Trippie Redd has been on a tear these days, following the momentum set by his recent album A Love Letter To You 4 -- a project many concluded to be the best of his still-young career. Now, Trippie is gearing up to keep the streak alive with his brand new album Dreamer, taking to Instagram to reveal the classy watercolor-painted artwork.

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While he doesn't provide a tracklist, he does reveal that the album will be arriving on June 18th, next Friday. In the interim, he invites his fans to flood the comment section with his signature "1400," a request to which they happily oblige. Should you be intrigued in knowing a little more about Redd's upcoming body of work, know that the young rapper recently previewed an upcoming single, one that really emphasizes his strong ear for melody. 

And if that wasn't enough, Akademiks recently came forward to hit Trippie with a major co-sign, teasing an impressive release across the board. "Trippie Redd played me his whole album yesterday," he wrote, a few days ago. "That shit is def fire.. imma just leave this tweet right here that I can say 'told you so' when it drops." While Ak's promising words gestate, behold the album artwork below and look for Dreamer to arrive in full on June 18th.

Though Conway has already confirmed that his retirement would mark a bittersweet run to his absolutely epic 2020 campaign, the music he’s set to leave behind may very well numb the pain — if only for a while. For now, we’re in the midst of awaiting his upcoming album From King To A God, the lead-up project before his long-anticipated Shady Records debut God Don’t Make Mistakes. 

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Today, Machine took to Instagram to unveil the official album artwork, appropriately spooky considering his preferred aesthetic. Not unlike his compatriot Westside Gunn’s Pray For Paris artwork, Conway’s captures that high-art feel, depicting an imposing diety with blue skin sitting aloft with crystal ball in hand. While there are many interpretations to glean from the LP’s cover, it does go a long way in setting a tone — at once luxurious and intimidating — the Griselda way.

If that wasn’t enough to entice you, remember that From King To A God also features a stacked cast of supporting players, including Drake, 2 Chainz, Havoc, Westside Gunn, Benny The Butcher, Freddie Gibbs, and Dej Loaf. On the production side, we’re looking at Havoc, Beat Butcha, Daringer, Rick Hyde, and several as-of-yet unidentified parties. While The Machine hasn’t given us a release date, his increasing post count seems to indicate we’ll be seeing this one soon. Check out the cover below, and sound off — is Conway sitting on an album of the year contender?

It looks like not everybody is all that familiar with Playboi Carti‘s discography, especially self-proclaimed “smart Conservative pages” on Instagram. On Friday, @conservative.genius, a right-wing IG account that claims to post “Facts and Logic” as well as “Smart Conservative Content,” shared an anti-protest graphic that included a collage of photos. Along with the shots from recent demonstrations as a message that read, “if their cause is worth hearing, why do they resort to this?” However, among the photos of burning cop cars and establishments was one image that didn’t quite seem to fit. This account appears to have mistaken the album cover for Playboi Carti’s 2018 debut album, Die Lit, for a Black Lives Matter protest photo.

Of course, Carti’s diehard fans quickly took notice of this hilarious blunder, and promptly roasted whoever was behind this “smart” account. “THE DIE LIT ALBUM COVER dude calls himself a genius, yet cant differentiate a real picture from an album cover LMFAOOO delete ya entire account sir,” one user wrote. “This can’t be real there no way you used the die lit album cover,” another commented. Many fans also flooded the comments with the lyrics to some of the songs off the album, while others just spammed the post with clown emojis for obvious reasons.

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The user behind the account eventually caught on to their critical error, although they don’t quite seem to understand the extent of their mistake. “Sorry all, I didn’t realise that picture of a riot was also used as an album cover, however I won’t be taking it down,” the account posted to its story, along with three American flags. Someone please tell them that the photo wasn’t taken at a riot at all, and even if it was, it certainly wasn’t in recent weeks.

Gunna fans are anxious to hear his new album, Wunna, after a heavy bout of teasing. The rapper is in full roll-out mode now, releasing the album’s title track at the top of the week, with the album arriving on Friday, May 22.

