# Sad!
**"Sad!"** (stylized **"SAD!"**) is a song by the American rapper and singer [XXXTentacion](https://www.edgepedia.org/xxxtentacion) (Jahseh Onfroy), released on March 2, 2018 as the lead single from his second studio album *?*[1](https://music.apple.com/us/song/1359293318) • [2](https://www.xxlmag.com/xxxtentacion-sad-changes/). Written by Onfroy and produced by John Cunningham, it is a short, singsong account of depression and heartbreak over an upbeat, synth-driven beat, and it became the artist's first number one on the Billboard Hot 100, reaching that position posthumously a week after he was shot and killed on June 18, 2018[3](https://www.allmusic.com/song/sad%21-mt0059039950) • [4](https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/arts-and-entertainment/wp/2018/06/26/xxxtentacion-does-what-bowie-and-prince-didnt-and-scores-a-posthumous-no-1-hit/).
| Key fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Release | March 2, 2018, on the Bad Vibes Forever label, as lead single from the album *?*[1](https://music.apple.com/us/song/1359293318) • [5](https://www.dancehallmag.com/2021/08/19/news/xxxtentacions-single-sad-certified-diamond.html) |
| Credits | Written by Jahseh Onfroy and John Cunningham; produced by Cunningham; mixed by Koen Heldens[3](https://www.allmusic.com/song/sad%21-mt0059039950) • [6](https://studiotalksevents.com/blog/koen-heldens-xxxtentacion-sad-interview) |
| Hot 100 | Debuted at No. 7 in March 2018; reached No. 1 on the chart dated June 30, 2018, after the artist's death[7](https://stereogum.com/2297689/the-number-ones-xxxtentacions-sad/columns/the-number-ones) • [8](https://stereogum.com/2003331/xxxtentacion-becomes-first-lead-artist-to-score-posthumous-1-single-since-notorious-b-i-g/news) |
| Streaming peak | 48.9 million US streams in the week ending June 21, 2018, up 264 percent; 10.4 million streams in a single day, then a Spotify record[8](https://stereogum.com/2003331/xxxtentacion-becomes-first-lead-artist-to-score-posthumous-1-single-since-notorious-b-i-g/news) • [9](https://time.com/5318535/xxxtentacion-murder-arrest/) |
| Certification | RIAA Diamond in August 2021, for 10 million units in the United States[5](https://www.dancehallmag.com/2021/08/19/news/xxxtentacions-single-sad-certified-diamond.html) |
| UK peak | No. 5 on the Official Singles Chart[10](https://www.officialcharts.com/songs/xxxtentacion-sad/) |
| Music video | Released June 28, 2018; written and creatively directed by XXXTentacion, directed by JMP; shows him attending and fighting his own corpse at his funeral[11](https://pitchfork.com/news/xxxtentacions-sad-music-video-released/) |
## Recording
The song came together quickly during the January 2018 sessions for *?*, most of which Cunningham, the album's executive producer, ran from Onfroy's bedroom in Florida; Cunningham estimated that about 90 percent of the album was made there after he moved into Onfroy's house[12](https://www.xxlmag.com/xxxtentacion-john-cunningham-question-mark-album-interview/). In an interview with XXL, Cunningham recalled that Onfroy clicked on a beat file Cunningham had named "Sad Banjo", a track Cunningham said he would not otherwise have played for him, and had the chorus essentially finished within about 30 seconds. In the same session Onfroy wrote "Before I Close My Eyes" and "Going Down!" in roughly an hour and a half, and Cunningham said the first melodies out of his mouth were the ones that ended up on the records[12](https://www.xxlmag.com/xxxtentacion-john-cunningham-question-mark-album-interview/). Onfroy recorded his own vocals for the song, with Cunningham at the computer[12](https://www.xxlmag.com/xxxtentacion-john-cunningham-question-mark-album-interview/).
Onfroy previewed the song in YouTube videos before its release, including in the intro of a gaming video uploaded on January 11, 2018[12](https://www.xxlmag.com/xxxtentacion-john-cunningham-question-mark-album-interview/) • [13](https://songsense.io/xxxtentacion/sad). The mixing engineer Koen Heldens, who worked on *?* beginning in January 2018, mixed the track and later said there was no second verse despite discussions about adding one, because the song did not follow a typical structure[6](https://studiotalksevents.com/blog/koen-heldens-xxxtentacion-sad-interview).
