In late 2021, Earthgang declared their next album, Ghetto Gods, would be released on January 28, 2022. That date has come and gone and Ghetto Gods is not yet out. Now, though, the duo has revealed the album art while also declaring the album is set for this Friday, February 25.
Earthgang also shared a new song, the Musiq Soulchild-featuring “Amen,” which, predictably given its title, has a gospel influence, especially towards the start of the track, before a hip-hop sound comes more directly to the forefront of the song’s focus.
In a new Rolling Stone interview, WowGr8 says the album represents “motherf*cking absolute certainty” and Olu says, “We realized that the energy of these songs is what we want to go towards. Then, once we started listening back to the records, we were seeing this underlying theme about the present moment. We was like, ‘OK, we’re talking about us finding our light in this wild-ass situation.’” Olu also noted, “We’re so creative, and we have so many great ideas and so many great stories to tell. We feel like it would be to our betterment that we put it in forms where people are able to digest it.”
Listen to “Amen” above.
Ghetto Gods is out 2/25 via Dreamville/Interscope. Pre-order it here.
At long last, Earthgang will share their second album Ghetto Gods at the end of the month. It’s a project that the Atlanta duo has teased for more than a year now. They originally said it would drop last spring, on the same day as J. Cole’s The Off-Season, but that day came and went without the project. While that might’ve been a disappointment to fans, Earthgang did a great job sharing tracks along the way to numb the wait. Their latest release, “All Eyes On Me,” serves as their latest example of that.
The track finds the duo acknowledging the many eyes that might be on them as both successful musicians and Black men in America. Earthgang also takes a moment to celebrate those who pushed past their respective struggles and came out on top. Prior to releasing the new single, Earthgang shared a message about “All Eyes On Me” on social media. “In this world, black men are targets, political targets, physical targets, always criticized and judged by their appearance, the chains, the money, the skin,” they wrote. “All eyes are on us yet we still shine.”
Last month, Earthgang released “American Horror Story.” The track is carried by a woozy, somber sample as the duo detailed some of the most shocking aspects of American history from as far back as slavery to as recent as the “tiki torch” rallies of white nationalist groups. Together, “American Horror Story” and “All Eyes On Me” provide great previews of what’s to come on Ghetto Gods.
You can listen to “All Eyes On Me” in the video above.
Ghetto Gods is out 1/28 via Dreamville/Interscope.
A month after announcing the release date of their upcoming album, Ghetto Gods, Atlanta-based Dreamville duo Earthgang have released the latest single from the album, the historical “American Horror Story.” Over a woozy, somber sample, WowGr8 and Olu detail some of the horrors of American history, while wondering where they’d be were it not for the country’s legacy of slavery and racism. In addition, they touch on more recent events like the “tiki torch” rallies of white nationalist groups and gentrification of historically Black neighborhoods, evoking Nipsey Hussle’s “buy the block” ethos as a possible antidote.
In addition to “American Horror Story,” Earthgang has promoted their upcoming album with the singles “Options” and its remix with Coi Leray, as well as “Erykah,” an ode to R&B pioneer Erykah Badu. It has been a little over two years since the release of the duo’s last album, Mirrorland, although they were able to make the most of 2020’s pandemic conditions to continue promoting that album with a collection of innovative, computer-animated music videos. They also kept themselves busy working with the rest of the Spillage Village collective, which includes 6lack, JID, and Mereba, on their Spilligion album.
Listen to Earthgang’s “American Horror Story” above.
Ghetto Gods is due 1/28/2022 via Dreamville and Interscope.
More than two years after they released their eclectic debut album Mirrorland, Earthgang is finally gearing up to share their follow-up. The Atlanta duo, comprised of rappers Olu and WowGr8, announced the release date for their upcoming project, Ghetto Gods, and fans won’t have to wait too long: It’s set to drop on January 28. Earthgang delivered the news through a trailer that’s narrated by fellow Atlanta rapper 2 Chainz and it finds the duo giving listeners a taste of what can expect to hear.
It’s been a long road towards the release of Ghetto Gods. The group previously announced it would arrive on the same day as J. Cole’s The Off-Season, which dropped on May 14. Unfortunately, that day came and went without the arrival of Ghetto Gods. To make the wait better, Earthgang released a number of loosies over the course of the next few months, including “Erykah” and “Aretha,” as well as remixes of Drake’s “Lemon Pepper Freestyle” and their own single, “Options,” with Wale and Coi Leray.
Earthgang also shared the dates for their Biodeghettable European tour, which will start on March 7 in Ireland and continue throughout the month before bringing things to an end on March 31 in Norway.
You can watch the trailer for Ghetto Gods in the post above.