As we approach the album’s release, he’s also released part one of his Amazon documentary, where he’s showcasing the creation of the album which all went down during a vacation (or perhaps work-vacation) in Jamaica. Today, he follows that up with the reveal of his album’s tracklist– and it’s looking legit. “I work so hard on this album Mann I just really want u guys to enjoy it,” he wrote alongside the unveiling.

The rapper taps his friends to appear on the project’s 18 songs (!). Young Thug, Lil Baby and Nechie, all YSL affiliates, are going to be making an appearance, with Thugger showing up twice. In addition, he’s got Travis Scott and Roddy Ricch features lined up. The back cover art doesn’t only list the featured artist, it actually includes the producers and engineers, which is dope to see in detail. You can check that in the second photo on his IG post.

Check out the tracklist below and let us know which song you’re most excited to hear. Perhaps what makes this release even more exciting than usual is the simple fact that, of the tracklist, we’ve only actually heard two of these songs– so there will be plenty of newness for us to absorb on Friday.

Wunna Tracklist

1. Argentina

2. Gimmick

3. MOTW

4. Feigning

5. Dollaz On My Head feat. Young Thug

6. Addys feat. Nechie

7. Skybox

8. Wunna

9. Blindfold feat. Lil Baby

10. Rockstar Bikers & Chains

11. Met Gala

12. Nasty Girl/On Camera

13. Cooler Than a Bitch feat. Roddy Ricch

14. I’m On Some

15. Top Floor feat. Travis Scott

16. Don’t Play Around

17. Do Better

18. Far feat. Young Thug

Even though the world as we knew it turned to shit, music has been pretty good. So, there’s that. COVID-19 may have ruined most of our major travel or festival plans this year, but Future is coming through to remind us that life isn’t all that bad.

The Atlanta rapper announced his new album High Off Life, which will be released at the end of the week. The album is set to feature Drake, Youngboy Never Broke Again, Young Thug, Lil Uzi Vert, Travis Scott, Young Thug, and more. As we wait to hear his latest masterpiece (fingers crossed!), the rapper has just unveiled the cover art.

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The black-and-white artwork shows Future having a grand ole’ time, throwing his hands in the air and letting his jacket flow in the wind. The background is foggy but a triplet of baddies can be seen behind him.

High Off Life sounds like it can potentially be one of Future’s better recent albums. The people have been craving another classic from him. Do you think he can deliver?

High Off Life will be released on Friday, May 15. It will serve as his eighth studio album and the official follow-up to The WIZRD.

Westside Gunn has rapidly established himself as one of the flyest innovators in hip-hop, rising from a purveyor of grimy Buffalo bars to one of the most well-connected artists in the entire rap game. And in a brilliant turn, he didn’t even have to sacrifice the former to become the latter, a testament to his visionary integrity. Now, with his upcoming album Pray For Paris set to arrive on April 17th, Gunn has taken to Instagram to unveil the hauntingly beautiful album artwork from Virgil Abloh.

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“PRAY FOR PARIS 4/17 Cover ART designed by head of Louis Vuitton @virgilabloh,” captions Gunn, alongside the majestic piece of art. “Dont ever compare Me to Anybody!!!!!!” Collaborator Royce Da 5’9″, who worked with Westside on his own “Overcomer” track, chimed in with some heartfelt words of respectful admiration. “You think on an elevated level of ghetto sophistication,” writes Nickel. “It’s fun to watch you quality control.”

On that note, it looks like Gunn has pulled out all the stops on Pray For Paris, bringing in features from Freddie Gibbs, Wale, Roc Marciano, Conway, Benny The Butcher, Tyler, The Creator, and more. Check out the full tracklist here, and bask in the glory of the Virgil Abloh-designed cover art below. It’s not quite brick written on a brick, but it’s almost surely the next best thing. 

North Carolina rapper DaBaby became one of the most popular musical acts in the world last year, dropping two highly-successful albums and showing off his personality through his hilarious videos. The rapper had been chipping away at the mainstream for years, and he’s finally considered a bonafide star. KIRK is truly what solidified him as one of the year’s breakout talents, following up Baby On Baby with more of an introduction to his character, telling tales about his family and relating to his audience. Originally, the album cover art was supposed to be very different from the version that was released, and DaBaby is showing the world what could have been on Instagram.

