"Switch" is a song by American actor and rapper Will Smith. It was released on February 14, 2005, as the first single from his fourth studio album, Lost and Found (2005), via Interscope Records. Smith co-wrote the song with Kwame "K1 Mil", who also produced the track, and Lennie Bennett. Upon its release, "Switch" topped the Australian Singles Chart, peaked at number seven on the US Billboard Hot 100, and became a top-10 hit in several other countries.
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Critical reception
"Switch" received mostly positive reviews, with critics identifying the song as a bright spot on Lost and Found. Gazette and Herald writer Alex Lawless called it a "proper party track" that combines pop rap and reggae. IGN writer Todd Gilchrist praised the song's "uptempo throwdown" as returning some of Smith's "former glory" and being one of the better hip-hop singles of the time. Asheville Citizen-Times writer Edna Gundersen described the song as a "funk-lite dance track" that plays to Smith's strengths as a family-friendly pop rapper, similar to Pittsburgh Post-Gazette writer Scott Mervis calling it a "clickety-clack dance single."
Commercial performance
"Switch" was Smith's highest-charting single from Lost and Found. On the chart dated April 16, 2005, the song peaked at number one on the Billboard Hot Digital Songs chart, selling 40,000 digital copies. The song peaked at number seven on the Billboard Hot 100, becoming Smith's third and last Hot 100 top 10 hit. It reached number one in Australia, where it remained for one week, and number four in the United Kingdom.
Live performances
Smith performed "Switch" live at the 2005 Kids' Choice Awards with former JammX Kids members Alyson Stoner and Monica Parales as his backup dancers, at San Antonio before Game 1 of the 2005 NBA Finals between the Detroit Pistons and the San Antonio Spurs, on BET's 106 & Park, and at the Live 8 concert in Philadelphia.
Credits and personnel
Credits are lifted from the Australian CD single liner notes.
Studios
Recorded at the Boom Boom Room (Los Angeles, California, US) and the Cutting Room Studios (New York City)
Mixed at the Boom Boom Room (Los Angeles, California, US)
Personnel
Will Smith – writing (as Willard Smith), vocals
Kwamé Holland – writing, production (as Kwame "K Mil")
Lennie Bennett – writing
O. Banga – vocal production
Pete Novak, Dylan Margerum – recording engineers
Kevin (KD) Davis – mixing
