Impossible Is Nothing (Iggy Azalea song)

"Impossible Is Nothing" was written by Iggy Azalea, The Invisible Men, Jon Turner, and Jon Mills of The Arcade for Azalea's debut studio album, The New Classic (2014). It contains an interpolation of "Proust" by French-Lebanese composer Gabriel Yared. The song was produced by The Invisible Men and The Arcade, while the "Proust" recreation was produced by Richard Adlam and Hol Ritson. Azalea recorded her vocals at Grove Studios in London, and Conway Studios in Los Angeles where the mixing process was completed by Anthony Kilhoffer—with the assistance of Kyle Ross—at The Mix Spot.

The song's title was first revealed by Azalea on 8 August 2013 on Instagram in an image of the album's tentative track listing.{{cite web|url=http://www.mobo.com/news-blogs/iggy-azalea-completes-debut-album-new-classic-and-reveals-tracklisting|title=Iggy Azalea Completes Debut Album 'The New Classic' And Reveals Tracklisting|last=Gboyega|first=Adenike|date=8 August 2013|publisher=MOBO Awards|access-date=24 September 2015|archive-date=27 September 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150927172022/http://www.mobo.com/news-blogs/iggy-azalea-completes-debut-album-new-classic-and-reveals-tracklisting|url-status=dead}} On 24 February 2014, Azalea announced the song as a promotional single that would serve as an "instant grat" digital download from the iTunes Store pre-order of The New Classic.{{cite web|url=http://m.digitalspy.com/music/news/a553606/iggy-azalea-reveals-the-new-classic-album-artwork-free-download.html#~pp7F2BMCDnpYio|title=Iggy Azalea reveals The New Classic album artwork, free download|last=Copsey|first=Robert|date=25 February 2014|publisher=Digital Spy|access-date=23 September 2015|archive-date=27 September 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150927134703/http://m.digitalspy.com/music/news/a553606/iggy-azalea-reveals-the-new-classic-album-artwork-free-download.html#~pp7F2BMCDnpYio|url-status=dead}}{{cite journal|title=Album Cover: Iggy Azalea – 'The New Classic'|url=http://www.rap-up.com/2014/02/24/album-cover-iggy-azalea-the-new-classic/|journal=Rap-Up|date=24 February 2014|access-date=23 September 2015}} The release was initially planned for 4 March 2014, but was slated to a date of 9 March 2014 instead. In Canada, the song was released separately from the pre-order on 21 April 2014.{{cite web|url=https://itunes.apple.com/ca/album/impossible-is-nothing-single/id860224771 |title=Impossible Is Nothing – Single by Iggy Azalea |publisher=iTunes Store (CA) |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141222080720/https://itunes.apple.com/ca/album/impossible-is-nothing-single/id860224771 |archive-date=22 December 2014 |url-status=dead |access-date=3 October 2015 |df=dmy-all }}

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"Impossible Is Nothing" is a semi-subdued,{{cite journal|title=Stream: Iggy Azalea 'Impossible Is Nothing'|url=http://www.oystermag.com/stream-iggy-azalea-impossible-is-nothing|journal=Oyster|date=10 March 2014|access-date=24 September 2015|archive-date=27 September 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150927190400/http://www.oystermag.com/stream-iggy-azalea-impossible-is-nothing|url-status=dead}} downtempo,{{cite web|url=http://buzzworthy.mtv.com/2014/03/10/iggy-azalea-impossible-is-nothing/|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140311080239/http://buzzworthy.mtv.com/2014/03/10/iggy-azalea-impossible-is-nothing/|url-status=dead|archive-date=11 March 2014|title=Iggy Azalea Gets Vulnerable on the Empowering New Track, 'Impossible Is Nothing'|last=Walker|first=John|date=10 March 2014|publisher=MTV News|access-date=26 September 2015}} hip hop song. Caitlyn Carter of the Music Times writes that the track has a "haunting-yet-upbeat" sound.{{cite web|url=http://www.musictimes.com/articles/4686/20140310/iggy-azalea-drops-new-song-impossible-nothing-reveals-tracklist-classic.htm|title=Iggy Azalea drops new song 'Impossible Is Nothing,' reveals tracklist for 'The New Classic' (Listen)|last=Carter|first=Caitlyn|date=10 March 2014|publisher=Music Times|access-date=24 September 2015}} According to John Walker of MTV News, the song takes on a more "vulnerable" sound than Azalea's previous material. The track's instrumentation includes keyboards, drums, an electric guitar line backing, and synthesizers.{{cite news|last=Mathieson|first=Craig|date=23 April 2014|title=The New Classic review: Iggy Azalea skilfully upsets conventions|url=https://www.smh.com.au/entertainment/music/the-new-classic-review-iggy-azalea-skilfully-upsets-conventions-20140423-373my.html|newspaper=The Sydney Morning Herald|access-date=24 September 2015}} It features a tinkering beat{{cite journal|title=New Music: Iggy Azalea – 'Impossible Is Nothing'|url=http://www.rap-up.com/2014/03/10/new-music-iggy-azalea-impossible-is-nothing/|journal=Rap-Up|date=10 March 2014|access-date=21 September 2015}} produced by tuned percussion instruments including chimes and a glockenspiel which causes eerie loop sound effects in the song.{{cite web|url=http://drownedinsound.com/releases/18178/reviews/4147649|title=Album Review: Iggy Azalea – The New Classic|last=Zevolli|first=Giuseppe|date=16 April 2014|website=Drowned in Sound|access-date=24 September 2015|archive-date=3 July 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140703002318/http://drownedinsound.com/releases/18178/reviews/4147649|url-status=dead}}{{cite journal|last=Hughes|first=Josiah|date=10 March 2014|title=Iggy Azalea 'Impossible Is Nothing'|url=http://exclaim.ca/Music/article/iggy_azalea-impossible_is_nothing|journal=Exclaim!|access-date=24 September 2015}} A string of siren sound effects are also heard throughout.{{cite journal|last=Soto|first=Alfred|date=16 April 2014|title=Aussie Rapper Iggy Azalea's 'The New Classic' Is a Stone Cold Dud|url=http://www.spin.com/2014/04/iggy-azalea-the-new-classic/|journal=Spin|access-date=21 September 2015}} Azalea's delivery is rapped with a mantra technique.