## Music and lyrics
"Sad!" is generally categorized as emo rap, with elements of pop rap and alternative R&B[13](https://songsense.io/xxxtentacion/sad). Cunningham's production is built on a lo-fi synth loop and crisp percussion, an upbeat, danceable track that contrasts with the lyrical content; the song runs 2:47 and is written in [C minor](https://www.edgepedia.org/c-minor)[13](https://songsense.io/xxxtentacion/sad) • [14](https://musicbrainz.org/release/5f70f8b6-0b7e-43ae-8a9c-7fa1eed7f38f). The Washington Post described it as "a sorrowful electronic ballad with a haunting refrain"[4](https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/arts-and-entertainment/wp/2018/06/26/xxxtentacion-does-what-bowie-and-prince-didnt-and-scores-a-posthumous-no-1-hit/).
The chorus opens with the lines "Who am I? Someone that's afraid to let go / You decide if you're ever gonna let me know / Suicide if you ever try to let go / I'm sad, I know, yeah"[15](https://www.shazam.com/en-us/song/1359293318/sad). The song addresses depression and suicidal thoughts over a lost love, and the narrator's emotional dependency is stated plainly in the lyrics[2](https://www.xxlmag.com/xxxtentacion-sad-changes/) • [13](https://songsense.io/xxxtentacion/sad). Structurally it is short and repetitive: the critic Tom Breihan, writing in Stereogum's survey of every Hot 100 number one, noted that it barely has a single verse and consists mostly of the chorus repeated a few times, calling it "a singsong account of deep depression"[7](https://stereogum.com/2297689/the-number-ones-xxxtentacions-sad/columns/the-number-ones).
## Chart performance and the posthumous number one
"Sad!" debuted at No. 7 on the Billboard Hot 100 dated March 31, 2018, the week its parent album *?* debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard 200[7](https://stereogum.com/2297689/the-number-ones-xxxtentacions-sad/columns/the-number-ones) • [8](https://stereogum.com/2003331/xxxtentacion-becomes-first-lead-artist-to-score-posthumous-1-single-since-notorious-b-i-g/news). It also gave XXXTentacion his first top 10 on the [Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs](https://www.edgepedia.org/hot-r-and-b-hip-hop-songs) chart[16](https://manuals.plus/m/ff40c37b2985e2b829426bca55bf11eb9901462331eaa7228cdb47db476b776d.pdf).
**Posthumous surge.** Onfroy was fatally shot outside a motorsports store in [Deerfield Beach, Florida](https://www.edgepedia.org/deerfield-beach-florida), on June 18, 2018, at age 20[11](https://pitchfork.com/news/xxxtentacions-sad-music-video-released/). Streaming of his catalog surged immediately: "Sad!" broke the record for single-day streams on Spotify with 10.4 million, dethroning [Taylor Swift](https://www.edgepedia.org/taylor-swift)'s "Look What You Made Me Do"[9](https://time.com/5318535/xxxtentacion-murder-arrest/). On the Hot 100 dated June 30, 2018, the song jumped from No. 52 to No. 1. Accounts differ on which song it displaced: The Washington Post reported that it unseated Drake's "God's Plan"[4](https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/arts-and-entertainment/wp/2018/06/26/xxxtentacion-does-what-bowie-and-prince-didnt-and-scores-a-posthumous-no-1-hit/), while the Associated Press reported that it supplanted Drake's "Nice for What"[17](https://www.ksl.com/article/46349419).
It was the 1,075th number one in the Hot 100's 59-year history and XXXTentacion's first, and it led the Streaming Songs chart for the first time on 48.9 million US streams in the week ending June 21, a 264 percent increase; downloads also rose 659 percent to about 26,000[8](https://stereogum.com/2003331/xxxtentacion-becomes-first-lead-artist-to-score-posthumous-1-single-since-notorious-b-i-g/news) • [4](https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/arts-and-entertainment/wp/2018/06/26/xxxtentacion-does-what-bowie-and-prince-didnt-and-scores-a-posthumous-no-1-hit/). Billboard counted him as the eighth soloist to top the Hot 100 posthumously, and the first in a lead role in more than 20 years[18](https://device.report/m/64285d085e309a083bd75aaf03f44e5eb5afaf65a3a7e971af1edc857af50e6c.pdf).
The milestone placed XXXTentacion in a small group of artists with posthumous Hot 100 number ones. He was the first lead soloist to reach the top after death since [The Notorious B.I.G.](https://www.edgepedia.org/the-notorious-b-i-g) in 1997 with "Mo Money Mo Problems"; the earlier lead-artist inductees were [Otis Redding](https://www.edgepedia.org/otis-redding), Janis Joplin, Jim Croce, John Lennon, and Biggie Smalls, with [Static Major](https://www.edgepedia.org/static-major) having reached No. 1 in 2008 as a featured artist on Lil Wayne's "Lollipop"[8](https://stereogum.com/2003331/xxxtentacion-becomes-first-lead-artist-to-score-posthumous-1-single-since-notorious-b-i-g/news) • [7](https://stereogum.com/2297689/the-number-ones-xxxtentacions-sad/columns/the-number-ones). At 20, he was the youngest of them; John Lennon, at 40, had been the oldest[7](https://stereogum.com/2297689/the-number-ones-xxxtentacions-sad/columns/the-number-ones).
