Vince Staples unveiled his highly anticipated headlining U.S. tour, Black In America, in support of his acclaimed eighth studio album, Dark Times, available now via Blacksmith / Def Jam Recordings. The 13-date tour will kick off on October 14th in Atlanta, GA, and will make stops in major markets across the country, including New York, Boston, Philadelphia, Toronto, and San Francisco, before concluding in Los Angeles on November 6th.
Grammy-nominated singer, songwriter, and producer Baby Rose will join Staples as a special guest for all dates outside of New York. Pre-sales for “Black In America” will begin on Tuesday, June 4th, at 10 AM Local Time, with tickets becoming available to the general public on Friday, June 7th, at 10 AM Local Time.
Fans can find additional details and ticket information by visiting VinceStaples.com. This tour promises to be a must-see event, showcasing Staples’ unique artistry and the powerful themes explored in “Dark Times.” Don’t miss your chance to experience Vince Staples live on stage during the “Black In America” tour.
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Last month, Vince Staples unveiled his eighth studio album, Dark Times, via Blacksmith Records / Def Jam Recordings. This album marks a new era in the prolific artist’s career, blending dense lyricism with lush, layered beats, and offering wry, melancholic observations about life, while finding pockets of light in an endless dark.
Dark Times features minimal guest voices, relying on samples, studio friends, and a narrative outro by iconic alt singer-songwriter Santigold, who shares an apocalyptic yet awe-inspiring dream with Staples. Notable moments include the track “Liars,” which incorporates an excerpt from a 1973 conversation between Nikki Giovanni and James Baldwin about Black love, and “Government Cheese,” where Staples raps about an imprisoned friend reaching out after seeing him on TV.
The album balances its introspective themes with celebratory tracks such as “Étouffée,” a bouncy ode to Staples’ Louisiana roots, and “Little Homies,” a message encouraging the younger generation. “Freeman,” the final song before Santigold’s outro, showcases Staples’ reflective coolness.
Ahead of the album’s release, Staples shared the first single and visual for “Shame On the Devil.”
“It’s a testament to where I am right now and how I view things—it’s just a timestamp,” Staples says of the album. “I might not feel like that again tomorrow. But in the process of making this project, these were the things that spoke to me.”
In support of Dark Times, Staples will embark on his headlining BLACK IN EUROPA TOUR, starting June 4th in Cologne, Germany. The tour will visit Berlin, Paris, London, and Manchester before concluding in Birmingham, UK, on June 13. Staples will also perform at various European festivals in August, including Oya in Oslo, Flow Festival in Helsinki, and HipHop Open in Stuttgart. For tickets and the full list of dates, visit www.vincestaples.com/tour.
Vince Staples is back on the road this fall, ready to bring his unique style and energy to fans across North America. With his new album, Dark Times, freshly released, and his Netflix series, The Vince Staples Show, renewed for another season, Staples shows no signs of slowing down. This tour, aptly named the “Black In America Tour,” promises to bring his impressive stage performance to a city near you. The tour will see Staples performing at a variety of festivals and mid-sized venues, kicking off in October and wrapping up in early November. Here’s everything you need to know about the tour dates, ticket information, and what to expect from Vince Staples’ latest endeavor.
Before hitting his North American leg, Vince will spend a majority of his summertime in Europe. On June 4th, he performs in Cologne, Germany before hitting France, UK, and other European countries. However, for the North American stretch of Vince Staples’ “Black in America Tour,’ he will kick things off at the Austin City Limits Music Festival on October 5. From there, Staples will hit major cities across the United States and Canada, performing in iconic venues, like New York City’s Terminal 5, and Toronto’s HISTORY. The tour concludes with a grand finale at the Shrine Auditorium in Los Angeles on November 6.
Ticket Information
MADRID, SPAIN – JULY 12: Vince Staples perfoms on stage at Madcool Festival on July 12, 2019 in Madrid, Spain. (Photo by Javier Bragado/WireImage)
Tickets for the Black in America Tour are available on Vince Staples’ official website. Given Staples’ dedicated fan base and the success of his recent projects, tickets are expected to sell quickly. Fans are encouraged to purchase their tickets early to ensure they don’t miss out on this highly anticipated tour.
