Barter 6

Barter 6
Mixtape by Young Thug
Released	April 17, 2015
Recorded	2014–15
Genre	Hip hop
Length	51:39
Label	300 Atlantic YSL
Producer	Young Thug (exec.) London On Da Track Wheezy KIP Hilson Ricky Racks Jrumm Major
Young Thug chronology
Rich Gang: Tha Tour Pt. 1 (2014) Barter 6 (2015) Slime Season (2015)
Singles from Barter 6
"Check" Released: April 1, 2015 "Constantly Hating" Released: April 17, 2015

Barter 6 is the debut commercial release by American rapper Young Thug. It was released on April 16, 2015, by 300 Entertainment and Atlantic Records.^[1] Barter 6 features guest appearances from Birdman, T.I., Boosie Badazz, Young Dolph, Yak Gotti, Duke and Jacquees, while the production was handled by in-house producers London on da Track, Wheezy, Ricky Racks and KIP Hilson, among others.

Naming controversy

The album was initially titled Carter 6, in continuation of the naming sequence of Lil Wayne's successful Tha Carter album series.^[2] This created controversy, as Wayne's scheduled album Tha Carter V was repeatedly delayed amid a dispute between himself and Cash Money Records, who had reportedly refused to release the album.^[3] Wayne subsequently became involved in legal proceedings against Cash Money and publicly criticized the label's owner (and Thug's mentor) Birdman, as well as responding negatively to Thug's decision to name the album after him.^[4] Despite this, Thug claimed that he was not trying to be disrespectful, and that Wayne was his 'idol'.^[2] Following a threat of legal action, Thug announced days prior to the release that the project was to be re-titled Barter 6, in line with the typical Blood gang practice of replacing the letter "C" with "B".^[5] He furthered the ill feeling by announcing his first show to promote the project in Hollygrove, New Orleans, one of the neighborhoods in which Wayne was raised.^[6]

Critical reception

Professional ratings
Aggregate scores
Source	Rating
Metacritic	72/100[7]
Review scores
Source	Rating
AllMusic	[8]
Billboard	[9]
Complex	[10]
HipHopDX	[11]
Pitchfork Media	8.4/10[12]
Spin	6/10[13]
XXL	[14]
Tiny Mix Tapes	[15]

Barter 6 was met with generally positive reviews upon its release. At Metacritic, which assigns a normalized rating out of 100 to reviews from music critics, the album has received an average score of 72, indicating "generally favorable reviews", based on 13 reviews.^[7] Complex notes that "Thugger's visceral illustrations are one-of-a-kind, and he communicates joy, frustration, and dread with unique clarity."^[10] Further, HipHopDX notes that "Barter 6 is the definitive mainstream strip club album of the modern era."^[11]

Most notably, Pitchfork titled Barter 6 "Best New Music" with a high score of 8.4. Pitchfork emphasizes Barter 6's listenability and notes that "Barter 6 argues that all we need to do is listen a bit more carefully: what may not be legible at first glance reveals itself patiently over time." Additionally, they note that "More than anything, Barter 6 feels like a 50-minute performance of what rap, as a form, can do: rap that need not transcend itself, towards High Art on one hand or commercial art on the other, in order to succeed in 2015."^[12] The same publication would later name Barter 6 as the 14th best album of 2015, and rank album opener "Constantly Hating" as the sixth best song of 2015.^[16][17] On the other hand, Spin criticizes Young Thug for being lazy, and note that "he's sitting around waiting to ascend to the next level of his sound, for inspiration to strike, though with such a laid-back, inscrutable flow, he might have to activate that change himself."^[13]

Commercial performance

Barter 6 entered the US Billboard 200 at number 22 with 19,000 album equivalent units. It sold 17,000 copies in its first week. In the United States, it was the thirteenth highest in sales in its debut week.^[18]

