"Panda" is a hip hop song. The hook was written about the BMW X6, specifically one in white, which he likens the appearance of to a panda. "I'm just putting it in a greater way of how I say and the way I live." Desiigner discovered the song's beat on YouTube, which was produced by up-and-coming Rochdale-based producer Menace. Menace has stated the track takes influence from the UK grime scene.
Critical reception
Rolling Stone named "Panda" one of the 30 best songs of the first half of 2016, writing "The Future-esque rapping and menacing trap beat that underlies "Panda"'s ridiculous repetition were already making Internet waves, but a prominent sample on Kanye West's The Life of Pablo made Desiigner a fixture everywhere from car stereos to Vogue shoots." Billboard ranked "Panda" at number 24 on their "100 Best Pop Songs of 2016" list: "Visions of a black-and-white BMW X6 sparked Desiigner's breakout joyride anthem "Panda." The Brooklyn upstart's spazzy, high-octane bars may have required a Genius.com lyric video to decipher, but the energy was so contagious that Kanye West had to tap the melodic G.O.O.D. Music MC's smash for his own zeitgeist-capturing album." Pitchfork listed "Panda" on their ranking of the 100 best songs of 2016 at number 56.
Commercial performance
"Panda" debuted at number 96 on the US Billboard Hot 100 for the chart issue dated March 12, 2016, and reached the top five in its seventh week. On its ninth week, "Panda" reached number one on the Hot 100 for the chart dated May 7, 2016, ending the nine-week reign of "Work" by Rihanna featuring Drake. The feat ended a record-setting 41-week streak of non-Americans topping the chart. It stayed at number one for two weeks, until it was replaced by "One Dance" by Drake featuring Wizkid and Kyla on the chart issue dated May 21, 2016. Desiigner is the first rapper to crown the Hot 100 with a debut chart entry since Iggy Azalea arrived with "Fancy", which ruled for seven weeks beginning June 7, 2014. At 18 years and 11 months old, Desiigner is the youngest artist to top the Hot 100 since Lorde, who was 16 years and 11 months old when "Royals" assumed the top spot on October 12, 2013. The song spent seventeen weeks in the top ten of the Hot 100 before dropping out. It also reached number one on Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs. Among the Hot 100's component charts, "Panda" peaked at number 2 on Digital Songs and 10 on Radio Songs, and topped Streaming Songs. As of December 2016, it has sold 1,524,000 copies in the United States. The song had the most on demand streams in the US in 2016.
Remixes, samples and media usage
"Panda" has been unofficially remixed several times by various rappers, including T-Pain, Lil Mama, Uncle Murda, Montana of 300, Dave East, Lupe Fiasco, Futuristic, Meek Mill, Lil' Kim, Cupcakke, Maino, Kash Doll, Fabolous, and Fat Trel among others. A Spanish version was released by Puerto RicanLatin trap artist Almighty on the Miami-based label Carbon Fiber Music. Borrowing the original version's beat, it features Farruko, who also owns said label, and also serves as Almighty's signature song, as well as a slogan. A remix was also released and adds Daddy Yankee and Cosculluela. Additionally, Latin trap artist and pioneer Anuel AA released a scathing diss track to Almighty, entitled "RIP Panda"; the reason being due to the latter allegedly underestimating the former and excluding him from the hit remix. Kanye West sampled the song for his song "Pt. 2" which appeared on his seventh studio album, The Life of Pablo. In an interview with Big Boy on June 3, 2016, Kanye West announced an official "15 minute" Panda remix, featuring verses from all GOOD Music artists. However, as of 2019, the remix has not seen any release. "Panda" was used by NBA player Shaquille O'Neal as his WrestleMania 32entrance music. The song is also heard in the television shows Empire, Rosewood, Black-ish, Son of Zorn,Skam, and The Last Man on Earth. The song is also heard in the films The Secret Life of Pets 2 and Baywatch.
Music video
The song's official music video was released on May 10, 2016 through the subscription-based digital music streaming platform, Tidal. The music video features Desiigner himself, with a cameo appearance by American rapper Kanye West.
