''Arizona Baby'' (stylized in
all caps
In typography, all caps (short for "all capitals") refers to text or a font in which all letters are capital letters, for example: "THIS TEXT IS IN ALL CAPS". All caps may be used for emphasis (for a word or phrase). They are commonly seen in ...
) is the third
studio album
An album is a collection of audio recordings issued on compact disc (CD), Phonograph record, vinyl, audio tape, or another medium such as Digital distribution#Music, digital distribution. Albums of recorded sound were developed in the early ...
by American rapper
Kevin Abstract
Clifford Ian Simpson (born July 16, 1996), known by his stage name Kevin Abstract, is an American rapper, singer, and songwriter, known for his role as a founding member of Brockhampton. He released his debut album, '' MTV1987'', in 2014 to crit ...
, released on April 25, 2019 by
Question Everything, Inc. through
RCA Records
RCA Records is an American record label currently owned by Sony Music Entertainment, a subsidiary of Sony Corporation of America. It is one of Sony Music's four flagship labels, alongside RCA's former long-time rival Columbia Records; also A ...
. The album was released cumulatively, with the eponymous first part (stylized as ''ARIZONA baby'') released on April 11, followed by a second part titled ''Ghettobaby'' on April 18. It was primarily produced by
Jack Antonoff
Jack Michael Antonoff (born March 31, 1984) is an American singer, multi-instrumentalist, songwriter, and record producer. Antonoff is the lead singer of rock band Bleachers, and is the guitarist and drummer in the pop rock band Fun. He was p ...
and Abstract's fellow
Brockhampton Brockhampton may refer to:
*Brockhampton (band), an American self-described "boy band" and music collective
*Brockhampton, Gloucestershire, Cotswold, England
* Brockhampton, Tewkesbury, a location
In geography, location or place are used to deno ...
member Romil Hemnani, with several other members of Brockhampton providing additional production, vocals, and instrumentation.
Release and promotion
Kevin Abstract teased the project in March 2019, sharing its artwork without explanation.
On April 8, a music video for "Big Wheels" was released, under the video title "The 1-9-9-9 is Coming",
alongside an image teasing the dates April 11, April 18 and April 25. On April 11, following a teaser video for "Georgia" the three-song project was released, with ''Ghettobaby'' announced to be forthcoming. On April 16 Abstract clarified that ''Arizona Baby'' would be his second full-length album, being released gradually. ''Ghettobaby'' was released on April 18, including the previously released music alongside three new tracks, and was promoted by a music video for "Baby Boy". The complete album was released on April 25, following a music video for "Peach".
Music and lyrics
Abstract has cited
Lana Del Rey
Elizabeth Woolridge Grant (born June 21, 1985), known professionally as Lana Del Rey, is an American singer-songwriter. Her music is noted for its cinematic quality and exploration of tragic romance, glamour, and melancholia, with frequent ...
's "
Venice Bitch
"Venice Bitch" is a song by American singer and songwriter Lana Del Rey. It was released on September 18, 2018, through Polydor and Interscope Records, as the second single from her sixth studio album, ''Norman Fucking Rockwell!'' (2019). The song ...
" (also co-produced by Antonoff) as inspiring the album, as well as "Westcoast Collective" by American rapper
Dominic Fike
Dominic David Fike (born December 30, 1995) is an American singer, songwriter, and actor. Fike first received recognition after releasing several popular songs to the website SoundCloud. Following the release of his debut extended play, '' Don't ...
, who appeared on the final album.
The first part of ''Arizona Baby'' was described as "stand
ngon the cutting edge of modern
hip-hop",
taking an experimental approach to
pop songwriting.
The album juxtaposes gentle vocoders and acoustic guitars against "galloping" production and rapping. "Big Wheels" features "sparkling synths and skittering beats", and has been compared to Abstract's hip hop work with
Brockhampton Brockhampton may refer to:
*Brockhampton (band), an American self-described "boy band" and music collective
*Brockhampton, Gloucestershire, Cotswold, England
* Brockhampton, Tewkesbury, a location
In geography, location or place are used to deno ...
, while "Joy Ride" is built around trumpets and has been noted to demonstrate producer
Jack Antonoff
Jack Michael Antonoff (born March 31, 1984) is an American singer, multi-instrumentalist, songwriter, and record producer. Antonoff is the lead singer of rock band Bleachers, and is the guitarist and drummer in the pop rock band Fun. He was p ...
's influence. "Georgia" has been described as tender and nostalgic.
