Michigan rapper NF is telling it like it is on his unapologetic new single, “MOTTO,” out today via NF Real Music/Virgin Music. The defiant new track marks the second single from his upcoming album, HOPE, out April 7th. “MOTTO” finds NF dissecting the state of the music industry, making the conscious decision to side-step trends and just do him. The accompanying video can be seen now below.
“I could write a record full of radio songs, do a bunch of features that my label would love,” the MC, real name Nate Feuerstein, raps. “Sounds like a nightmare if you ask me, went from my bedroom to the big leagues.” By the anthemic chorus, NF is ready to share his approach to music stardom. “You might see me in the same clothes I had on last week, am I ashamed? No,” he declares. “You heard the saying if ain’t broke, don’t fix it that’s my motto.”
The song’s unrepentant message is reflected in the Patrick Tohill-directed video, which finds NF attending a mock industry awards show. Close to 1000 fans from all over the world volunteered their time as extras at the Nashville, TN shoot — driving home the point that the rapper hasn’t forgotten his day-ones. It even recreates lyrics from “MOTTO” (“might catch me at the award show, eatin’ popcorn in the back row”), proving that NF hasn’t lost his sense of humor either. The video gives viewers a glimpse into the more humorous and witty side to NF.
HOPE is available for pre-order now HERE. The album marks the rapper’s first full-length release since 2019’s platinum-selling The Search and his first longer project since 2021’s CLOUDS (THE MIXTAPE). The reaction to the lead single suggests that HOPE might be NF’s biggest album to date with the song garnering 32M global streams in its first week. It debuted at #28 on the US Top 200 Consumption Chart, while the video trended at #1 on YouTube for over a week.