Cologne, Germany – June 4 – Live Music Hall Berlin, Germany – June 5 – Huxleys Neue Welt Aarhus, Denmark – June 7 – NorthSide Festival Hilvarenbeek, Netherlands – June 8 – Best Kept Secret Festival Paris, France – June 9 – Bataclan London, England – June 11 – Roundhouse Manchester, England – June 12 – O2 Ritz Birmingham, England – June 13 – O2 Institute Barcelona, Spain – June 15 – Sónar Festival Wichita, KS – June 22 – Elsewhere Festival Chicago, IL – August 1 – Lollapalooza Oslo, Norway – August 7 – Øyafestivalen Helsinki, Finland – August 9 – Flow Festival Stuttgart, Germany – August 10 – HipHop Open Austin, TX – October 5 @ Austin City Limits Music Festival Atlanta, GA – October 14 @ The Eastern * New York, NY – October 18 @ Terminal 5 Boston, MA – October 20 @ Roadrunner * Philadelphia, PA – October 21 @ Franklin Music Hall Toronto, Ontario – October 23 @ History * Washington, D.C. – October 24 @ The Anthem * Detroit, MI – October 26 @ Masonic Cathedral Theatre * Minneapolis, MN – October 28 @ Palace Theatre * Denver, CO – October 30 @ Mission Ballroom * Seattle, WA – November 2 @ Showbox SoDo * Portland, OR – November 3 @ McMenamins Crystal Ballroom San Francisco, CA – November 5 @ The Warfield * Los Angeles, CA – November 6 @ Shrine Auditorium & Expo Hall *
(* indicates shows featuring Baby Rose) (Bold indicates tour date)
Vince Staples will make a return to Netflix. The streaming giant has confirmed a renewal of The Vince Staples Show for a second season.
“The Vince Staples Show is back!” Staples said. “The people have spoken and the most riveting, captivating, and polarizing show on Netflix is returning for season 2. Get ready for hijinks that only a mother can love. Thank you, Netflix!”
Starring alongside Staples in the show were Vanessa Bell Calloway and Andrea Ellsworth.
Last week, Vince Staples unveiled his eighth studio album, Dark Times, via Blacksmith Records / Def Jam Recordings. This album marks a new era in the prolific artist’s career, blending dense lyricism with lush, layered beats, and offering wry, melancholic observations about life, while finding pockets of light in an endless dark.
Dark Times features minimal guest voices, relying on samples, studio friends, and a narrative outro by iconic alt singer-songwriter Santigold, who shares an apocalyptic yet awe-inspiring dream with Staples. Notable moments include the track “Liars,” which incorporates an excerpt from a 1973 conversation between Nikki Giovanni and James Baldwin about Black love, and “Government Cheese,” where Staples raps about an imprisoned friend reaching out after seeing him on TV.
The album balances its introspective themes with celebratory tracks such as “Étouffée,” a bouncy ode to Staples’ Louisiana roots, and “Little Homies,” a message encouraging the younger generation. “Freeman,” the final song before Santigold’s outro, showcases Staples’ reflective coolness.
Ahead of the album’s release, Staples shared the first single and visual for “Shame On the Devil.”
“It’s a testament to where I am right now and how I view things—it’s just a timestamp,” Staples says of the album. “I might not feel like that again tomorrow. But in the process of making this project, these were the things that spoke to me.”
In support of Dark Times, Staples will embark on his headlining BLACK IN EUROPA TOUR, starting June 4th in Cologne, Germany. The tour will visit Berlin, Paris, London, and Manchester before concluding in Birmingham, UK, on June 13. Staples will also perform at various European festivals in August, including Oya in Oslo, Flow Festival in Helsinki, and HipHop Open in Stuttgart. For tickets and the full list of dates, visit www.vincestaples.com/tour.
“It’s not that deep” might be one of Vince Staples’ favorite sentiments, whether in his recent Apple Music interview or when responding to overzealous fans online. The West Coast native has a beloved reputation for his upfront, earnest, and unfiltered perspective on hip-hop, commercialization, and the Black experience that is often perceived more comically than it should. What he says is not for shock value or nihilistic validation, but just a clear-cut explanation of why he views the world more cynically and skeptically than most. Vince always crystallizes reasons for this approach into his music, especially on his new album Dark Times.
This LP also serves as a bit of a sonic, emotive, and structural continuation of the ideas he championed in his last two solo studio albums. Vince Staples’ self-titled record was a moody deconstruction of his personal woes, beliefs, and demeanor whereas Ramona Park Broke My Heart nostalgically reflected on how the blessings and stresses of his upbringing in Long Beach shaped him. With Dark Times, he combines those two narratives to craft a more holistic, complete, and broad statement on history, temptation, and struggle as stormy clouds that are hard to strike light through in his life. Despite the sheer weight of this approach, the 30-year-old engages with it calmly and compellingly across a gorgeous sonic pallet that says much more in 35 minutes than most rap projects do in 70.
