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 ...
2 Chainz
Tauheed K. Epps (born September 12, 1977), known professionally as 2 Chainz (or Tity Boi), is an American rapper. Born and raised in College Park, Georgia, he initially gained recognition as one-half of the Southern hip hop duo Playaz Circle, al ...
. It was released on March 4, 2016, by
Def Jam Recordings
Def Jam Recordings (also simply known as Def Jam) is an American multinational record label owned by Universal Music Group. It is based in Manhattan, New York City, specializing predominantly in hip hop, contemporary R&B, soul and pop.
The ...
. The album was originally a collaborative effort between him and fellow American
rapper
Rapping (also rhyming, spitting, emceeing or MCing) is a musical form of vocal delivery that incorporates "rhyme, rhythmic speech, and street vernacular". It is performed or chanted, usually over a backing beat or musical accompaniment. The ...
Lil Wayne
Dwayne Michael Carter Jr. (born September 27, 1982), known professionally as Lil Wayne, is an American rapper, singer, songwriter, and record executive. His career began in 1995, at the age of 12, when he was signed by rapper Birdman, joining ...
, but due to his record label issues, only 2 Chainz was credited as the primary artist.
The album includes production from several high-profile record producers; such as Southside, Mike Will Made It,
TM88
Bryan Lamar Simmons (born April 4, 1987), professionally known as TM88 (also known as TrackMan 88), is an American record producer and DJ from Atlanta, Georgia. He is a member of the Atlanta-based record production and songwriting team 808 Maf ...
Zaytoven
Xavier Lamar Dotson (born January 12, 1980), professionally known as Zaytoven, is an American trap music record producer, disc jockey, and keyboardist from Atlanta, Georgia. He has released collaborative projects with artists including Gucci ...
Metro Boomin
Leland Tyler Wayne (born September 16, 1993), professionally known as Metro Boomin, is an American record producer, record executive, beatmaker, and DJ. He is known for his dark production style and its influence on modern hip hop and trap.
...
, Ben Billions and London on da Track, among others. ''ColleGrove'' received generally positive reviews from critics and it debuted at number four on the US ''Billboard'' 200 chart. A sequel, ''ColleGrove 2'' has been announced, and as of 2022, it is still in the works.
Background
''ColleGrove'' was initially a duet album between
Southern hip hop
Southern hip hop, also known as Southern rap, South Coast hip hop, or dirty south, is a blanket term for a regional genre of American hip hop music that emerged in the Southern United States, especially in Atlanta, New Orleans, Houston, Memp ...
recording artists 2 Chainz and
Lil Wayne
Dwayne Michael Carter Jr. (born September 27, 1982), known professionally as Lil Wayne, is an American rapper, singer, songwriter, and record executive. His career began in 1995, at the age of 12, when he was signed by rapper Birdman, joining ...
, however, because of Wayne's label issues, which had prevented him from releasing collaborative efforts in the past, such as '' I Can't Feel My Face'' with Juelz Santana, ''Best of Young Worlds'' with Lloyd, '' He Rap, He Sing'' with T-Pain and more, this album does not credit Wayne as a primary artist. Although it could not be released in conjunction with their respective record labels, 2 Chainz took it upon himself to release the album as his latest solo project through
Def Jam Recordings
Def Jam Recordings (also simply known as Def Jam) is an American multinational record label owned by Universal Music Group. It is based in Manhattan, New York City, specializing predominantly in hip hop, contemporary R&B, soul and pop.
The ...
. Instead, Wayne appeared as a "featured artist", courtesy of
Cash Money Records
Cash Money Records is an American record label founded in 1991 by brothers Ronald "Slim" Williams and Bryan "Birdman" Williams. Distributed by Republic, formerly known as Universal Republic, the label has been home to a roster of mostly hi ...
, which meant that the project would not count towards Wayne's contractual obligation with Cash Money Records. 2 Chainz would later refer to this album in several interviews as a "tribute" to Lil Wayne.
The album's title is a
portmanteau
A portmanteau word, or portmanteau (, ) is a blend of wordsCollege Park,
Georgia
Georgia most commonly refers to:
* Georgia (country), a country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia
* Georgia (U.S. state), a state in the Southeast United States
Georgia may also refer to:
Places
Historical states and entities
* Related to th ...
