Most Anticipated Rap/Hip-Hop Albums In 2024
This year is set to be a big year in the music industry, especially for the rap genre. Many big names, new and old have been either confirmed to be releasing music or rumoured to release music. Fans have been eager to get the year underway after somewhat of a lackluster year for the community. Albums such as Utopia by Travis Scott, For All The Dogs by Drake, A Gift And A Curse by Gunna and A Great Chaos by Ken Carson to name a few were the standout hits of this year with other albums not hitting the mark or going unrecognised by the mainstream media. Some may say 2023 was a experimental year for artists trying to expand the range of music they put out however for most it was a forgetful year with artists not capturing the fans attention as much as they have in the past. This will be a list of the biggest confirmed and speculated album releases coming this year that have fans eagerly waiting for some of their favourite artists to save the genre.
Before I get into the list there are a few honourable mentions I would like to shoutout before we get into the more popular picks. Firstly Chief Keef makes his return to music by creating a sequal to the immensely popular Almighty So album he dropped way back in 2013. An album that changed the way rap sounds today, but can he follow it up for the second time over a decade later? With a falling career its hard to believe he can. A released album by Kid Cudi titled Insano was an exiting project fans were wanting to hear, It released mid January with features from many big artists. The album, loved by hardcore fans, was not received well by most of the rap community. Selling a low 45k units in its first weak Kid Cudi is clearly on the decline and as he's getting older it may be hard for him to see the spotlight he once had. Lastly, with 21 savages album releasing at the same time as Kid Cudi's however selling 145k units the first week, the album American Dream was clearly peoples first listen over other artists as it was a well praised album consisting of a good feature list and great production, a great way to start the year off.
Juice Wrld's album The Party Never Ends, first spoken of by the label Grade A Productions in 2021 is still yet to be released. Fans of the rapper who passed in 2019 have been waiting what feels like an eternity for the label to release the album, with two posthumous albums released by the label which has met good praise for the most part, fans have high hopes for what the label calls "the final Juice Wrld album". Although the album has no firm release date, one single for the album has presumably been released which gives the rap community a big hint that the date may be disclosed this year. The title of the album hints at a more up beat/hype side for the rapper, a difference from his usual sad/emo rap he is known for.
ASAP Rocky, member of the ASAP mob was set to release his album called Don't Be Dumb back in August 2023. After working on the Need for Speed soundtrack his focus seems to be on his new project with he claims to be his best work yet with what would be his fourth album. The album is said to be experimental and fans think that it could be heavily focused around his fatherhood as he recently introduced his child with Rhianna into the world. With family commitments its easy to see how this album could be pushed back until late 2024.
Playboi Carti is hitting the prime of his career right now and has the rap game on strings. He has 3 singles he uploaded to his YouTube channel which have been all the talk as of now. Getting millions of views mixed with great promotional strategies, the rap community is all ears to a release date for an album speculated to by titled I Am Music. A bold title from the Atlanta rapper whose rise to fame wasn't easy. Being mainly underground until his hit album Whole Lotta Red, now it is a staple in the rap industry, changing the way rap sounds and giving way to many new rappers from his sound. However when the album forst released it was given a bad praise by everyone. So Playboi Carti will have to keep consistent with his next release.
J.Cole has hinted several times on songs he has featured in about his new and possibly final album The Fall Off. Originally speculated to be called Its A Boy, J.Cole seems pushed back this album as revealed by him in an interview, releasing his hit album The Off Season instead. In his late 40's Cole is one of the kings of the current rap industry but he has started to slow down recently. He's explained in recent interviews that this upcoming album (with no release date) is set to be his final one as he has plans to retire after its release.
Kanye West & TY Dolla Sign's collab album is all the talk right now. After going ghost for a good few months Kanye is slowly edging back into the spotlight as he prepares his new album for public release. As Kanye has done in the past the project has been delayed 3 times already. Set for a December 2023 release its been pushed back every month until a February 9th release seems solid. They have hosted listening parties for influencers to listen to tracks that will appear on the album and many people close to Kanye have listened behind closed doors. The album called Vultures has already had a merch rollout and song release with the same name, making it difficult to think the album can get pushed back any greater or even cancelled at this stage.
There is without question other albums that have not yet been spoken off by artists that can land hit projects in 2024, however it would be hard to top the already stacked mentions in the list here. Kanye and TY Dolla Signs Vultures album is by all means the standout of this year and we are only around 2 months in. Overall this year will hopefully be great for the rap industry as fans will be hoping for both grounded rap and new experimental sounds to push the genre forward into a new era.
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