Retrospective Review: Matt Ox’s “Pull Up ft. Key” Ages like Fine Wine

Liz Foster ‘22 

Bits&Pieces Editor 

“I told her to pull up, I don’t really love her, I might have to dub her,” concedes youthful star Matt Ox on his 2018 hit “Pull Up.” The artist was a mere thirteen-year-old when he collaborated with Atlanta rapper Key on this timeless track. With captivating lyrics like “Dripping in Margielas,” it’s no surprise the boy-wonder has accrued a devout following of nearly one million monthly listeners. 

Based out of Philadelphia, the young rapper first emerged on the scene in 2017 with his release “Overwhelming,” a track he dropped at only twelve-years-old. In 2018, the music magazine Fader compared him to Playboi Carti when he released his debut OX; later that year he would appear on the late XXXTentacion’s “$$$” and prove himself a force to be reckoned with in the rap world.  

The Oogie-Main and TrapMoneyBenny produced “Pull Up” is a charming tune that allows Matt Ox’s tender, tenor voice to soar as he covers topics that were, and arguably still are, mature subject material. He totes his wealth — at least a six digit value per, albeit unreliable, sources — and jewelry, talking about how he can double up both his check and his neck. In the same breath, he reminds us that he’s self-empowered and independent in saying that he “won’t take her out” nor pay her rent. Matt Ox is cheeky, coy, and confident as he brags that he “be rockin’ Gucci, [he] be rockin’ Fendi.” The child star emits the swag of a seasoned rockstar, or Justin Bieber in his early 20s, as he soars along the track.  

There’s an irresistible aura to “Pull Up” that traps the listener in its soothing, soulful chime-y tones. The 13-year-old rapper inhales the audience with the ferocity of a pink, bouncy Kirby. In merely one chorus, you’re sucked in deep to his world. Matt Ox oozes charisma while Key offers tongue-in-cheek lyrics such as “I read her mind, summa cum laude.” What shows cloutier than a bar that references graduating at the top of your class? A lyrical joke making a reference to the mind without alluding to oral sex is genuinely worthy of praise. The duo drip in palatable amounts of ecletic steez as they coast over the Working on Dying collective’s delectable instrumentals. As one Genius Lyrics comment reads, the song is “relaxing af,” with haunting, plucky little keys and soft snares. “Pull Up” is a sun-storm on a summer day, a quiet pink sky at a dusk, a set of wind chimes in a sweet breeze. Nearly three years later, “Pull Up ft. Key” has solidified itself as a timeless homage to Matt Ox’s ever-expanding legacy. 

You can find Matt Ox’s latest release UNORTHODOX on all streaming platforms.