With aspirational lyrics,{{cite web|url=http://m.digitalspy.co.uk/music/review/a563342/iggy-azaleas-the-new-classic-reviewed-a-punchy-characterful-debut.html#~pp7GNraniZrn9G|title=Iggy Azalea's The New Classic reviewed: 'A punchy, characterful debut'|last=Mackay|first=Emily|date=8 April 2014|publisher=Digital Spy|access-date=23 September 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140512220142/http://m.digitalspy.co.uk/music/review/a563342/iggy-azaleas-the-new-classic-reviewed-a-punchy-characterful-debut.html#~pp7GNraniZrn9G|archive-date=12 May 2014|url-status=dead}} "Impossible Is Nothing" contains themes of perseverance,{{cite web|url=http://www.pluggedin.com/music-reviews/album/iggy-azalea-the-new-classic|title=The New Classic Album Review (2014)|last=Holz|first=Adam R.|date=22 April 2014|website=Plugged In (publication)|access-date=21 September 2015}} empowerment and "underdog triumphalism".{{cite journal|last=Aveling|first=Nick|date=10 April 2014|title=Iggy Azalea 'The New Classic' album review|url=https://www.timeout.com/london/music/iggy-azalea-the-new-classic-album-review|journal=Time Out|access-date=24 September 2015}} It also showcases ideas of prosocial behavior and "blonde ambition".{{cite journal|last=Richardson Andrews|first=Charlotte|date=17 April 2014|title=Iggy Azalea – 'The New Classic'|url=https://www.nme.com/reviews/iggy-azalea/15248|journal=NME|access-date=23 September 2015}} The lyrics welcome newcomers in the music industry, "I even hope at one point you take it farther than me", and speak of self-empowerment: "I shall never let 'em see me sweat / Promise to want for more until my very last breath / Promise to blaze a path and leave a trail for the next / And never sell out my soul for any number on a check". According to Lucy O'Brien of The Quietus, the lyrics portray Azalea as "the hardworking Aussie girl and the feminist goddess urging with messianic fervour".{{cite web|url=http://thequietus.com/articles/15099-iggy-azalea-the-new-classic-review|title=Iggy Azalea|last=O'Brien|first=Lucy|date=29 April 2014|website=The Quietus|access-date=24 September 2015}} John Lucas of The Georgia Straight describes the song as a "bite-sized motivational seminar".{{cite news|last=Lucas|first=John|date=23 April 2014|title=Iggy Azalea's The New Classic doesn't live up to its lofty title|url=https://www.straight.com/music/632366/iggy-azalea-brash-sharp-anomaly-rap-game|newspaper=The Georgia Straight|access-date=23 September 2015}} "Impossible Is Nothing" was compared to songs by Eminem,{{cite web|url=https://www.stereogum.com/1669500/the-week-in-pop-its-time-we-all-agreed-that-coldplay-is-great/franchises/the-week-in-pop/|title=The Week in Pop: It's Time We All Agreed That Coldplay Are Great|last=DeVille|first=Chris|date=13 March 2014|publisher=Stereogum|access-date=21 September 2015}}{{cite news|last=Smith|first=Troy L.|date=22 April 2014|title=Iggy Azalea's 'The New Classic' fails to justify its title (album review)|url=http://www.cleveland.com/music/index.ssf/2014/04/iggy_azaleas_the_new_classic_f.html|newspaper=The Plain Dealer|access-date=21 September 2015}} specifically from his 2010 album Recovery.{{cite web|url=http://www.idolator.com/7509033/iggy-azalea-the-new-classic-tracklist-impossible-is-nothing|archive-url=https://archive.today/20140906002527/http://www.idolator.com/7509033/iggy-azalea-the-new-classic-tracklist-impossible-is-nothing|url-status=dead|archive-date=6 September 2014|title=See Iggy Azalea's 'The New Classic' Tracklist & Stream New Song 'Impossible Is Nothing'|last=Williott|first=Carl|date=10 March 2014|publisher=Idolator|access-date=21 September 2015}}