Track listing

No.	Title	Writer(s)	Producer(s)[19]	Length
1.	"Constantly Hating" (featuring Birdman)	Jeffrey Williams Bryan Williams Wesley Glass	Wheezy	4:27
2.	"With That" (featuring Duke)	J. Williams Arnold Martinez London Holmes	London on da Track	3:22
3.	"Can't Tell" (featuring T.I. and Boosie Badazz)	J. Williams Clifford Harris, Jr. Torrence Hatch Holmes	London on da Track	6:08
4.	"Check"	J. Williams Holmes	London on da Track	3:50
5.	"Never Had It" (featuring Young Dolph)	J. Williams Adolph Thornton, Jr. Glass	Wheezy	4:14
6.	"Dream" (featuring Yak Gotti)	J. Williams Deamonte Kendrick Glass	Wheezy	3:01
7.	"Dome" (featuring Duke)	J. Williams Martinez Glass	Wheezy	3:51
8.	"Halftime"	J. Williams Kip Hilson	Kip Hilson	3:46
9.	"Amazing" (featuring Jacquees)	J. Williams Jacquees Broadnax Glass Alta Willis Maurice White Albert McKay	Wheezy	3:38
10.	"Knocked Off" (featuring Birdman)	J. Williams B. Williams Glass Ricky Harrell, Jr.	Wheezy Ricky Racks	3:16
11.	"OD"	J. Williams Glass	Wheezy	4:45
12.	"Numbers"	J. Williams Holmes	London on da Track	3:27
13.	"Just Might Be"	J. Williams Glass	Wheezy	3:53
Total length:				51:52

Sample credits

• "Amazing" contains samples of "September" performed by Earth, Wind & Fire, written by Maurice White, Albert McKay, Alta Willis.

Charts

Chart (2015)	Peak position
UK R&B Albums (OCC)[20]	24
US Billboard 200[21]	22
US Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums (Billboard)[22]	29

References

1. "iTunes - Music - Barter 6 by Young Thug". Itunes.apple.com. 2015-04-16. Retrieved 2015-06-21.
2. "Young Thug Vs. Lil Wayne: A Timeline Of The Rapper's 'Carter 6' Beef : Entertainment : Design & Trend". Designntrend.com. Retrieved 2015-06-21.
3. Grow, Kory (2014-12-04). "Lil Wayne Blasts Cash Money: 'I Want Off This Label'". Rolling Stone. Retrieved 2015-06-21.
4. Muhammad, Latifah. "Lil Wayne Disses Young Thug | News". BET. Retrieved 2015-06-21.
5. mtv (2015-04-13). "Here's Why Young Thug Just Changed The Title Of 'Carter 6'". MTV. Retrieved 2015-06-21.
6. mtv (2015-04-14). "Young Thug Threatens Lil Wayne Over Carter 6 Album". MTV. Retrieved 2015-06-21.
7. "Barter 6 Reviews". Metacritic. Retrieved May 10, 2015.
8. David Jeffries. "Barter 6 - Young Thug | Songs, Reviews, Credits, Awards". AllMusic. Retrieved 2015-06-21.
9. "Album Review: Young Thug Exists In His Own Weird World On 'Barter 6'". Billboard. 2015-04-17. Retrieved 2015-06-21.
10. Charity, Justin (2015-04-16). "Review: Young Thug Is Not A Star On 'Barter 6' | Complex CA". Ca.complex.com. Retrieved 2015-06-21.
11. Garrett, Ural (2015-04-18). "Young Thug - Barter 6 | Read Hip Hop Reviews, Rap Reviews & Hip Hop Album Review". HipHopDX. Retrieved 2015-06-21.
12. Garvey, Meaghan (2015-04-24). "Young Thug: Barter 6". Pitchfork Media. Retrieved 2015-06-21.
13. Weiss, Dan. "Review: Young Thug, 'Barter 6'". Spin. Retrieved 2015-06-21.
14. Rys, Dan (2015-04-27). "Young Thug Rises Above the Drama on 'Barter 6' - XXL". Xxlmag.com. Retrieved 2015-06-21.
15. SCVSCV (April 30, 2015). "Young Thug: Barter 6". Tiny Mix Tapes. Retrieved October 27, 2015.
16. "The 50 Best Albums of 2015 - Page 4". Pitchfork. 2015-12-16. Retrieved 2016-04-28.
17. "The 100 Best Tracks of 2015 - Page 10". Pitchfork. 2015-12-14. Retrieved 2016-04-28.
18. Top Album Sales (2015-05-02). "Top Album Sales : Page 1". Billboard. Retrieved 2015-06-21.
19. "Barter 6 on Tidal". Tidal.com. 2015-04-16. Retrieved 2016-04-04.
20. "Official R&B Albums Chart Top 40". Official Charts Company.
21. "Young Thug – Chart history" Billboard 200 for Young Thug. Retrieved May 2, 2015.
22. "Young Thug – Chart history" Billboard Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums for Young Thug. Retrieved May 2, 2015.