Top Dawg Entertainment

Ab-Soul Drops “Herbert” Cover Art & Tracklist

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Even though we’re about to 2023, the anticipation is high for Ab-Soul’s new album, Herbert. Since the beginning of the year, he’s unloaded a few singles as fans gear up for his follow-up to 2016’s Do What Thou Wilt.

NEW YORK, NY – SEPTEMBER 16: Rapper Ab-Soul (R) attends Elliott Wilson hosts CRWN with Ab-Soul for WatchLOUD.com, presented by vitaminwater at the SVA Theater on September 16, 2014 in New York City. (Photo by Ben Gabbe/Getty Images for Electus Digital)

Finally, the rapper shared the official cover art and tracklist for his upcoming effort. Following significant hype, Ab-Soul revealed Herbert will boast 18 songs in total with a slew of features. While no Black Hippy member appears on the project, there is a strong TDE presence with Zacari, Lance Skiiiwalker, SiR, and Punch appearing on the tracklist. In addition, Joey Bada$$ delivers a verse for the album version of “Moonshooter.” Jhené Aiko, Ambré, Big Sean, Russ, and ALEMEDA also join Soul on his new effort.

Cover by Dann Gilbuena for Ab-Soul via TDE.

In addition to the features, Ab-Soul links up with a strong roster of producers, such as Sounwave, DJ Premier, James Blake, Hit-Boy, Boi 1da, DJ Dahi, and more. Additionally, James Blake’s signature ominous sound seems to grace the official trailer for Herbert.

The forthcoming release from Ab-Soul was led by a string of singles throughout the year including “Do Better,” “Hollandaise,” “Moonshooter” (sans Joey Bada$$), as well as the Fre$h-assisted, “Gang’Nem.” Hopefully, we get another single from Soul before the album drops in its entirety next week.

Last week, there was speculation that Jay-Z might have a feature on Soul’s new album. The TDE rapper linked up with the legendary mogul at the Barclay’s Center in Brooklyn during the Nets Game where they took a picture. However, it was Anthony “Top Dawg” Tiffith that hinted that they may have locked in a song together.

The tracklist doesn’t indicate that Jay-Z is on the album but perhaps, it’s a secret feature that we’ll only hear next week.

While we wait for Herbert, check out the full tracklist below. Herbert drops on December 16th.

  1. Message in a Bottle ft. Lance SkiiiWalker
  2. No Report Card
  3. Hollandaise
  4. Moonshooter ft. Joey Bada$$
  5. FOMF
  6. Goodman ft. Punch
  7. Do Better ft. Zacari
  8. Gang’Nem ft. Fre$h
  9. The Wild Side ft. Jhené Aiko
  10. Art of Seduction ft. Ambré
  11. Bucket
  12. Go Off ft. Russ & Big Sean
  13. Fallacy ft. ALEMEDA
  14. Herbert
  15. Church on the Move
  16. It Be Like That ft. SiR
  17. Positive Vibes Only
  18. Gotta Rap
Photo by John Jay for Ab-Soul via TDE

Ray Vaughn And Isaiah Rashad Are In The ‘Dawg House’ In Their New Video

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Top Dawg Entertainment’s Ray Vaughn and Isaiah Rashad have teamed up for a new song called “Dawg House.” On the track, the labelmates slide over trippy production by Rory Behr, as they lay down the laws of the “dawg house.”

“Who let the dogs out? / Turn the rap game to the fallout / Cheat on my b*tch in the dog house / My Rollie presidential from the White House,” raps Vaughn.

Rashad delivers a verse of his own, as well as the song’s chorus, on which, he says, “Loose, better not shoot no shame / My sixteen was pure cocaine / Base outside, I’m hit, okay, okay, okay? / What you gotta do? Get all this loot / Talk my shit, talk my truth.”

The song’s accompanying video sees the two of them smoking and dancing throughout the rooms of a lavish home.

Vaughn signed to TDE last year. With Kendrick Lamar having fulfilled his contractual obligations upon the release of Mr. Morale & The Big Steppers, Vaughn told Billboard that he’s determined to prove that he can stand among his labelmates.

“Do I want to be the rookie that takes lead of the team and becomes the face of the franchise? Or do I want somebody else to come in and do it?,” Vaughn said. ” I feel like I’m responsible for taking us to the next level now — and even if [Kendrick Lamar] was staying, I would still have the same mentality, that I want to be a starter and play with the big boys.

Check out “Dawg House” above.

TDE’s Punch Says He Knows ‘Exactly When’ SZA’s New Album Is Coming

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SZA Outside Lands 2022
Getty Image / Tim Mosenfelder

Fans are eager for new music from SZA. Back in May, The “Good Days” singer hinted at “a SZA summer,” and while we’ve received an expanded edition of her 2017 debut album, CTRL, as well as a remix of her labelmate Doechii’s “Persuasive,” we still have heard nary a title, release date, or even a single from her much-anticipated sophomore album.

Last month, SZA hinted at a disagreement between her Top Dawg Entertainment label head Punch, as well as RCA Records. In a recent interview with Vulture, Punch indicated that he and SZA have since reached an agreement. According to Punch, a release date is imminent.

“We know exactly when it’s coming out,” he said. “But on the internet, you only get a certain amount of characters. You don’t have time to really go into a full explanation of what’s going on like that when you’re in the moment and tweeting something.”

In the past, SZA has mentioned that her and Punch’s relationship has been tumultuous, but elsewhere in the interview, Punch insisted that there is more than meets the eye.

“I’m not going to say there’s never been contention,” he said. “There’s always contention, especially when you’re dealing with creative. Difference in opinions, it happens, but that doesn’t mean somebody is unhappy or anything. It could’ve been a conversation in the moment. Then a lot of speculation happens. I get it. We have to remember that context is important and you never get the full story through tweets.”