Updating his Instagram Story last night, the Charlotte native unveiled what he was going to run with as the cover artwork. Featuring tons of colors, DaBaby shares a loving embrace with his child, writing the project title on a chalkboard and placing a tribute to his father in the right-hand bottom corner. 

The artwork that Baby ended up choosing shows the rapper as an infant, sitting on his father’s lap. 

Check out the original selection below and let us know which one you prefer. Both have extreme sentimental value to DaBaby, so either one would have worked. Personally, I think the one he went with portrays the album’s vibe more accurately.

Social distancing hits different when you've got a manor like Jay-Z and Beyonce, who could likely fill several calendars from glamor house shots alone. Case in point, Complex reports that the album cover of Jay Electronica and Jay-Z's collaboration album A Written Testimony is actually a photograph of the Carter-Knowles' infinity pool, a view so breathtaking that many wondered whether it was a Bob Ross-esque painting. In fact, some still remain adamant that it is a painting, albeit one mirrored after a real-life photo. 

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It was also claimed during the album's Livestream that Beyonce actually took the photograph herself, though it's unconfirmed whether it was taken with Jay Eletronica's album specifically in mind. Perhaps the Jigga Man was simply rifling through Beyonce's iPhone archives, hitting that tiny heart icon whenever he stumbled upon a favorite, and found himself drawn to the inherent serenity of the pool shot. Or perhaps Beyonce was actively involved in the creative process, which is entirely possible given the scope of her artistic vision. 

All things considered, Bey's eye came through in a major way; not only is the cover for A Written Testimony visually appealing, but it also checks off a few thematic boxes. That of chasing and finding paradise, for one -- not to mention the opulent lifestyle associated with success in the rap game. Knowing Jay Electronica, however, it would certainly seem fair to suggest the former is more in character. 

With his album arriving in two weeks, Rich The Kid is officially preparing the world for his latest take-over, revealing the cover artwork for Boss Man.

For the last couple of go-arounds, the Atlanta–New York rapper has been reminding us that the world belongs to him but, this time around, we’re commencing a new era. Rich The Kid is releasing his new album Boss Man on March 13, which is set to feature Nicki Minaj, Post Malone, DaBaby, Future, Lil Baby, and others. The cover artwork has just been revealed Instagram, showing the recording artist wearing a dapper suit and carrying one baby goat while another lays down on top of a piano. Clearly, RTK is adamant in reminding us that the only true goat in the photo is, of course, himself.

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In constant competition with Lil Uzi Vert, Rich The Kid is expected to release Boss Man on the same day as the long-awaited Eternal Atake. The latter does not have a confirmed drop date yet but all signs are pointing to its March 13 arrival. After their run-in a few years ago at Starbucks, we wouldn’t be surprised to see them duking it out for supremacy on Friday the 13th.

Are you looking forward to Rich The Kid’s new album?

Nas’ Illmatic is canon and so is its cover art. The iconic album immediately brings to mind the image of the Queensbridge projects overlaid with a young Nasir Jones’ face. It’s one of those album covers you can recognize in a glance whether it’s a tribute or a spoof. The NFL did a (slightly bizarre) feature visualizing hypothetical album covers, which included an Illmatic treatment of Dez Bryant. So many artists have riffed on Nas’ well-known cover (J. Cole, Lil Wayne, possibly Zayn) that it may come as a surprise that Nas’ album art is itself homage to a jazz album.

The Howard Hanger Trio released A Child Is Born in 1974. The album includes jazz covers of Simon and Garfunkel and The Beatles in addition to original songs. Anyone familiar with Illmatic will have no difficulty spotting the similarities between its album art and that of A Child Is Born. The Howard Hanger’s Trio’s album depicts a dilapidated row of houses beneath a semi-transparent young girl’s face. The only prominent words are written on a street sign that says “DEAD END.” It’s impossible not to draw a connection between the depressing atmosphere of the street image and the young girl’s future. The sense of poverty is palpable in the ramshackle buildings. It’s easy to see how Nas was inspired by the contrast of the child’s unspoken promise against a hopeless-looking backdrop. In my research on the Howard Hanger Trio, nearly all the comments pointed to Nas–either saying they were brought to the jazz album by Nas or announcing that they knew the Trio’s cover art inspired Illmatic’s art; it’s always a testament to a work of homage when it overshadows its point of reference.