In the United Kingdom, the song first charted on March 15, 2018, and peaked at No. 5 on the Official Singles Chart in July 2018, after his death[10](https://www.officialcharts.com/songs/xxxtentacion-sad/). The track placed at number 17 on Billboard's year-end Hot 100 singles of 2018 and number 44 on the decade-end Streaming Songs chart for the 2010s[14](https://musicbrainz.org/release/5f70f8b6-0b7e-43ae-8a9c-7fa1eed7f38f). At the 2019 [Billboard Music Awards](https://www.edgepedia.org/billboard-music-awards) it was nominated for Top Streaming Song (Audio) and Top Streaming Song (Video)[19](https://as.com/us/us/2019/05/01/tikitakas/1556717444_112292.html).
## Music video
The music video was released on June 28, 2018, ten days after Onfroy's death and the day after his public open-casket memorial at the BB&T Center in [Sunrise, Florida](https://www.edgepedia.org/sunrise-florida), which thousands of fans attended[11](https://pitchfork.com/news/xxxtentacions-sad-music-video-released/). Written and creatively directed by Onfroy himself and directed by JMP, it shows him attending the funeral of his old self, with whom he gets into a brutal fist fight; a message at the end reads "You have done well battling yourself"[11](https://pitchfork.com/news/xxxtentacions-sad-music-video-released/) • [20](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iAeYPfrXwk4). The video's funeral imagery, created before his death, was widely noted as an eerie coincidence after the killing[21](https://culturatedtv.wordpress.com/2018/06/29/legendary-rapper-or-legendary-coincidence-analysis-of-xxxtentacions-sad-music-video/). The video has since surpassed one billion views on YouTube[22](https://wikihits.com/2010s/xxxtentacion-sad).
## Certifications and reception
The [Recording Industry Association of America](https://www.edgepedia.org/recording-industry-association-of-america) certified "Sad!" platinum on September 21, 2018[23](https://www.riaa.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/10/GP_September2018b.pdf) and Diamond in August 2021, signifying 10 million units in the United States; it was reported at the time as one of 64 singles to reach Diamond[5](https://www.dancehallmag.com/2021/08/19/news/xxxtentacions-single-sad-certified-diamond.html) • [24](https://thesource.com/2021/11/02/xxxtentacions-mother-accepts-riaa-diamond-certification-award-for-sad/). The award was accepted by Onfroy's mother, Cleo Bernard, and his manager, Solomon Sounds, at the artist's former home in [South Florida](https://www.edgepedia.org/south-florida)[24](https://thesource.com/2021/11/02/xxxtentacions-mother-accepts-riaa-diamond-certification-award-for-sad/) • [25](https://weekly-bulletin.com/pdf/completeissue/Feb22_Full_IssueFIX.pdf). In France, the syndicat national de l'édition phonographique certified it Diamond with a certification date of January 3, 2020[26](https://snepmusique.com/les-certifications/?categorie=Tout&interprete=XXXTentacion&titre=).
Critical reception was divided. Some reviewers treated the song as a defining document of the SoundCloud-era emo rap wave, in which artists openly explored depression and romantic failure[13](https://songsense.io/xxxtentacion/sad) • [22](https://wikihits.com/2010s/xxxtentacion-sad). Others were dismissive: Breihan wrote that the track "ends before it establishes much of a mood" and that its popularity could not be separated from the artist's death[7](https://stereogum.com/2297689/the-number-ones-xxxtentacions-sad/columns/the-number-ones), a Sputnikmusic review called the lyrics mean-spirited and the structure aimless[27](https://www.sputnikmusic.com/review/76479/XXXTENTACION-/), and The Ringer observed that when writing a love song XXXTentacion "doesn't beg or plead so much as offer ultimatums"[28](https://www.theringer.com/2018/03/27/music/xxxtentacion-album-debut-no-1-assault-charges). A widely read AllMusic user review called the production cluttered and the lyrics minimal[3](https://www.allmusic.com/song/sad%21-mt0059039950).