It’s been almost two years since Earthgang shared their debut album, Mirrorland. Sine then, the Atlanta rap duo, comprised of Wowgr8 and Olu, hasn’t exactly been quiet. They made multiple contributions to Dreamville’s Revenge Of The Dreamers III and Spillage Village’s Spilligion, on top of sharing several loose singles and doing other guest appearances. Their latest release comes as a tribute to the legendary neo-soul singer Erykah Badu. The track, which is simply titled “Erykah,” is carried by a soulful sample of what appears to be her 2010 track “Window Seat.” Along with the new song, the rappers dropped a calming video that shows a relaxing day at the beach.
The new song is the latest in what’s been an active year for the duo. They recently called on Coi Leray for a remix of “Options” with Wale, as well as “Aretha,” a soulful account of their highs and lows over the last year. There’s also been a remix of Drake’s “Lemon Pepper Freestyle.” In it, they explain why the duo’s sophomore album Ghetto Gods was delayed.
“Release date is what I’m waiting on / Interscope gotta crunch the numbers,” Olu raps. “This industry is flooded with mindless muddles cause lies sell / The ugly truth might not bring in the money / Don’t they know it’s real sh*t the people want? / A pause from the pill-pop subscription joint.”
You can watch the video for “Erykah” above.
Wale is a Warner Music artist. Uproxx is an independent subsidiary of Warner Music Group.
Back in September 2020, Brittany Howard shared a pair of remixes from Earthgang and Bon Iver, which were released together as Jaime (The Remixes). Now, Howard is expanding on the idea, as her upcoming album Jaime Reimagined, which is set for release on July 23, will feature more remixes of the album’s songs. Participating artists include Childish Gambino, Common, Syd, and others. Alongside the announcement, Howard shared a pair of tracks from the release: “Presence (Little Dragon Remix)” and “Tomorrow (BadBadNotGood Remix).”
Brittany Howard said of the project, “Making Jaime was so much fun for me because I was able to explore so many different genres of music. There were no rules. This reimagination project has been no different. I have been honored to have so many incredible artists from all musical worlds interpret my songs in such interesting and different ways.”
BadBadNotGood also said, “We’ve been fans of Brittany Howard’s work from a distance for years but haven’t had the chance until now to connect. She has an absolutely incredible voice and her songwriting style is really unique. The original of ‘Tomorrow’ had such a special, floating sound that it was difficult to find a direction to go in for the remix. We tried to give the amazing vocals a new context and build around that. We were honored to have the opportunity and hope everyone enjoys it!”
Little Dragon added, “Working with Brittany’s voice felt really inspiring, because it radiates emotions and energy.”
Previously, Earthgang said of their remix, “We’ve been big fans of Brittany and Alabama Shakes so this is a dream come true. Songs like these help us make sense of all the craziness in the world at times. Her song ‘Goat Head,’ dealing with her Black experience in America and the world, resonated the loudest at this time. Just thankful to be able to give the world our medicine and heal the people.”
Vernon also noted of his at the time, “Brittany is a truly singular artist; so much power and musicality. This album speaks to so many people, including us. To have a chance to recreate ‘Short And Sweet’ in our own image with long-time collaborators Jenn Wassner and CJ Camerieri, was both an honor and almost too much of a privilege.”
Listen to the Little Dragon and BadBadNotGood remixes above and find the Jaime Reimagined art and tracklist below. Also revisit our 2019 interview with Howard about Jaimehere.
ATO Records
1. “13th Century Metal (Michael Kiwanuka Version)”
2. “Goat Head (Earthgang Version)”
3. “Stay High (Childish Gambino Version)”
4. “Presence (Little Dragon Remix)”
5. “Short And Sweet (Bon Iver Remix)”
6. “Tomorrow (BadBadNotGood Remix)”
7 .”Baby (Gitty Remix)” Feat. Syd
8. “History Repeats (Georgia Anne Muldrow Geemix)”
9. “Georgia (J Most Remix)” Feat. Emily King
10. “Stay High again.. (Fred again.. & Joy Anonymous Version)”
11. “He Loves Me (9th Wonder Remix)” Feat. Common
12. “History Repeats (Jungle Remix)”
13. “Run To Me (Laura Mvula Version)”
Jaime Reimagined is out 7/23 via ATO Records. Pre-order it here.
Earthgang is well-known by now for the spacey, surreal visuals that accompanied their debut album Mirrorland, but with their latest rollout, they’ve gone for a more down-to-earth approach. While the initial video for “Options” with Wale featured Claymation analogs for the Atlanta duo and their guest, the grounded storyline revolved more around the mechanics of relationships and dating. The video for the remix, which added breakout artist Coi Leray to the mix, strips down the concept further, landing all four rappers at a debauched house party.
Earthgang, who recently used their notoriety to help fund a community garden at a local Atlanta school, have been somewhat cagey about a follow-up to Mirrorland, joking that it would drop on the same day as J. Cole’s album before admitting that they didn’t even know when their Dreamville boss would be putting his album out (that album, The Off-Season, has since released to an impressive commercial response).