Brevity and tightness are a staple of Vince’s recent catalog, and while Dark Times is not the most extreme example of this, it’s the most fully realized. Thanks to seamless song transitions, consistently watery and soulful instrumentals with wondrous sample selection, and a very consistent emotional temperature, this album feels carefully constructed and assembled in a no-frills, minimal way that makes it clear that this deliberation is the result of a focused mindset at the moment, not meticulous and over-explanatory planning. As far as the sound, even the “Liars” interlude holds some dreamy woodwinds and tender piano, a beauty which other moments like the subtle bass on “Shame On The Devil” reinforce. Even if the album can sound ominous, the guitar licks and peppy percussion on cuts like “Children’s Song” embody the blue skies in Ramona Park.
There are guest vocalists on here like Baby Rose, María Real, Maddy Davis, and Kilo Kish that add more color, harmony, and ethereal vibes to already pristine productions. As far as the personnel behind the board, LeKen Taylor and Tyler Page take over most of the beats, with Cardo, Jay Versace, Michael Uzowuru, and more also being big players. Yet the extensive production roster doesn’t dampen the cohesive flow of Dark Times, nor does it render its warm, cavernous sound redundant. Songs such as “Étouffée” give the album a welcome bounce to keep the energies afloat, while the pots-and-pans drums and wintery keys on “Nothing Matters” bring us back to concrete. In fact, even sparse, staccato notes on “Black&Blue” combine with organs to really make bare elements sound all the more lush, and the dreary but lyrically triumphant “Freeman” solidifies this “less is more” belief.
Over these beats, Vince Staples delivers sharp, relatable, blunt, and sometimes brutal bars on all the topics his catalog tackles. The lyrical matter (in this case, not directly from his pen) comments on systemic paradoxes and conflicting experiences, such as the short intro’s breezy wind chimes leading into lynching imagery: “To live is to be, like the n***a in the tree.” But it also invokes vast pop culture knowledge and boasts cheeky lines like, “I don’t need your flowers, I’m living / First time I seen a million dollars, I squinted.” Vince also flexes some storytelling muscles through the disillusionment of cheating on “Justin” and a conversation with an incarcerated friend on “Government Cheese.” The ode to music’s apologetic power on “‘Radio’” and the more positive and hopeful “Little Homies” flesh out the overall character portrait through specific periods of growth.
All in all, Vince Staples talks a lot about duality and misleading behaviors in Dark Times. Whether it’s his commentary on how disposable people treat romantic partnerships, or his thoughts on the cyclical violence and combative frame of mind that white institutions exploit, his skepticism is overt. Most interestingly, though, the “SAMO” spitter seems to flip the idea of “making it out” on its head. Whereas this would be a grateful escape for someone of his background, he actually can’t fathom how his fame wouldn’t make him more sensitive and hyper-aware of his hardships. But it’s also not as hopeless of a conclusion as you might expect. Rather than use the light to forget the dark times, this album appreciates and savors those sunny days while acknowledging there is always something murky and much more real and urgent underneath.
Empathy is a dangerous quality in Dark Times. It can falsely equate rich people’s problems to prison time, blind one to insincere romantic advances, and serve as a crutch for guilt, separation, and evolution. Vince Staples faces these contradictions with his head held high and an unflinching gaze. Still, through deepening that empathy and understanding of the less green grass he came from, someone of his stature and lived experience can characterize it. Much like the grounded selflessness and removal of ego that this comes from, the lyricism and sonic pallet here are easy to comprehend, but difficult to fully reckon with if you don’t share that 20/20 hindsight. Most importantly, they portray a man who “longs for loving and affection,” but chooses to value simplicity and familiarity in the face of once again placing misguided trust in justice, love, or safety.
Dark Times as an album is fulfilling despite its short runtime, and the somber but occasionally bright production and well-paced, measured writing go a long way to impress and evoke. But it’s also somewhat of a summary and acknowledgment of everything Vince Staples has waxed poetically about since his Def Jam debut over a decade ago. The “Blue Suede” synth returns here, and the closing bird chirps and background noise on the Santigold-assisted outro, “Why Won’t The Sun Come Out?,” bleeds perfectly back into the project’s opener, “Close Your Eyes And Swing.” This thematic distinction and journey is not a loop that Vince feels stuck in: it’s one that he’s just been patient with unpacking. It resulted in an amazing artistic run that, while “not that deep,” speaks volumes to the need to understand our world for ourselves, and ourselves alone.