## References
1. [SAD! – Song by XXXTENTACION, Apple Music](https://music.apple.com/us/song/1359293318)
2. [XXXTentacion Shares Two New Emotional Songs "Sad!" and "Changes", XXL](https://www.xxlmag.com/xxxtentacion-sad-changes/)
3. [SAD! – XXXTentacion, AllMusic](https://www.allmusic.com/song/sad%21-mt0059039950)
4. [XXXTentacion does what Bowie and Prince didn't and scores a posthumous No. 1 hit, The Washington Post](https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/arts-and-entertainment/wp/2018/06/26/xxxtentacion-does-what-bowie-and-prince-didnt-and-scores-a-posthumous-no-1-hit/)
5. [XXXTentacion's Single 'SAD!' Certified Diamond, DancehallMag](https://www.dancehallmag.com/2021/08/19/news/xxxtentacions-single-sad-certified-diamond.html)
6. [Koen Heldens – Mixing XXXTentacion's SAD! & Industry Tips, StudioTalks Events](https://studiotalksevents.com/blog/koen-heldens-xxxtentacion-sad-interview)
7. [The Number Ones: XXXTentacion's "Sad!", Stereogum](https://stereogum.com/2297689/the-number-ones-xxxtentacions-sad/columns/the-number-ones)
8. [XXXTentacion Becomes First Lead Artist To Earn Posthumous #1 Single Since Notorious B.I.G., Stereogum](https://stereogum.com/2003331/xxxtentacion-becomes-first-lead-artist-to-score-posthumous-1-single-since-notorious-b-i-g/news)
9. [Convicted Car Thief Arrested in XXXTentacion Murder Investigation, Time](https://time.com/5318535/xxxtentacion-murder-arrest/)
10. [SAD! – XXXTENTACION, Official Charts Company](https://www.officialcharts.com/songs/xxxtentacion-sad/)
11. [XXXTentacion's "SAD!" Music Video Released, Pitchfork](https://pitchfork.com/news/xxxtentacions-sad-music-video-released/)
12. [How John Cunningham Helped Craft XXXTentacion's Diverse '?' Album, XXL](https://www.xxlmag.com/xxxtentacion-john-cunningham-question-mark-album-interview/)
13. [Meaning of "SAD!" by XXXTENTACION, SongSense](https://songsense.io/xxxtentacion/sad)
14. [Release "?" by XXXTENTACION, MusicBrainz](https://musicbrainz.org/release/5f70f8b6-0b7e-43ae-8a9c-7fa1eed7f38f)
15. [SAD! – XXXTENTACION: Song Lyrics, Music Videos & Concerts, Shazam](https://www.shazam.com/en-us/song/1359293318/sad)
16. [Billboard R&B/Hip-Hop, March 31, 2018 issue](https://manuals.plus/m/ff40c37b2985e2b829426bca55bf11eb9901462331eaa7228cdb47db476b776d.pdf)
17. [After death, XXXTentacion tops Billboard Hot 100 chart, KSL.com (AP)](https://www.ksl.com/article/46349419)
18. [Billboard Hot 100, June 30, 2018 issue](https://device.report/m/64285d085e309a083bd75aaf03f44e5eb5afaf65a3a7e971af1edc857af50e6c.pdf)
19. [Lista de nominados para los Billboard Music Awards 2019, AS](https://as.com/us/us/2019/05/01/tikitakas/1556717444_112292.html)
20. [XXXTENTACION – SAD! (Official Music Video), YouTube](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iAeYPfrXwk4)
21. [Legendary Rapper or Legendary Coincidence? Analysis of XXXtentacion's "SAD!" Music Video, CultuRated](https://culturatedtv.wordpress.com/2018/06/29/legendary-rapper-or-legendary-coincidence-analysis-of-xxxtentacions-sad-music-video/)
22. [Sad! by XXXTENTACION (2018) – Hot 100 Story, WikiHits](https://wikihits.com/2010s/xxxtentacion-sad)
23. [GOLD & PLATINUM AWARDS, September 2018, RIAA](https://www.riaa.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/10/GP_September2018b.pdf)
24. [XXXTentacion's "SAD!" Receives RIAA Diamond Certification, The Source](https://thesource.com/2021/11/02/xxxtentacions-mother-accepts-riaa-diamond-certification-award-for-sad/)
25. [Music Connection, February 2022 issue](https://weekly-bulletin.com/pdf/completeissue/Feb22_Full_IssueFIX.pdf)
26. [Les certifications – SNEP](https://snepmusique.com/les-certifications/?categorie=Tout&interprete=XXXTentacion&titre=)
27. [XXXTENTACION – ? (album review 3), Sputnikmusic](https://www.sputnikmusic.com/review/76479/XXXTENTACION-/)
28. [How Should We Listen to XXXTentacion?, The Ringer](https://www.theringer.com/2018/03/27/music/xxxtentacion-album-debut-no-1-assault-charges)
---
*Topic: Encyclopedia › Arts and culture › Music › Musical works and recordings › Albums and recorded releases › Songs and tracks as recordings*
*Initially written Sep 17, 2026 · Reviewed: Oct 25, 2026 · Edited: Oct 15, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Last review: Oct 25, 2026*
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License: Edgepedia Community License 1.0, https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license