It’s been a long time, but it would appear that Top Dawg Entertainment is officially ready to launch its 2021 campaign. And in keeping with tradition, the esteemed label has once again opted to retain an air of mystery, an occasionally frustrating tactic that admittedly works wonders in captivating the masses.
Moments ago, Top Dawg came through with a hype-inducing Instagram announcement, pointing to a May 7th, 2021 release date. “THE WAIT IS OVAH!!!!!!” he declares, alongside a steadily increasing loading bar. Unfortunately, that’s about all he opted to share, opening the floor for further speculation as to who might be dropping.
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Given that Reason single-handedly carried the label’s momentum on his back last year, it’s fair to assume that he’ll be sitting this one out. Kendrick Lamar certainly feels due, but one has to wonder if his rollout would begin in such fashion, given how personalized previous rollouts have been for the creative auteur. Still, that didn’t stop the masses from flooding the comments with hopeful cries of “KENDRICK?” as if the simple invocation of his name would be enough to manifest his presence.
SZA also feels like a possibility, given that she’s been relatively quiet since dropping CTRL in 2017. It’s also been a while since we’ve seen new releases from Ab-Soul and Isaiah Rashad, both of whom have been perpetually working on new music for some time now. Last we heard, ScHoolboy Q was in the process of alternating between studio sessions and Call Of Duty, so it’s unlikely he’s next rock. Jay Rock is certainly a possibility, though his Redemption album is among the more recent TDE projects — which certainly says something about the label’s pace.
No matter how you spin it, it’s still exciting to see TDE returning to their rightful place in the game. We look forward to seeing what the label has in store, so keep an eye out for more developments on this mysterious new project. Who do you think is dropping on May 7th?