, while Wayne hails from Hollygrove, a neighborhood in
Forbes
''Forbes'' () is an American business magazine owned by Integrated Whale Media Investments and the Forbes family. Published eight times a year, it features articles on finance, industry, investing, and marketing topics. ''Forbes'' also r ...
'', 2 Chainz spoke on album, saying "As far as the ''ColleGrove'' project, I really feel like the music is tight and accessible. Wayne has always been one of my favorite rappers. We’re just doing some mixing and trying to grind up. Just know that ''ColleGrove'' is coming very soon, and it’s going to be filled with entertainment bars, great sounds, great vibes."
Release and promotion
In 2013, it was first rumored that both Lil Wayne and 2 Chainz released their single, titled "Twerk Season". In November 2015, 2 Chainz revealed that he was working on a collaborative album with New Orleans-bred rapper Lil Wayne, on the
Rap Radar
Elliott Wilson (born January 14, 1971) is an American journalist, television producer, and magazine editor. He is the founder and CEO of '' Rap Radar''. In the past, he has worked as editor-in-chief of ''XXL Magazine''. While there, he became know ...
podcast. "I've got ''ColleGrove'', that I'm working on", he said at the time. "That's the me and Wayne project. That will be out, probably sooner than people think." In December 2015, 2 Chainz and the Street Execs were hosting their sixth annual Street Execs Charity Concert, to give back to the community, where 2 Chainz previewed one of the songs from the album. On February 21, 2016, there was some indication about
Mannie Fresh
Byron Otto Thomas (born March 20, 1969), better known by his stage name Mannie Fresh, is an American music producer and rapper. He's best known for his productions on Cash Money Records releases, as well being half of the hip hop duo (alongside ...
played a role for this album. On his
Instagram
Instagram is a photo and video sharing social networking service owned by American company Meta Platforms. The app allows users to upload media that can be edited with filters and organized by hashtags and geographical tagging. Posts can ...
account, he posted a mock cover and some pictures with himself and Lil Wayne over the few weeks preceding the album's release. On February 15, 2 Chainz and Lil Wayne performed the first song, "Rolls Royce Weather Everyday" on ''
The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon
''The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon'' is an American late-night talk show hosted by Jimmy Fallon that airs on NBC. The show premiered on February 17, 2014, and is produced by Broadway Video and Universal Television. It is the seventh incarna ...
''. The preview for the music video, which was shot in
Los Angeles, California
Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the worl ...
, was released via
YouTube
YouTube is a global online video sharing and social media platform headquartered in San Bruno, California. It was launched on February 14, 2005, by Steve Chen, Chad Hurley, and Jawed Karim. It is owned by Google, and is the second most ...
. On February 20, according to
Complex
Complex commonly refers to:
* Complexity, the behaviour of a system whose components interact in multiple ways so possible interactions are difficult to describe
** Complex system, a system composed of many components which may interact with each ...
, Mack Maine said that the CDQ version on the song was going to be released soon.
On March 2, 2016,
Kanye West
Ye ( ; born Kanye Omari West ; June 8, 1977) is an American rapper, singer, songwriter, record producer, and fashion designer.
Born in Atlanta and raised in Chicago, West gained recognition as a producer for Roc-A-Fella Records in the e ...
revealed the album's artwork and the release date, via
Twitter
Twitter is an online social media and social networking service owned and operated by American company Twitter, Inc., on which users post and interact with 280-character-long messages known as "tweets". Registered users can post, like, and ...
. On March 3, the song, titled "Gotta Lotta" was premiered by Zane Lowe on Beats 1. On the same day, 2 Chainz tweeted that the album would be released on midnight. Earlier that day,
DJ Khaled
Khaled Mohammed Khaled (born November 26, 1975), known professionally as DJ Khaled, is an American DJ, record executive, record producer and rapper.
Khaled first gained recognition as a radio host in the 1990s on the radio station 99 Jamz, a ...
played some snippets of one of the songs on the album on
Snapchat
Snapchat is an American multimedia instant messaging app and service developed by Snap Inc., originally Snapchat Inc. One of the principal features of Snapchat is that pictures and messages are usually only available for a short time before t ...