Vince Staples today unveiled his eighth studio album, Dark Times, via Blacksmith Records / Def Jam Recordings. This album marks a new era in the prolific artist’s career, blending dense lyricism with lush, layered beats, and offering wry, melancholic observations about life, while finding pockets of light in an endless dark.
Dark Times features minimal guest voices, relying on samples, studio friends, and a narrative outro by iconic alt singer-songwriter Santigold, who shares an apocalyptic yet awe-inspiring dream with Staples. Notable moments include the track “Liars,” which incorporates an excerpt from a 1973 conversation between Nikki Giovanni and James Baldwin about Black love, and “Government Cheese,” where Staples raps about an imprisoned friend reaching out after seeing him on TV.
The album balances its introspective themes with celebratory tracks such as “Étouffée,” a bouncy ode to Staples’ Louisiana roots, and “Little Homies,” a message encouraging the younger generation. “Freeman,” the final song before Santigold’s outro, showcases Staples’ reflective coolness.
Ahead of the album’s release, Staples shared the first single and visual for “Shame On the Devil.”
“It’s a testament to where I am right now and how I view things—it’s just a timestamp,” Staples says of the album. “I might not feel like that again tomorrow. But in the process of making this project, these were the things that spoke to me.”
In support of Dark Times, Staples will embark on his headlining BLACK IN EUROPA TOUR, starting June 4th in Cologne, Germany. The tour will visit Berlin, Paris, London, and Manchester before concluding in Birmingham, UK, on June 13. Staples will also perform at various European festivals in August, including Oya in Oslo, Flow Festival in Helsinki, and HipHop Open in Stuttgart. For tickets and the full list of dates, visit www.vincestaples.com/tour.
Vince Staples is having a hell of a year. Earlier this year, the Long Beach rapper repped his hometown on Netflix’s The Vince Staples Show, a semi-autobiographical series following him in different scenarios in his day-to-day life. Tonight (May 23), Staples dropped Dark Times — his eighth studio album and his final album on Def Jam.
Like all of Staples’ projects, Dark Times is very cinematic in tone, but this time, Staples’ storytelling is sharper than ever.
The album ends with an outro called “Why Won’t The Sun Come Out?” — an anecdote recited by Staples, but another artist.
Who is the voice on “Why Won’t the Sun Come Out?” from Vince Staples’ Dark Times album?
At the end of Dark Times, fans hear a woman ruminating on creativity, spirituality, love, sexuality, and violence. The woman also details a haunting dream she once had, as Staples faintly repeats the phrase “Why won’t the sun come out?”
The woman in question is New York singer, songwriter, and rapper Santigold. This mark the second time the two have worked together — the first being on “Give It All,” a 2017 collaboration with LA music group, With You.
You can listen to “Why Won’t The Sun Come Out?” above.
Dark Times is out now via Def Jam/Blacksmith. Find more information here.
Vince Staples’ new album Dark Times is on the way, just a week after the Long Beach rapper announced it. So, when will it be available to stream on DSPs like Apple Music and Spotify?
With a release date of May 24, the album should go live on streaming services at midnight, Eastern, 9 PM, Pacific.
In Vince’s album announcement, he explained its inspirations. “Eleven years ago, a young, uncertain version of myself was given an opportunity with Def Jam Recordings,” he wrote. “I released my first project under their banner, Shyne Coldchain Vol 2, a year later. I was unsure of what to expect from the world of music, but deeply aware of what I needed: a change in my surroundings and a clear understanding of self. Ten years and seven projects later, I’ve found that clarity. Now, I share with you my final Def Jam release, Dark Times.”
Dark Times is part of a busy year for Vince. In February, he launched his Netflix series, The Vince Staples Show, to extremely positive feedback from both fans and critics.
He’s also billed on multiple festival lineups this summer, including Jack Harlow’s inaugural Gazebo Festival and Helsinki, Finland’s Flow Festival.
You can find more information about Vince’s upcoming album, including its tracklist, below.
Vince Staples’ Dark Times Tracklist
1. “Close Your Eyes And Swing”
2. “Black & Blue”
3. “Government Cheese”
4. “Children’s Song”
5. “Shame On The Devil”
6. “Étouffée”
7. “Liars”
8. “Justin”
9. “Radio”
10. “Nothing Matters”
11. “Little Homies”
12. “Freeman”
13. “Why Won’t The Sun Come Out?”