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| quote = Predictably, the songs where she expresses wonderment that 'Impossible Is Nothing' are more relatable than the ones where she flaunts her liquid assets. But the ones where she pledges to keep on striving are more relatable than that, because striving is built into her flow itself. That's what her complexity is about.

| source = —Robert Christgau, Billboard{{cite magazine|last=Christgau|first=Robert|author-link=Robert Christgau|date=16 September 2014|title=Robert Christgau: Iggy Azalea's 'New Classic' Is Plenty Authentic -- and Damn Good to Boot|url=https://www.billboard.com/articles/columns/pop-shop/6251555/robert-christgau-iggy-azaleas-new-classic-is-plenty-authentic-and|magazine=Billboard|access-date=24 September 2015}}

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"Impossible Is Nothing" received mixed reviews from music critics. In a positive review, Saeed Saeed of The National wrote that it was among two tracks on The New Classic "that stand out, out of pure will", and complimented its "moody" sound.{{cite news|last=Saeed|first=Saeed|date=28 April 2014|title=Album review: Iggy Azalea – The New Classic|url=http://www.thenational.ae/arts-culture/music/album-review-iggy-azalea-the-new-classic|newspaper=The National|location=Abu Dhabi|access-date=24 September 2015}} Eric Diep of XXL also deemed it a highlight on the album, and commended its "heartfelt story".{{cite journal|last=Diep|first=Eric|date=3 April 2014|title=Iggy Azalea And T.I. Tear The Club Up At 'The New Classic' Listening|url=http://www.xxlmag.com/news/2014/04/iggy-azalea-the-new-classic-preview/|journal=XXL|access-date=26 September 2015}} A writer for Rap-Up described the track as an "empowering anthem". Maria Therese Seefeldt Stæhr of Gaffa praised the track's production.{{cite journal|last=Seefeldt Stæhr|first=Maria Therese|date=26 April 2014|title=Iggy Azalea: The New Classic|url=http://gaffa.dk/anmeldelse/84135?ref=camefromrelatedleft|journal=Gaffa|language=da|access-date=26 September 2015|archive-date=27 September 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150927193308/http://gaffa.dk/anmeldelse/84135?ref=camefromrelatedleft|url-status=dead}} Stereogum's Chris DeVille called it "the best Eminem song in years". Josiah Hughes of Exclaim! wrote positively of the song's "banging beat" and inspirational lyrics. A writer for Oyster praised the sincerity of the lyrics and the "power of its uplifting and never-quitting #feels". Digital Spy's Emily Mackay noted "a ballsy power to [Azalea's] self-made self-belief" in the song. While Nick Aveling of Time Out felt the track played to Azalea's "substantive strengths". Charlotte Richardson Andrews of NME opined that it showcased Azalea's "wit, personality and lyrical prowess". Similarly, The Line of Best Fit's Laurence Day felt the track manifested the rapper as "an affable bundle of chum-ly charm with lessons (not patronising lectures) that are applicable for anyone with a lick of ambition".{{cite web|url=http://www.thelineofbestfit.com/reviews/albums/iggy-azalea-the-new-classic-150840|title=Album Review: Iggy Azalea – The New Classic|last=Day|first=Laurence|date=16 April 2014|publisher=The Line of Best Fit|access-date=23 September 2015}} Craig Mathieson of The Sydney Morning Herald praised the song's "unexpected complement" of inspirational lyrics with spectral melodies.

