Houdini (KSI song)

British rapper and singer Swarmz recorded both a chorus and a verse. He sent the track to British YouTuber and rapper KSI, who listened to it but "wasn't too sure about it". After playing it to his girlfriend who "thought otherwise" and "said it would be a banger", KSI decided to go ahead and work on the track, recording his own verse. KSI "wasn't too keen on Swarmz's verse", so he decided to not include it in the song and instead include a verse from another featured artist, resulting in the addition of a verse by British rapper Tion Wayne. KSI recalls that when deciding which other artist to feature on the song, the decision was between Tion Wayne or British rapper Jay1.[1][2][3]

KSI revealed the song's title, featured artists, cover art and release date on 17 April 2020 via social media, saying, "we about to drop the biggest U.K. banger of 2020". The song was made available for pre-order on the same day.[4][5] "Houdini" was released for digital download and streaming one week later on 24 April 2020 through American independent record label RBC Records, under BMG Rights Management.[6][7] The song was premiered exclusively on BBC Radio 1 the night before its release.[8][9] A lyric video, created by BWGRX, was released to KSI's YouTube channel on 8 May 2020.[10]

A remix of the song by DJ group Pink Panda was released on 23 June 2020.[11] An audio video for the remix was uploaded to KSI's YouTube channel on the same day.[12]

Courtney Wynter of GRM Daily said, ""Houdini" is a polished-sounding single dominated by a fun-filled vibe. Swarmz jumps in first with an infectious hook which is followed by confident lyrics and energetic flows from both KSI and Tion Wayne".[13] Thomas Gillespie of Earmilk said, ""Houdini" is a change of pace from the more American style singles that have come before from KSI. The track is an afro-centric hip-hop club banger that will bar sitting on the charts for weeks to come. UK titans Tion Wayne and Swarmz join KSI on this one and the chemistry is abundant. From the bouncy production and infectious drum pockets to the catchy flows produced by both KSI and Tion Wayne respectively are fantastic. Not to mention, the chorus is by far one of the catchiest and stickiest I have heard in a long time".[14]

The song's music video was uploaded to KSI's YouTube channel on 24 April 2020. It has received 21 million views.[15] The video was filmed in London in March 2020.[16] The video is directed by Kaylum.[13] The video stars all three artists in a studio with "overhead blue neon lights, an expensive car and models".[16]

In the United Kingdom, "Houdini" was the highest new entry on the week's UK Singles Chart, entering at number 6, becoming KSI's fourth top 40 song on the chart, and his second to reach the top 10.[17][18] It dropped to positions 13, 16 and 23 over the next three weeks, before climbing back up to number 15 upon the release of KSI's debut studio album Dissimulation.[18] The song spent a further four weeks inside the top 40 of the chart, before dropping out and spending one more week inside the top 100.[18] "Houdini" spent a total of eleven weeks on the UK Hip Hop and R&B Singles Chart, peaking at number 5, and the song topped the UK Independent Singles Chart.[19][20] On 9 July 2020, Music Week reported that 165,314 copies of "Houdini" had been sold in the United Kingdom, making it the country's 49th-best-selling song of the first half of 2020.[21] On 31 July 2020, "Houdini" was certified silver by the British Phonographic Industry (BPI) for track-equivalent sales of 200,000 units in the UK.[22] On 14 September 2020, Music Week reported that "Houdini" has sold 228,569 track-equivalent units in the country.[23] KSI reacted to the commercial success of "Houdini" at the time, tweeting, "Thank you everyone for your support. We're consistently breaking boundaries. They're slowly understanding the power of a YouTuber. Too gassed right now!!"[24][25]

Elsewhere, in Scotland, "Houdini" debuted at number 8 on the Scottish Singles Chart and spent three weeks on the chart.[26] In Ireland, the song debuted at number 11 on the Irish Singles Chart and spent nine weeks on the chart.[27] In Europe, the song debuted at number 10 on the Billboard Euro Digital Song Sales.[28]

Credits adapted from Tidal.[29]

• KSI – vocals, songwriting
• Swarmz – vocals, songwriting
• Tion Wayne – vocals, songwriting
• AJ – production, songwriting
• Jacob Manson – production, songwriting
• Eight9FLY – songwriting
• Michalis Michael – mixing
• Henkka Niemistö – mastering

• List of UK top-ten singles in 2020
• List of UK Independent Singles Chart number ones of 2020