New music from Vince Staples is on the way, in the form of his final album for Def Jam, Dark Times, which arrives on May 24.
In announcing the new album, Vince gave an uncharacteristically earnest accounting of its creation, writing, “Eleven years ago, a young, uncertain version of myself was given an opportunity with Def Jam Recordings. I released my first project under their banner, Shyne Coldchain Vol 2, a year later. I was unsure of what to expect from the world of music, but deeply aware of what I needed: a change in my surroundings and a clear understanding of self. Ten years and seven projects later, I’ve found that clarity. Now, I share with you my final Def Jam release, Dark Times.”
Here is everything to know about Dark Times, Vince Staples’ sixth album overall, and his final one for Def Jam.
Release Date
Dark Times is out 5/24 via Def Jam/ARTium/Blacksmith. Find more info here.
Tracklist
1. “Close Your Eyes And Swing”
2. “Black & Blue”
3. “Government Cheese”
4. “Children’s Song”
5. “Shame On The Devil”
6. “Étouffée”
7. “Liars”
8. “Justin”
9. “Radio”
10. “Nothing Matters”
11. “Little Homies”
12. “Freeman”
13. “Why Won’t The Sun Come Out?”
Singles
So far, Vince has released one single, “Shame On The Devil.”
Features
There are no listed features on the tracklist, but that could just mean Vince wants to keep them a secret
Artwork
X (formerly Twitter)
Tour
Vince hasn’t announced a tour yet, but it wouldn’t be surprising if he did after the release of his new album.
Vince Staples revealed his eighth studio album, “Dark Times,” which will be released on May 24 via Blacksmith Records / Def Jam Recordings. This album marks a new era for the prolific artist, showcasing his signature dense lyricism over lush, layered beats while offering wry, melancholic observations about life and finding light in the darkness.
“Dark Times” was recorded over seven months in North Hollywood. The album title came intuitively to Staples after he listened to the record in full, noticing heavy motifs that kept reappearing. The album cover, featuring a faintly seen noose, was similarly intuitive, encapsulating the themes of struggle and perseverance that permeate the project.
To coincide with the album announcement, Staples dropped the first single, “Shame on the Devil,” accompanied by an evocative visual. The track features Staples rapping over a warm, spectral beat, reflecting on the anointed nature of his life despite experiencing loneliness and fallouts with friends.
Calling the project “a personal achievement,” Staples said, “it’s me mastering some things I’ve tried before that I wasn’t great at in the beginning. It’s a testament to musical growth, song structure—all the good stuff.” Fans can expect a deeply introspective and richly produced album that continues pushing his artistry’s boundaries.
“Dark Times” promises to be muscular and revelatory, refining elements that have been present in Staples’ catalog for the last decade. Be sure to mark your calendars for May 24 to experience the full journey of “Dark Times” and catch the first single, “Shame on the Devil,” now available for streaming.
Vince Staples is an artist that has been elevating with each new project. Overall, one of his best works came back in 2022 with Ramona Park Broke My Heart. It was a fantastic project that was on a ton of year-end lists. Now, however, Staples is looking to follow up that album with Dark Times. On Sunday, Staples revealed that he would be dropping the project this Friday, on May 24th. This came as a surprise to a whole lot of fans, but it was one of those surprises that was most definitely well-received.
Along with the album details came a 50-second teaser of a song called “Shame On The Devil.” This is a song that came with some melancholic vibes and some heartfelt lyrics from Vince. Well, last night, Staples decided to release the entire song. At three and a half minutes in length, fans will certainly be excited about having a brand-new full-length song from Staples. As you will hear below, the track keeps the same melancholic tones throughout, with deeply personal lyrics that showcase Staples and his talent.
This song is an exciting first effort heading into this new album. Staples has been elevating as an artist over the years, and fans have been eager to hear what else he has in store. 2024 has already been a phenomenal year for hip-hop. With this new Staples album, it’s clear that the year is just getting better and better, and we aren’t even halfway through it yet.
Let us know what you think of this new track from Vince Staples, in the comments section down below. Do you believe that this is a solid single to begin his rollout for the project? Are you excited for this new album? What is your favorite LP from Staples? Additionally, stay tuned to HNHH for the latest news and updates from around the music world. We will continue to keep you informed on all of your favorite artists and their upcoming projects.
Quotable Lyrics:
Mission complete, outta the mud Labeled a “leader” they following cuz Light on my feet, floatin’ above I don’t be creepin’ or keepin’ in touch
