TV Off
"TV Off", also known unofficially as "Mustard!", is a song by American rapper Kendrick Lamar from his sixth studio album, GNX. It was released on November 26, 2024, as one of the album's first singles through PGLang and Interscope Records. It features guest vocals by rapper Lefty Gunplay and was produced by Sounwave, Jack Antonoff, Mustard, Kamasi Washington, Sean Momberger and Larry "Larry Jayy" Sanders.
Background
Upon release, "TV Off" emerged as one of the standout tracks on the album, mainly due to its sonic resemblance to the Mustard-produced "Not Like Us", released earlier in 2024. According to Mustard, the similarities were "definitely intentional" and revealed that it was recorded around the same time as "Not Like Us" in May 2024 but at two different times, hence the beat switches. The song was especially noted for Lamar screaming Mustard's name as a transition between the two parts, subsequently popularized as a meme.Lamar performed the second half of the song as the closing number to his Super Bowl LIX halftime show with Mustard as the guest.
Composition and content
"TV Off" is a West Coast hip-hop song split into two distinct parts that are connected through a beat switch around the two-minute mark. The song contains samples from "MacArthur Park" by Monk Higgins, along with a snippet of horns from "The Black Hole – Overture" composed by John Barry for the soundtrack to the film The Black Hole, and an interpolation from "Kick in the Door" by The Notorious B.I.G. As the production of the first part fades out, Mustard's signature tag emerges again as a "booming" percussion kicks in and is followed by Lamar's "animated" scream.Critical reception
Zachary Horvath of HotNewHipHop viewed the song as a "pseudo-sequel" to "Watch the Party Die", released exclusively on Lamar's social media in September 2024, as it furthers the idea of resetting the culture in rap music. Despite the superficial similarities to "Not Like Us", distinctions mainly stand out on the lyrical front. Lamar offers his critical stance in regards to social media and the associated distortion of perception. In a mixed review for Pitchfork, Alphonse Pierre said of the song: "Mustard's backside of 'tv off' is drowned out by these cheesy blaring horns that feel made to go dumb in Nike commercials".The song was nominated for Best Rap Performance and won Best Rap Song at the 2026 Grammy Awards.