"Fly" is a song by Trinidadian-American rapper and singer Nicki Minaj from her debut studio album, Pink Friday (2010). The song was released as the eighth and final single from the album on August 30, 2011. It features additional guest vocals by Barbadian recording artist Rihanna. The track was written by Kevin Hissink, Will Jordan, J.R. Rotem, Clemm Rishad and Minaj herself, while production was helped by Rotem and Hissink. The song is a hip hop track which incorporates the R&B genre. The song is inspired by the emotion of soaring above and overcoming all stereotypes and negativity, to come out victorious.
In the United States, "Fly" reached number 19 on the Billboard Hot 100. It also peaked within the top 20 of the charts in Australia, Ireland, New Zealand and the United Kingdom. Furthermore, "Fly" marked top 20 positions on the US Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs and Mainstream Top 40 charts and reached the top ten of the US Hot Rap Songs chart at number nine.
The song's accompanying music video, directed by Sanaa Hamri, depicts Minaj and Rihanna experiencing the destruction in a post-apocalyptic environment.
Production, recording, and composition
"Fly" was written by Nicki Minaj (credited as Onika Maraj), J.R. Rotem, Kevin Hissink, W. Jordan and Clemm Rishad. Production of the song was handled by Rotem under his production name J.R. Rotem. It was recorded by Aerial Chobaz and Charles Moniz at Glenwood Place Studios, Burbank, California and at Chalice Recording Studios, Los Angeles, California. They were assisted by Lyttleton "Cartwheel" Carter. It was mixed by Carter, Chobaz and Rotem at Glenwood Recording Studios and Chalice Recording Studios. Instrumentation was provided for by Rotem and Hissink. Rihanna appears on the track as a featured artist courtesy of Def Jam Recordings.
According to the sheet music published at Musicnotes.com by Sony/ATV Music Publishing, "Fly" is written in the key of B major, with a relaxed-four tempo of 120 Beats Per Minute. The song follows a chord progression of B–C7sus–Gm7–E, while Rihanna and Nicki's vocals span from B3 to D5.
Background
The song was produced by Hissink and J.R. Rotem, who has additionally worked with Sean Kingston, Rick Ross, Leona Lewis, Jason Derülo, and Iyaz. In an interview with MTV News, Rotem discussed the track, stating that it almost did not make the cut for Pink Friday and was the last addition to the album after Minaj heard how inspirational it was. He stated, "Near the tail end of her project, I came into the studio and I had some tracks [for her]. That was one of the ones I was excited about. When I played it for her, she knew instantly: 'Yes, this is the record.' She connected with it immediately. I could just tell she was excited by it, which excited me." The demo version of the song featured a studio-vocalist that would have later been an uncredited vocalist on the track, however Minaj decided to ask Rihanna to do the track. Rotem reminisced on the moment, stating that he told Minaj "'That would be great, but getting Rihanna to do a hook for you is easier said than done.' I think that speaks to Nicki's star power. I said, 'Yeah, she's definitely first choice. It took time because she was promoting her own album and traveling overseas. It happened, and I heard it when Nicki gave me the record and it really was one of those incredible things that was really a blessing. It manifested. She said she wanted it and it happened."
During a Pink Friday Diaries session, Minaj talked more in depth about the song. "FLY is one of my absolute faves. I wanted to work with Rihanna for a long time. I'm very proud of her accomplishments ; especially since she was born on an island like me. This song is a female empowerment song. But then again, it's not specific to just women. It speaks about flying, soaring high in the face of every single solitary adversity that comes your way. I speak about how the media has attempted to box me in and how that has made me feel suffocated. After years of being dragged thru the mud, I've mustered up the courage to re-define myself. I believe that I represent an entire generation. My fans have become my family, and together we have become a movement. Get ready for it. We came to win."