Cuff It

When I got called to play on this song, it was the most organic thing that ever happened to me. I heard the song and I just said "I wanna play on that. Right now." And it was one take, I promise. I played it, it was one take and I never even got "Well Nile, maybe you should do this, maybe you should do that?" It was just what I felt in my heart.

Beyoncé told British Vogue that the lockdown due to the COVID-19 pandemic changed her as a person, stating that she has "spent a lot of time focusing on building my legacy and representing my culture the best way I know how. Now, I've decided to give myself permission to focus on my joy."^[10] She released her seventh studio album, Renaissance, in July 2022 to critical acclaim. "Cuff It" appears as the fourth track on the album, and was written and produced by Beyoncé, Nova Wav, Morten Ristorp, Raphael Saadiq and The-Dream, while additional writing was handled by Nile Rodgers. The song contains an interpolation of Teena Marie's "Ooo La La La" (1988), written by Teena Marie and Allen McGrier.^[11]

In a 2023 interview with Vulture, Raphael Saadiq revealed that the song was originally meant for his group Tony! Toni! Toné!, but he decided to send it to Beyoncé.^[12] Saadiq explained that she accepted the demo but kept it aside until The-Dream found it:

She's one of those people where if she's feeling it, she's going 100 percent in. I said, 'It's going to move people. It's going to work, I'm telling you.' I think she just put it away. From what I heard, The-Dream eventually found it. [...] I already knew it was one of them joints. I always said, if you drop the right music on an artist, it could go, but I'm glad she has so many eyeballs on her, you know what I mean? You can't really trick people, it's got to be good. Beyoncé's a hard worker. I told her, 'I've always knew we would work together at some point.' Like I said, it's all about timing.

"Cuff It" received acclaim from music critics.^[14] Exclaim!'s Vernon Ayiku declared the track as "the album's biggest standout" and described it as a "groovy feel-good anthem".^[15] AllMusic's Andy Kellman opined that "Cuff It" was "a disco-funk burner with Nile Rodgers' inimitable rhythm guitar" and that it has "all the vigor of Lady T's uptempo classics".^[3] USA Today critic Melissa Ruggieri described the song as a "soulful bop" and praised the signature guitar-funk sound of co-writer Nile Rodgers.^[16] Mikael Wood of Los Angeles Times categorized the song as "ebullient disco fantasia" and praised Beyoncé's sensual vocal delivery.^[17] Billboard additionally ranked it as the best song from Renaissance.^[18] Rolling Stone's editorial staff ranked "Cuff It" at number 29 on their list of the 70 best songs by Beyoncé.^[19]

In the United States, "Cuff It" debuted at number 13 on the Billboard Hot 100 for the week ending August 13, 2022.^[32] It peaked at number six for the week ending February 18, 2023, becoming Beyoncé's 21st top-ten solo single and the second top-ten single from Renaissance, making it Beyoncé's first album to have multiple top-ten songs since I Am... Sasha Fierce (2008). By April 2023, "Cuff It" had spent 34 weeks on the Hot 100, becoming Beyoncé's longest-charting US single as a soloist.^[33][34]

In Canada, the song debuted on the Canadian Hot 100 at number 37. After being released as the second single from Renaissance, the song reached a peak of number 16 for the week ending December 3, 2022.^[35]

In the United Kingdom, "Cuff It" debuted at number 14 on the Official Singles Chart on August 5, 2022. The song reached a peak of number five on October 14, 2022.^[36] In Ireland, "Cuff It" debuted at number 17 on September 23. On October 14, the song reached a peak of number six.^[37]

In New Zealand, "Cuff It" debuted at number 39 on the Official New Zealand Music Chart. The song rose 31 positions the following week to reach number eight, and peaked at number three on the week dated October 14, becoming Beyoncé's 20th top ten single in the country.^[38] In Australia, "Cuff It" reached a peak of number eight on October 17, 2022, becoming Beyoncé's 15th top ten single in the country.^[39]

Beyoncé first performed "Cuff It" in Stockholm, Sweden during the opening night of the Renaissance World Tour on May 10, 2023.^[40] It served as the opening song of the third, party-themed act of the concert titled "Motherboard." An image of a chrome robot handcuffed to the flat screen and lying across the dome appeared for the duration of the song.

This performance began with Beyoncé and her dancers inside the dome on the stairs alongside the band and background singers. Beyoncé sang a new intro to the song with the band punctuating the end of each line. The dome opened as she began the song's first verse, revealing her and the dancers' outfit changes. After the verse, Beyoncé addressed the audience and encouraged them to clap with her as she made her way to the main stage to begin the second verse. The music took a brief pause as she sat atop her dancers, Les Twins, singing "Can I sit on top of you?" The performance ended with the dancers and Beyoncé making their way to the secondary stage as she rapped the lyrics to the "Wetter" remix over the instrumental to "Energy," bridging the two songs.

"Cuff It" returned for the Cowboy Carter Tour in 2025.^[41][42] Beyoncé mounted a giant, glowing horseshoe and flew over the crowd to the towers located across from the stage where she performed the song. She returned to the main stage at its conclusion.

Streaming/digital download^[43]

1. "Cuff It" (Wetter remix) – 4:09
2. "Cuff It" (a cappella version) – 3:45
3. "Cuff It" (instrumental version) – 3:45