Y2K

For the past 18 months, Bronx rapper Ice Spice has been a fixture of popular culture. Breaking out with her single “Munch (Feelin’ U)” in the summer of 2022 on wave of social media goodwill, the 24-year-old artist has parlayed her TikTok popularity into a flourishing career. She’s collaborated with some of the biggest artists in music, including Doja Cat, Nicki Minaj, and Taylor Swift, starred in Super Bowl ads, and grown in both skill and stature, all while driving discourse about her supposed lack of talent — which only makes her bigger.

She’s done all this without putting an album out, by the way.

So, naturally, the question on a lot of interested parties’ minds is: when will Ice Spice put out her debut album? While she did feed fans a project last year — the EP Like..? — both her fans and detractors are waiting impatiently for her to release a full-length project. Both may soon get their wish, as she announced the title for her debut, Y2K, and her intention to release it this year. After months of teasing, she shared some good news on social media today: she’s finished recording Y2K.

Does that mean the album is done though?

I guess that depends on what you mean by “done.” If you mean “in a state that is fit for public consumption” the answer is most likely “no.” After all, while Ice might be finished performing her raps into a microphone in a studio booth, that doesn’t necessarily mean that the songs themselves won’t go through multiple revisions, from beat changes to adding guests and live instrumentation, depending on Ice’s vision. From there, the recorded tracks will have to be mixed and mastered — meaning that the sound levels of everything from ad-libs to hi-hats will have to be adjusted and matched from song-to-song across the project.

Then there’s marketing and rollout to consider. Which songs will be singles? Are the music videos and single packaging shot and edited yet? Will there be any corporate tie-ins with the release? Almost certainly in today’s climate, when brand partnerships are an integral part of the business. So, while Y2K is probably in the pipeline, it could be months until we actually hear it. But hey, a slow-roasted meal nearly always tastes better than one from the microwave. A little patience goes a long way, and hopefully, in the case of Ice Spice’s album, it’ll pay off.

Last week, Ice Spice ended her brief musical hiatus with her new single, “Think U The Sh*t (Fart).” The song came just over a year after the New York City rapper‘s debut EP, Like…?. With a new single out, Ice’s fans, known as the munchkins, are anticipating her full-length debut album.

Today (January 30), during an interview on Hoda Kotb and Jenna Bush Hager’s hour of Today, Ice shared a few details of her upcoming album.

When asked if she had an album on the way, Ice responded “Yes, there’s gonna be an album.” She continued, revealing that the album would arrive “this year.”

“I’m so excited,” Ice said. “It’s called Y2K.”

The album’s title seemingly alludes to her birthday — January 1, 2000, which was also the New Year’s Day that coincided with the theory of a Y2K virus crashing all computers and electronic devices at the time.

Though Ice didn’t reveal an exact release date for Y2K, she shared that the album is “almost finished.” She also held back details of the album’s collaborators, but teased one that she is very happy about.

“I have a crazy collaboration that just got locked in, like two days ago,” Ice said.

You can watch a clip from the interview above.