Alemeda has teamed up with Doechii for a new single. On Friday, the Ethiopian American singer dropped her long-teased collaboration with the Swamp Princess, “Beat A B!tch Up,” while also unveiling the track list for her upcoming EP, But What the Hell Do I Know.
“‘Beat A B!tch Up’ is about caring so deeply for someone that you’d do anything for them, even if they wouldn’t do the same for you,” said Alemeda in a press release. “Obviously, the title is not literal, it’s more about how far I’d go to show up for people, even when it hurts me.”
The video unfolds on a ship that doubles as a boxing ring and opens with Alemeda soaking in an ice bath. Soon, the camera cuts to two men trading punches and another leaping overboard before Doechii arrives, speeding up on a jet ski.
Alemeda roams the decks and sings about how she “really would beat a bitch up,” before Doechii raps, “You take me out of my element/Just for me to do things you never did/Die for me or die with that other bitch/You pick.” The video ends with literal fireworks as Alemeda performs on a floating stage with her band.
The new single follows “1-800-F**K-YOU” and “Chameleon” featuring Rachel Chinouriri. Alemeda has been teasing the collaboration during live shows over the last year. But What the Hell Do I Know also comes about a year after releasing her debut EP, FK IT, which included her breakthrough, “Gonna Bleach My Eyebrows.”
Last year, Alemeda spoke to Rolling Stone about choosing to pursue a pop-rock sound in her music.
“I love it, because it’s so easy, and on top of that, there’s such a scarcity of women who look like me doing it. I feel like I have a point to prove because even now people will keep trying to put me into the R&B [box],” she said at the time. “People will actually go as far as say alternative R&B, and it’s like, at this point, just punch me in the face. It’s the worst.”
But What the Hell Do I Know Track List
1. “1-800-F**K-YOU”
2. “Beat A B!tch Up” feat. Doechii
3. “Chameleon” feat. Rachel Chinouriri
4. “Happy With You”
5. “I’m Over It”
6. “Losing Myself”
7. “Stupid Little Bitch”