On both album covers, the child’s face fades into the background image. There is a symbolic erasure created by the transparency that blends the two images together and makes them impossible to disentangle. The dismal environment is an undeniable part of the child and there is something ominous about how the child must be viewed in conjunction with the street where he/she lives. Nas says, “Odds against Nas are slaughter,” which can be said for all children growing up impoverished communities. The striking visual effect of framing the innocence of a child against the bleak environment he’s living in is a reminder of how fragile that innocence is.

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“The World is Yours” is one lens through which to view Illmatic’s artwork. The song’s title is an allusion to a scene in Scarface when Tony Montana is galvanized by a blimp that reads: “THE WORLD IS YOURS.” Scarface is a story about someone who came from nothing and managed to create an entirely different reality for himself. There’s a message of promise in Nas’ lyrics: “My strength, my son, the star, will be my resurrection/Born in correction, all the wrong shit I did, he’ll lead a right direction.” The idea of children being vessels of hope is not new, but applied in the context of Illmatic, the album art can be interpreted as hopeful. You see a young kid with a fixed expression on the cover and you imagine that he can grow up and become Nas–a massive success.

In the music video for “The World is Yours,” a young boy watches television in a small apartment. On the screen, Nas (as Tony Montana) is in a bubble bath drinking champagne while a woman dressed like Michelle Pfeiffer’s character puts on makeup in the background. The young boy is inspired by Nas’ apparent wealth and you can see how the song’s imagery encourages a connection between the visibility of Nas’ success and the young boy feeling inspired to reach the same heights. There’s a Horatio Alger sensibility underlying the song. It endorses agency in one’s own life and the capacity to overcome the odds. The video ends by zooming out on the boy’s apartment so you can see that he lives in a housing project that looks just like the one on the cover of Illmatic.

Official Artist Artwork 

Quiet inspiration is one possible interpretation of the album art. But the flip side of the coin is that the kid never emerges from Queensbridge. Or maybe he sees Scarface and takes a different, pro-violence-and-crime message from it. And this is when the “Life’s A Bitch” mentality challenges the “The World is Yours” mentality and depicts the cover art in a completely different light. In a way, “Life’s A Bitch” preaches the same message as “The World is Yours.” Both songs espouse the notion that getting out of poverty is possible, but you have to make the decision to do so. But the difference is that “Life’s A Bitch” approaches getting out of poverty by appealing to a nihilistic mindset. Nas says, “N***s I used to run with is rich or doin’ years in the hundreds”–so life is basically a crapshoot. You could get rich or you could go to jail, but taking the risk is better than continuing along in a life of desperation. There’s a nothing to lose philosophy behind “Life’s A Bitch” that captures why so many young men end up in the system.

When you look at Nas’ portrait on the cover of Illmatic with this worldview in mind, suddenly the child’s face ceases to radiate hope. Instead, there’s a bleak reality that young men and boys are being compelled to make mercenary choices due to lack of opportunity. Young Nas had the hardened expression of a kid who’s seen too much and in this light, the album art appears desolate. The young boy’s fate is already decided and he’s most likely going to end up a statistic.

The beauty of Illmatic’s album art is how it jibes with the content of the album. Nas holds competing optimistic and pessimistic views. No song inhabits this antinomy better than “One Love.” In “One Love”, Nas writes letters to his friend, Born, who’s serving time. He’s trying to tell Born to keep his head up in prison by sending him updates about life outside. Nas congratulates Born on having a son, but the rest of the news about betrayals and violence is a depressing counterbalance. On one hand, Nas is reminding Born what he has to live for once his sentence is over. But on the other, Nas has inadvertently reminded himself of how dismal their reality is. The original intention of positivity is subverted by the fact that there’s ostensibly nothing better going on outside of prison than inside. Nas exposes the near impossibility of holding onto hope in a hopeless place and this difficulty is manifest in the album cover. An album cover of what is debatably the best rap album of all time, in which a seven-year-old Nas manages to simultaneously channel defiance, promise, and innocence.

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