''Ghettobaby'', the album's second part has been described as increasingly personal, discussing Abstract's childhood, former friendships and insecurity, and featuring mostly sung
R&B-
hip hop fusions. "Corpus Christi" contains a reference to former
Brockhampton Brockhampton may refer to:
*Brockhampton (band), an American self-described "boy band" and music collective
*Brockhampton, Gloucestershire, Cotswold, England
* Brockhampton, Tewkesbury, a location
In geography, location or place are used to deno ...
member Ameer Vann, who was fired from the group following domestic abuse allegations. "Baby Boy" is a
psychedelic rock
Psychedelic rock is a rock music Music genre, genre that is inspired, influenced, or representative of psychedelia, psychedelic culture, which is centered on perception-altering hallucinogenic drugs. The music incorporated new electronic sound ...
song, with plucked guitar and distant synthesizers.
Critical reception
Part one
Hannah Mylrea of ''
NME
''New Musical Express'' (''NME'') is a British music, film, gaming, and culture website and brand. Founded as a newspaper in 1952, with the publication being referred to as a 'rock inkie', the NME would become a magazine that ended up as a f ...
'' described the project as "short-but-sweet", praising its polished and focused nature compared to Abstract's previous work with
Brockhampton Brockhampton may refer to:
*Brockhampton (band), an American self-described "boy band" and music collective
*Brockhampton, Gloucestershire, Cotswold, England
* Brockhampton, Tewkesbury, a location
In geography, location or place are used to deno ...
, and describing it as "a neat reminder of
istalent".
For ''
The Line of Best Fit
''The Line of Best Fit'' is an independent online magazine based in London, concentrating on new music.
It publishes independent music reviews, features, interview, and media. Founded by Richard Thane in February 2007 and currently edited by P ...
'', Sophie Walker wrote that the album "demonstrates
bstract'schameleon-like talent for creating everything from the most infectious beats to the gentlest verses".
Track listing
The album's parts were released cumulatively, meaning ''Ghettobaby'' also includes part one, and the final release includes all three parts, without a specified distinction between each part.
Personnel
Credits adapted from
Tidal
Tidal is the adjectival form of tide.
Tidal may also refer to:
* Tidal (album), ''Tidal'' (album), a 1996 album by Fiona Apple
* Tidal (king), a king involved in the Battle of the Vale of Siddim
* TidalCycles, a live coding environment for music
* ...
.
Musicians
*
Kevin Abstract
Clifford Ian Simpson (born July 16, 1996), known by his stage name Kevin Abstract, is an American rapper, singer, and songwriter, known for his role as a founding member of Brockhampton. He released his debut album, '' MTV1987'', in 2014 to crit ...
– keyboards , programming
* Austin Anderson – keyboards
*
Jack Antonoff
Jack Michael Antonoff (born March 31, 1984) is an American singer, multi-instrumentalist, songwriter, and record producer. Antonoff is the lead singer of rock band Bleachers, and is the guitarist and drummer in the pop rock band Fun. He was p ...
– keyboards , programming , guitar , drums , percussion , bass , piano , organ , background vocals
*
Bearface
Brockhampton (stylized in all caps) was an American hip hop collective founded in 2010 as AliveSinceForever in San Marcos, Texas. Led by Kevin Abstract and formed partially through online music discussion forum KanyeToThe, Brockhampton was a s ...
– background vocals
*
Ryan Beatty
Ryan Kevin Beatty (born September 25, 1995) is an American singer-songwriter. He was born in Clovis, California, and now resides in Los Angeles.
His debut EP, ''Because of You'', was released in 2012. After a hiatus, Beatty began to majorly re- ...
– vocals , background vocals
*
Russell "Joba" Boring – background vocals , bass
*
Dominic Fike
Dominic David Fike (born December 30, 1995) is an American singer, songwriter, and actor. Fike first received recognition after releasing several popular songs to the website SoundCloud. Following the release of his debut extended play, '' Don't ...
– background vocals , guitar
*
Romil Hemnani
Brockhampton (stylized in all caps) was an American hip hop music, hip hop collective founded in 2010 as AliveSinceForever in San Marcos, Texas. Led by Kevin Abstract and formed partially through online music discussion forum KanyeToThe, Brockha ...
– keyboards , programming , guitar , piano
* Cole Kamen-Green – trumpet
* Evan Smith – saxophone , flute
Engineers
* Jack Antonoff – mixing
* Brandon Boost – engineering
*
Tom Elmhirst
Tom Elmhirst (born 8 June 1971) is a British mix engineer. He has worked with artists including Adele, Beck, David Bowie, Cage the Elephant, Lady Gaga, Residente, and Amy Winehouse, among many others. Elmhirst has received numerous accolades a ...
– mixing
* Romil Hemnani – recording
*
Vlado Meller
Vlado Meller is a Slovak audio mastering engineer, currently with Vlado Meller Mastering in Charleston, South Carolina. Meller works across many genres of music, with credits on rock, hip-hop, pop, jazz, metal, dance, opera, Broadway, and classica ...
– mastering
* John Rooney – assistance
* Laura Sisk – recording
* Eli Walker – recording
Charts
Release history
References
{{Authority control
Kevin Abstract albums
2019 albums
Hip hop albums by American artists
RCA Records albums
Albums produced by Jack Antonoff