Idolator reviewers were divided; Carl Williott deemed the song "a thudding piece of inspirational rap", while Christina Lee wrote that it was "tepid" and hinted at "'storms' and 'goals' like posters in a school guidance counselor's office".{{cite web|url=http://www.idolator.com/7514944/iggy-azalea-the-new-classic-album-review|archive-url=https://archive.today/20160521152731/http://www.idolator.com/7514944/iggy-azalea-the-new-classic-album-review|url-status=dead|archive-date=21 May 2016|title=Iggy Azalea's 'The New Classic': Album Review|last=Lee|first=Christina|date=22 April 2014|publisher=Idolator|access-date=24 September 2015}} Other reviewers were also critical of the track's lyrics; Alfred Soto of Spin said it "lays out every admonitory cliché from the Barnes & Noble self-help shelf"—a view echoed by Lindsay Zoladz of New York who dismissed it as "inspirational quotes copied from a high-school guidance counselor's bulletin board".{{cite journal|last=Zoladz|first=Lindsay|date=6 February 2015|title=Please, Don't Let Iggy Azalea Win Best Rap Album|url=https://www.vulture.com/2015/02/please-dont-let-iggy-azalea-win-best-rap-album.html|journal=New York|access-date=21 September 2015}} Karen Lawler of Blues & Soul wrote: "While, [the track is] is bound to be a favourite among Iggy fans, it's a subject that's been done millions of time before and it's been done better".{{cite journal|last=Lawler|first=Karen|date=21 April 2014|title=Iggy Azalea: The New Classic (Virgin EMI Records)|url=http://www.bluesandsoul.com/review/2174/iggy_azalea_the_new_classic_virgin_emi_records/|journal=Blues & Soul|access-date=26 September 2015}} Nolan Feeney of Time commented on its originality in a comparison with the 2012 track "Ten Thousand Hours" by Macklemore & Ryan Lewis: "The platitudes of 'Impossible Is Nothing' await whoever didn't finish putting in their 10,000 hours on Macklemore's own you-can-do-it-too anthem".{{cite magazine|last=Feeney|first=Nolan|date=22 April 2014|title=Review: Iggy Azalea Falls Short of a New Classic|url=https://time.com/69751/iggy-azalea-new-classic-review/|magazine=Time|access-date=26 September 2015}}

"Impossible Is Nothing" was named as one of the two worst songs on The New Classic by Devone Jones of PopMatters who criticized Azalea for "literally preaching—to youths, rather than [relating] to them".{{cite web|url=https://www.popmatters.com/review/181477-iggy-azalea-the-new-classic/|title=Iggy Azalea: The New Classic|last=Jones|first=Devone|date=14 May 2014|website=PopMatters|access-date=24 September 2015}} AbsolutePunk's Jake Jenkins called it "a muddled mess of a narrative", and added, "[The track] does nothing to give us a clear picture, or any picture at all really, of what [Azalea's] been through".{{cite web|url=http://www.absolutepunk.net/showthread.php?t=3698508|title=Iggy Azalea – The New Classic|last=Jenkins|first=Jake|date=1 May 2014|publisher=AbsolutePunk|access-date=23 September 2015}} Jon Caramanica of The New York Times said that the song was "sort of blandly inspirational" and "as numbing" as material by T.I.{{cite news|last1=Caramanica|first1=Jon|last2=Ratliff|first2=Ben|last3=Chinen|first3=Nate|date=22 April 2014|title=New Albums by Iggy Azalea, Kelis and Glen David Andrews|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2014/04/22/arts/music/new-albums-by-iggy-azalea-kelis-and-glen-david-andrews.html|newspaper=The New York Times|access-date=24 September 2015}} While Troy L. Smith of The Plain Dealer felt Azalea "[showed] promise" with the song; he dismissed the production as "leftovers from one of Eminem's recent albums".

• Iggy Azalea – writer, vocals
• The Invisible Men – writers, producers, drums and programming, keyboards
• Jon Turner – writer
• The Arcade – writers, producers
• Gabriel Yared – writer
• Richard Adlam – sample recreation, keyboards, tuned percussion
• Hol Ritson – sample recreation, keyboards, tuned percussion
• Eric Weaver – vocal engineering
• Anthony Kilhoffer – mixing
• Kyle Ross – mixing assistant

Credits adapted from the album's liner notes.{{cite AV media notes|year=2014|title=The New Classic|others=Iggy Azalea|publisher=Virgin EMI Records|id=3781892|page=7|location=Mexico}}

{{Reflist|30em}}

• [https://soundcloud.com/iggy-azalea-official/impossible-is-nothing "Impossible Is Nothing"] on SoundCloud

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Category:2014 singles

Category:2014 songs

Category:Iggy Azalea songs

Category:Song recordings produced by the Invisible Men

Category:Songs written by George Astasio

Category:Songs written by Iggy Azalea

Category:Songs written by Jon Shave

Category:Songs written by Jason Pebworth