo Album in 9 Years Is Dropping in 2023". Billboard. Archived from the original on January 4, 2023. Retrieved January 7, 2023.
5. Cristobal, Gustavo (January 6, 2023). "Skrillex Reveals Four Tet Was "Kicked Off" new single 'Rumble' with Fred again." WeRaveYou. Archived from the original on January 7, 2023. Retrieved January 7, 2023.
6. "Skrillex on Fred again.. collaboration "Rumble": "Four Tet made sure we didn't overproduce it - and f*ck it up"". MusicRadar. January 6, 2023. Archived from the original on January 7, 2023. Retrieved January 7, 2023.
7. Aswad, Jem (January 4, 2023). "Skrillex Drops New Single, 'Rumble,' With Fred Again and Flowdan". Variety. Archived from the original on January 7, 2023. Retrieved January 7, 2023.
8. "QFF/DGTC 23". Archived from the original on January 4, 2023. Retrieved January 7, 2023 – via Twitter.
9. Blistein, Jon (January 3, 2023). "Skrillex Is Ready to 'Rumble' on New Song With Fred Again.., Flowdan". Rolling Stone. Archived from the original on January 7, 2023. Retrieved January 7, 2023.
10. "Skrillex, Fred Again.. & Flowdan – Rumble". ARIA Top 50 Singles. Retrieved January 27, 2023.
11. "Skrillex Chart History (Canadian Hot 100)". Billboard. Retrieved January 18, 2023.
12. "Skrillex Chart History (Global 200)". Billboard. Retrieved January 18, 2023.
13. "Official Irish Singles Chart Top 50". Official Charts Company. Retrieved January 13, 2023.
14. "Billboard Japan Hot Overseas – Week of January 25, 2023". Billboard Japan (in Japanese). Retrieved January 25, 2023.
15. "Mūzikas Patēriņa Tops/ 02. nedēļa" (in English and Latvian). LAIPA. January 11, 2023. Archived from the original on April 18, 2023. Retrieved June 18, 2023.
16. "2023 2-os savaitės klausomiausi (Top 100)" (in Lithuanian). AGATA. January 13, 2023. Archived from the original on January 13, 2023. Retrieved January 13, 2023.
17. "Dutch Single Tip 14/01/2023". dutchcharts.nl (in Dutch). Archived from the original on January 13, 2023. Retrieved January 14, 2023.
18. "Skrillex, Fred Again.. & Flowdan – Rumble". Top 40 Singles. Retrieved January 14, 2023.
19. "Skrillex, Fred Again.. & Flowdan – Rumble". Singles Top 100. Retrieved January 14, 2023.
20. "Official Singles Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved January 13, 2023.
21. "Official Dance Singles Chart Top 40". Official Charts Company. Retrieved January 13, 2023.
22. "Skrillex Chart History (Hot Dance/Electronic Songs)". Billboard. Retrieved January 18, 2023.
23. "Hot Dance/Electronic Songs – Year-End 2023". Billboard. Retrieved November 23, 2023.
24. "Rumble - Single by Skrillex, Fred again.. & Flowdan on Apple Music". Archived from the original on January 7, 2023. Retrieved January 7, 2023 – via Apple Music.

Further reading

• Ross, Gemma (January 5, 2023). ""We kicked Four Tet off 'Rumble'" says Skrillex". Mixmag.
• Qureshi, Arusa (January 5, 2023). "Skrillex: "We kicked Four Tet off 'Rumble'"". NME.
• Qureshi, Arusa (January 3, 2023). "Skrillex teases double album with new single dropping this week". NME.