''Not All Heroes Wear Capes'' (stylized in all caps) is the debut studio album by American record producer

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. R ...

. It was released on by Boominati Worldwide and

Republic Records Republic Records is a New York City–based American record label owned by Universal Music Group (UMG). It was founded by Avery Lipman and Monte Lipman as an independent label in 1995, and was acquired by UMG in 2000. Republic was initially an ...

on November 2, 2018. The album features guest appearances from

Gucci Mane Radric Delantic Davis (born February 12, 1980), known professionally as Gucci Mane, is an American rapper and record executive. He helped pioneer the hip hop subgenre of trap music alongside fellow Atlanta-based rappers T.I. and Young Jeezy, ...

, Travis Scott,

21 Savage Shéyaa Bin Abraham-Joseph (born October 22, 1992), known professionally as 21 Savage, is a rapper based in Atlanta, Georgia, United States. Born in London, he moved to Atlanta with his mother at age seven. He became known after releasing two m ...

Swae Lee Khalif Malik Ibn Shaman Brown (born June 7, 1993), known professionally as Swae Lee, is an American singer and rapper. Known for his wide vocal range and genre-bending, Swae Lee is one half of the hip hop duo Rae Sremmurd with his brother Slim J ...

, Gunna,

Young Thug Jeffery Lamar Williams (born August 16, 1991), known professionally as Young Thug, is an American rapper, singer, and songwriter. He is considered to be an influential figure of his generation, with his music impacting the modern sound of hip ...

Wizkid Ayodeji Ibrahim Balogun (born 16 July 1990), known professionally as Wizkid, is a Nigerian singer and songwriter. A prominent figure in the modern-day Afrobeats music scene, Wizkid is regarded as one of the biggest and most influential Afri ...

J. Balvin ''J. The Jewish News of Northern California'', formerly known as ''Jweekly'', is a weekly print newspaper in Northern California, with its online edition updated daily. It is owned and operated by San Francisco Jewish Community Publications In ...

Offset Offset or Off-Set may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media * "Off-Set", a song by T.I. and Young Thug from the '' Furious 7: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack'' * ''Offset'' (EP), a 2018 EP by singer Kim Chung-ha * ''Offset'' (film), a 200 ...

Kodak Black Bill Kahan Kapri (born Dieuson Octave; June 11, 1997), better known by his stage name Kodak Black, is an American rapper. He gained initial recognition with his single "No Flockin", released in 2014. His debut album, ''Painting Pictures'' (20 ...

, and

Drake Drake may refer to: Animals * A male duck People and fictional characters * Drake (surname), a list of people and fictional characters with the family name * Drake (given name), a list of people and fictional characters with the given name * ...

. The deluxe edition of the album was released, consisting of the instrumental versions of all songs from the standard edition on November 6, 2018. The album is the first part of a trilogy, with the second part being its sequel, Metro's second studio album, ''

Heroes & Villains ''Heroes & Villains'' is the second studio album by American record producer Metro Boomin. It was released through Republic Records and Boominati on December 2, 2022. The album contains guest appearances from John Legend, Future, Chris Brown, D ...

'', which was released on December 2, 2022.

Background

In April 2018, Metro appeared to announce his "retirement" from music production 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 ...

page, changing his bio to "Retired record producer/DJ." However, he had garnered production credits on other albums that were released later that year.

Release and promotion

On June 23, 2017, Metro released the lead single of the album, "

No Complaints "No Complaints" is the debut solo single by American record producer Metro Boomin featuring American rapper Offset of Migos and Canadian rapper Drake Drake may refer to: Animals * A male duck People and fictional characters * Drake (su ...

", which features American rapper

and Canadian rapper

. On October 26, 2018, multiple billboards appeared in

Atlanta Atlanta ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Georgia. It is the seat of Fulton County, the most populous county in Georgia, but its territory falls in both Fulton and DeKalb counties. With a population of 498,715 ...

and

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States New York may also refer to: Film and television * '' ...

depicting Metro Boomin as a "missing person". It was later revealed to be a teaser for the new full-length project ''Not All Heroes Wear Capes'', cryptically teased as a solo album. The cover and track list were unveiled by

on his Instagram page. It was then announced on October 31, 2018 (

Halloween Halloween or Hallowe'en (less commonly known as Allhalloween, All Hallows' Eve, or All Saints' Eve) is a celebration observed in many countries on 31 October, the eve of the Western Christian feast of All Saints' Day. It begins the observanc ...