, but only played Wayne's verse. Later that night, 2 Chainz streamed the album on "ColleGrove Radio" on Beats 1 with DJ Drama, DJ E-Sudd, DJ Self and Mannie Fresh. He and Lil Wayne revealed a teaser for the
music video
A music video is a video of variable duration, that integrates a music song or a music album with imagery that is produced for promotion (marketing), promotional or musical artistic purposes. Modern music videos are primarily made and used as a m ...
of "Bounce" that same day and the official video was released the next day. Shooting for two songs, "Gotta Lotta" and "MFN Right" have been shot and produced by Street Execs' new production company #WeHardProductions.
Critical reception
''ColleGrove'' has received generally positive reviews from music critics. ''
The New York Times
''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...
'' spoke on Wayne's involvement on the project "His best verses here are his most spirited rapping in at least two years. Consider the context, though. "Collegrove" isn't even a full collaborative album, but a 2 Chainz album on which he plays sidekick. (There it is in the credits: "Lil Wayne appears courtesy of Cash Money Records Inc.") 2 Chainz is an ornery rapper, occasionally stumbling into vivid word clouds. Every time he heads in an unexpected direction here, Lil Wayne seems eager to step up to the challenge. Even his throwaway lines — "Asinine/ I get blow like dandelions" — have the eyebrow-arching zing of his prime. Maybe some time away from the spotlight has calmed him. Maybe the seeming détente in his relationship with Baby has freed him. Or maybe appearing on someone else's album, rather than his own, has allowed him to be loose once more."
Patrick Lyons of HotNewHipHop described it as 'A trap buddy comedy' and Trevor Smith said, "Throughout his many memorable features, 2 Chainz has generally been recruited as the wild card, but on "Collegrove," he's the straight man, keeping the project together with his reliable ear for beats and earworm-driven songwriting. Meanwhile, Wayne plays the Ghostface to Chainz' Raekwon, bringing an unpredictable and unmatched energy to each of his appearances, but with just enough restraint to keep him on the same page as his collaborator. Not every punch lands directly, but when the two rappers find the sweet spot of their compatibility (the punchline one-upmanship of "Bounce" or the perfect ad-lib dynamic of "Blue C-Note") it brings out the best of both artists. Both Wayne and Chainz have been known to giggle at their own wordplay, and anytime the pure unfiltered joy they find in rapping is audible on the album, everyone wins." awarding the album 79/100.
Stereogum
''Stereogum'' is a daily Internet publication that focuses on music news, reviews, interviews, and commentary. The site was created in January 2002 by Scott Lapatine.
''Stereogum'' was one of the first MP3 blogs and has received several awar ...
awarded the album Album of the Week.
Commercial performance
''ColleGrove'' debuted at number four on the US ''Billboard'' 200, earning 53,000
album-equivalent unit
The album-equivalent unit, or album equivalent, is a measurement unit in music industry to define the consumption of music that equals the purchase of one album copy. This consumption includes streaming and song downloads in addition to traditio ...
s (including 34,000 copies as pure album sales) in its first week. This became 2 Chainz's third US top-ten debut.
Track listing
Notes
* signifies an additional producer
* "MFN Right" and "Not Invited" were initially included on 2 Chainz' mixtape ''Felt Like Cappin''
* "Watch Out" was initially included on 2 Chainz' mixtape ''Trapavelli Tre''
Sample credits
* "Gotta Lotta" contains interpolations from " Scatman (Ski Ba Bop Ba Dop Bop)", written by John Larkin and Antonio Catania.
* "Rolls Royce Weather Everyday" contains interpolations from the "Big Dawg", written by Earl Conyers, Tauheed Epps, Gabriel Arillo and Dwayne Carter, Jr.
* "What Happened" contains a sample of " I Love It (Acoustic Version)" performed by
Sneaky Sound System
Sneaky Sound System is an Australian dance music group formed in late 2001 by Angus McDonald on guitar, MC Double D (Daimon Downey) on vocoder and vocals, Damien Hesse (DJ) and Nick Broadhurst on saxophone. They were joined in 2004 by Connie ...