Cardi B Reveals the Real Meaning Behind ‘Up’

“If it’s up, then it’s stuck” has a whole new meaning.

During her appearance on “The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon” on Thursday night (Feb. 11), Cardi B was asked about the lyrics to her latest hit. She explained that Offset says the phrase “a lot,” but it originated from Southern slang.

“After the song came out, I thought it was like a Georgia thing. But then people is like, ‘No, we say that in New Orleans. We say that in Florida,’” she said.

Cardi went on reveal that her new single was also inspired by something more, umm, unexpected. “So have you ever taken a poop, right, and it don’t come out?” she asked Fallon, who was caught off guard. “It’s just up and it’s stuck. Yeah.”

“It’s a metaphorical quote,” she added.

Cardi, who stars in the upcoming Fast & Furious 9, says she felt pressure to deliver another hit after the chart-topping success of “WAP” with Megan Thee Stallion. “The pressure was even more big because I haven’t released a solo single in like two years, so I was like, ‘Oh my God. I just wanna go top 10,’” she said. “And it’s predicted to go probably No. 2 on the Billboard Hot 100. So I’m like, ‘Oh wow, I exceeded my limit. I’m extremely happy.’”

Next up, she plans to release her sophomore album, the follow-up to her 2018 debut Invasion of Privacy. “I really want my project or anything that’s related to music to just be my album. I just gotta focus on a couple of more songs and do music videos and do the whole hoopty hoop.”

Also in the interview, Cardi revealed the difficulties of filming her music videos during the pandemic and the protocols that must be followed on set.