). On January 29, 2019, "

Space Cadet ''Space Cadet'' is a 1948 science fiction novel by Robert A. Heinlein about Matt Dodson, who joins the Interplanetary Patrol to help preserve peace in the Solar System. The story translates the standard military academy story into outer space: a ...

", which features American rapper Gunna, was released to

rhythmic contemporary radio Rhythmic contemporary, also known as Rhythmic Top 40, Rhythmic CHR or rhythmic crossover, is a primarily American music-radio format that includes a mix of EDM, upbeat rhythmic pop, hip hop and upbeat R&B hits. Rhythmic contemporary never uses ...

on January 29, 2019, as the album's second single.

Critical reception

''Not All Heroes Wear Capes'' received positive reviews from music critics. Alphonse Pierre of '' Pitchfork'' described ''Not All Heroes Wear Capes'' as "a high-profile guest-filled album that builds on and creates a bigger version of the dark, hard-hitting production that has turned Metro into rap’s definitive producer of the last five years." Pierre praised the production and performances of the featured artists, concluding that the album "doesn’t feel like the typical producer album, filled with mixtape leftovers and owed favors. This is Metro Boomin laying the groundwork for his next phase, which at times feels like it could be film scores. When you’ve done it all at 25 years old, some may lose the motivation, but Metro seems ready to keep going, continuing to define the new sound of hip-hop." Marcus Blackwell of ''

HipHopDX ''HipHopDX'' is an online magazine of hip hop music criticism and news. The website's current president and publisher is Sharath Cherian and the Head Of Content is Jerry L. Barrow. ''HipHopDX'' is the flagship publication of Cheri Media Group. ...

'' complimented the cohesiveness of the album, adding that there is "a cinematic feel throughout that places the artists in their appropriate pockets." Online hip hop publication ''HotNewHipHop'' concluded: "With the power to transcend his post-trap aesthetic in full-display, Metro Boomin is gearing up for the most arduous creative phase of his career. ''NAHWC'' is a memorable showcase if you wade through the more tenable parts and create your own setlist. For Metro Boomin the distance between the 1st rung he currently occupies, and the rest of the ladder is so cavernous, he surely has all the time in the World to find his autonomy." Thomas Hobbs from

Highsnobiety Highsnobiety is a global fashion and lifestyle media brand founded in 2005 by David Fischer. It was bought by German e-commerce giant Zalando in 2022. Highsnobiety is headquartered in Berlin and has offices in Amsterdam, London, Milan, New York ...

describes Metro Boomin's work in ''Not All Heroes Wear Capes'' as a feeling "both minimalist and maximalist at the same time, with Metro creating vast compositions out of what feels like fairly traditional rap production techniques", with praises to the album as "consistently engaging".

Commercial performance

''Not All Heroes Wear Capes'' debuted at number one on the US ''Billboard'' 200 with 99,000 album-equivalent units, making it Metro Boomin's first US number-one album. The album dropped to the number eight in its second week, earning an additional 52,000 album-equivalent units. The album debuted at 16 on the

UK Album Charts The Official Albums Chart is a list of albums ranked by physical and digital sales and (from March 2015) audio streaming in the United Kingdom. It was published for the first time on 22 July 1956 and is compiled every week by the Official Charts C ...

. Following the release of ''Not All Heroes Wear Capes,'' seven songs from the album debuted on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100, including the

-assisted track " Don't Come Out the House", which charted at number 38, becoming the highest-charting song from the album.

Track listing

Notes * signifies an additional producer. * "10AM / Save the World" features additional vocals by Kevin Lemons and Higher Calling. * "Overdue" features additional vocals by

. * "Space Cadet" features additional vocals by Travis Scott. * "Only You" features background vocals by

Allen Ritter Allen Raphael Ritter (born June 19, 1988) is an American record producer and songwriter. He has produced for a variety of artists, most notably Drake ("Controlla"), Travis Scott (" Pick Up the Phone"), Kanye West (" All Day", "Father Stretch My ...

