Die Trying
Featuring Yebba
"Die Trying" is performed by PARTYNEXTDOOR, Drake and Yebba — one of the album's three guest appearances (Wikipedia). Produced by Jordan Ullman of Majid Jordan (with his brother Kenneth Ullman on guitar), it is a guitar-forward R&B ballad released as a single on April 18, 2025; it peaked at No. 21 on the Billboard Hot 100 and was certified Platinum by the RIAA. Critics split: Rolling Stone's Jeff Ihaza singled it out as a highlight, praising its 'catchy acoustic guitar' and Yebba's 'soaring, elastically rhythmic vocals,' while Pitchfork's Alphonse Pierre dismissed it as a 'half-assed attempt to get the Nashville bag.' Drake Universe treats this at the theme level without reproducing lyrics.
Sources & verification
Citations below were matched specifically to "Die Trying" and $ome $exy $ongs 4 U. Drake Universe catalogs songs by album placement, verified collaborators, producers, samples, and themes, and avoids unsupported lyric-level claims.
- Wikipedia — PARTYNEXTDOORWikipedia · 2026-05-15 — Verified Jahron Anthony Brathwaite birth (1993-07-03), Mississauga hometown, OVO Sound first solo signee (2013), 2018 hospitalization, $ome $exy $ongs 4 U (Feb 2025).
- Complex — Drake & PARTYNEXTDOOR '$ome $exy $ongs 4 U' releaseComplex · 2025-02-14 — Dated coverage confirming Drake + PARTYNEXTDOOR joint album release on 2025-02-14, including singles 'Nokia' and 'Gimme a Hug.'
- NME: Drake & PARTYNEXTDOOR $ome $exy $ongs 4 U Tour UK DatesNME · 2025-01-09 — NME coverage of the 2025 Drake/PARTYNEXTDOOR SS4U joint tour, including UK/EU routing and O2 multi-night residency.
- Wikipedia — Some Sexy Songs 4 UWikipedia · 2025-02-14 — Album release context, per-track producer/sample/interpolation credits (Tidal/ASCAP/BMI-adapted), critical reception (Metacritic 54) and chart performance used for $ome $exy $ongs 4 U ground truth and producer de-fabrication.
- Wikipedia — Die Trying (PartyNextDoor, Drake, and Yebba song)Wikipedia · 2025-04-18 — Die Trying credits (Jordan Ullman / Majid Jordan; Kenneth Ullman guitar), Yebba feature, No. 21 Hot 100 / RIAA Platinum, and split Rolling Stone vs Pitchfork reception.
- Drake & PartyNextDoor's '$ome $exy $ongs 4 U': All 21 Tracks RankedBillboard · 2025-02-14 — Carl Lamarre and Michael Saponara's track-by-track rankings/notes, including 'CN Tower,' 'Deeper,' 'Gimme a Hug' (ranked best) and 'Nokia' (ranked 5th), used for sourced song-level framing.
