This summer has already seen some anticipated hip-hop albums released, but there's still some upcoming albums - with release dates set and some just rumored - to look forward to.
Y.R.N.: Tha Album – Migos, July 31
Atlanta rap trio Migos have arrived with its first studio album after countless mixtapes. After gaining popularity with their signature catchy (and often copied) flow in 2013 with “Versace” featuring Drake, the rappers have been dropping mixtape after mixtape and have been heard on the radio nonstop.
Y.R.N: Tha Album was set to release on June 16, but was pushed back a month and a half after the Migos were arrested on weapons possession charges after a performance at Georgia Southern University. Migos member Offset was recently released from prison. Until he was released, however, he was kept in jail without bond, which put a halt to the rap stars’ careers. Y.R.N: The Album will release on July 31.
King Push – Pusha T, TBA
Rap veteran and Virginia native Pusha T is back with his third solo album following 2013’s My Name is my Name. Drake’s Nothing Was the Same, released around the same time, perhaps overshadowed his last album. But this time around, the G.O.O.D. music artist won’t have any fierce competition. There was rumors, that did not come to fruition, the album would be released on June 30.
If you’re a fan of slick wordplay and great production, make sure to check out King Push.
Untitled – Frank Ocean, TBA
After what feels like a disappearance from the face of the earth since his critically acclaimed Channel Orange in 2012, music fans were nothing less than ecstatic when the R&B singer announced that he would be releasing an album sometime in July.
Despite fading from the music world since then, Ocean has still been in the public limelight when he announced to the world that he identified as bisexual. This caused mixed reactions in the world of hip-hop, a sometimes notoriously homophobic genre. Whatever the hang-ups of many judgmental rap fans and artists, Ocean still maintained a sizable fan base and will undoubtedly gain more with his upcoming album.
Views From the 6 – Drake, TBA
In what seems like release after release from the Toronto rap superstar, Views From the 6 is set to release sometime this summer.
After dropping If You're Reading This It's Too Late back in February and keeping himself busy on hooks and features ever since, it’s almost as if Drake doesn’t take any breaks. IYRTITL, which was originally randomly released as a free mixtape, was quickly given a price tag within minutes of release. This, technically, made it the rapper’s fourth album under Young Money records, fulfilling his contract obligations. Online, there’s a slew of speculation as to why that happened, but no one except for Drake knows the truth.
Maybe we will soon find out the details on Views From the 6.
James Battle is an arts editor and can be reached at james.battle@ubspectrum.com