. * "Overdue" transitions into "Don't Come Out the House". * "Only 1 (Interlude)" transitions into "Lesbian". Sample credits * "10AM / Save the World" contains a sample from "Save the World", written by Gladys Givens and performed by The Loving Sisters. * "Overdue" contains a sample from " Anthonio (Berlin Breakdown Version)", written by Annie Strand,

Hannah Robinson Hannah Robinson (born in Derbyshire) is a British songwriter. Her best-known compositions include Rachel Stevens's UK No. 2 hit "Some Girls", Ladyhawke's "My Delirium" and Annie's "Chewing Gum". Robinson began her career as a vocalist and in 2 ...

, and Richard Phillips, and performed by

Annie Annie may refer to: People and fictional characters * Annie (given name), a given name and a list of people and fictional characters with the name * Annie (actress) (born 1975), Indian actress * Annie (singer) (born 1977), Norwegian singer The ...

. * "10 Freaky Girls" contains a sample from "Are You the Woman", written by Michael Jones and performed by

Kashif Kashif (also spelled Kaashif, Kaşif, Khasif or Kashef, ar, کاشف) is an Arabic word, commonly used as a male given name in the Muslim world. Its meaning is close to the "revealer", "discoverer", "uncoverer" or "pioneer", "explorer". When use ...

and

Whitney Houston Whitney Elizabeth Houston (August 9, 1963 – February 11, 2012) was an American singer and actress. Nicknamed "The Voice", she is one of the bestselling music artists of all time, with sales of over 200 million records worldwide. Houston in ...

. * "Borrowed Love" contains a sample from "After Laughter (Comes Tears)", written by

Mary Cross Mary Cross (born 1934) is an American professor, editor, writer and biographer. She has written several books including biographies of figures such as Henry James and Madonna. Madonna biography was reviewed by ''New York Post'' as "fast, accurate ...

and Johnnie Frierson, and performed by

Wendy Rene Mary Frierson, later Mary Cross (1947 – December 16, 2014), better known by her stage name of Wendy Rene, was an American soul music, soul singer and songwriter. She recorded for Stax Records in the mid 1960s. Biography Mary Frierson was born ...

. * "No More" contains a sample from "Synopsis One: In the Ghetto / God Save the World", written by

Dale Warren Dale Ossman Warren (September 27, 1943February 3, 1994) was an American musician, who was best known for his work as an arranger for Motown Records in the early 1960s, and later for the Stax label where he worked with Isaac Hayes among many o ...

and performed by

24-Carat Black 24-Carat Black (sometimes styled as The 24-Carat Black) was an American soul music, soul and funk band who recorded in the early 1970s. Although they only released one album at the time, the late 1973 concept album ''Ghetto: Misfortune's Wealth ...

Personnel

Performance *

– primary artist *

– featured artist * Travis Scott – featured artist , vocals *

– featured artist , additional vocals *

– featured artist * Gunna – featured artist *

– featured artist *

– featured artist * J Balvin – primary artist *

– featured artist *

– featured artist * Kevin Lemons and Higher Calling – vocals * Allen Ritter – background vocals Instrumentation * Jeff Basko – guitar * Peter Lee Johnson – strings , keyboards * Milan Beker – keyboards * Allen Ritter – keyboards * Siraaj Rhett – horn * Jeff Babko – keyboards * Hudson Buckley – bass guitar * Mike McTaggart – guitar * Timothy Loo – conductor , strings conductor * Sean O'Neil – guitar Production * Metro Boomin – executive production, production *

Dre Moon Andre Eric Proctor (born June 9, 1991), better known by his stage name Dre Moon, is an American record producer from Brandywine, Maryland. In 2015, he won a Grammy Award for ''Best R&B Song'' at the 57th Annual Grammy Awards for co-producing a ...

– production * Prince 85 – production * Tay Keith – production * Allen Ritter – production , additional production *

Wheezy Wesley Tyler Glass (born October 26, 1992), known professionally as Wheezy, is an American record producer and songwriter. He has worked with artists such as Lil Uzi Vert, Young Thug, Lil Baby, Future, King Von, 21 Savage, Gunna, Nav, Play ...

– production * Milan Beker – additional production * Southside – production Technical * Metro Boomin – programming * Dre Moon – programming * Prince 85 – programming * Metro Boominati – programming * Tay Keith – programming * Allen Ritter – programming * Wheezy – programming * Southside – programming * Ethan Stevens – mixing , recording engineering * Turnmeup Josh – recording engineering * Mac Attison – recording engineering

Charts

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

Certifications

References

{{Authority control 2018 debut albums Metro Boomin albums Republic Records albums Albums produced by Metro Boomin Albums produced by Tay Keith