Tetsuo & Youth

Tetsuo & Youth
Studio album by Lupe Fiasco
Released January 20, 2015 (2015-01-20)
Recorded 2012–14
Genre Hip hop
Length 78:27
Label
Producer
  • Charles "Chilly" Patton (exec.)
  • Lupe Fiasco (exec.)
  • DJ Dahi
  • The Buchanans
  • S1
  • Vohn Beatz
  • DJ Simonsayz
  • MoeZ'art
  • M-Phazes
  • Blood Diamonds
  • JackLNDN
  • Marcus Stephens
Lupe Fiasco chronology
Food & Liquor II: The Great American Rap Album Pt. 1
(2012)		 Tetsuo & Youth
(2015)		 DROGAS
(2016)
Singles from Tetsuo & Youth
  1. "Deliver"
    Released: November 10, 2014

Tetsuo & Youth is the fifth studio album by American rapper Lupe Fiasco. The album was released on January 20, 2015, by Atlantic Records and 1st & 15th Entertainment. It was promoted by the Tetsuo & Youth preview tour, which took place on November 2, 2014 to December 15, 2014.[1] Lupe's label-mate Stalley was a supporting act on the tour, while The Boy Illinois took role as an opening act.

The album was supported by the single "Deliver". Upon its release, Tetsuo & Youth received generally positive reviews from critics and fans alike, citing it as a significant improvement and return to form in comparison to previous work. The album debuted at number 14 on the US Billboard 200, selling 42,000 copies in its first week.

Background

On February 10, 2013, on the red carpet for the Grammy Awards, Lupe Fiasco has announced that his fifth studio album would be titled Tetsuo & Youth. LupEND (which is a blog for Lupe Fiasco fans) confirmed on his Tumblr account that features on his album would include the guest appearances from Rick Ross, Big K.R.I.T., Chance the Rapper, Ab-Soul, Ed Sheeran and Ty Dolla $ign, among others.[2] Lupe Fiasco says the name of the album was loosely inspired by Tetsuo Shima, a character from the Japanese manga series Akira. "For me, Tetsuo sounds cool" he stated.[3]

Singles

On August 24, 2013, Lupe revealed a preview of "Crack", a single featuring Chris Brown.[4] The track was first said to be the first single released from the album, but since then has not been officially released. Another song, entitled "Drizzy's Law" which was intended to make the album cut,[5] has also not officially been released. Though he still plans to release these songs according to his Twitter account, they were not included on the album. On October 14, 2013, Lupe released a standalone single "Old School Love" featuring English singer-songwriter Ed Sheeran, who contributes vocals to the song's hook.[6][7] The song peaked at number 93 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart.[8] Its music video was filmed with Sheeran in Chicago, and was premiered on MTV December 9, 2013.[9]

On May 19, 2014, Lupe released the first promotional single titled "Mission", which tells the story of several cancer sufferers. The intro to the song features singer-songwriter (and cancer survivor) Charlie Wilson and other cancer survivors detailing their type of cancer and when they were diagnosed.[10]

On June 24, 2014, Lupe released the second promotional single titled "Next to It" featuring Ty Dolla $ign. The song was produced by Ty Dolla $ign, and co-produced by Shafiq Husayn of the Los Angeles production team Sa-Ra.[11]

On November 10, 2014, Lupe released the first official single from Tetsuo & Youth titled "Deliver"; which features background vocals by recent frequent collaborator Ty Dolla $ign.[12]

Critical response

Professional ratings
Aggregate scores
SourceRating
Metacritic80/100[13]
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[14]
The A.V. ClubB+[15]
Consequence of SoundB[16]
CuepointA–[17]
Exclaim!8/10[18]
HipHopDX[19]
Pitchfork Media7.2/10[20]
PopMatters[21]
Rolling Stone[22]
XXLXL (4/5)[23]

Upon its release, Tetsuo & Youth received generally positive reviews from critics. At Metacritic, which assigns a normalized rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream critics, the album received an average score of 80, which indicates "generally favorable reviews", based on 12 reviews.[13] Sheldon Pearce of The A.V. Club said, "Tetsuo & Youth finds its equilibrium by not pushing as hard, opting for subtle and interesting angles to get points across (See: “Deliver”)."[15] Michael Madden of Consequence of Sound said, "Lupe is still a guy to root for, and Tetsuo & Youth is full of daring songs that remind you of why."[16] Kevin Jones of Exclaim! said, "Tetsuo & Youth is Lupe's "magnum opus" record — a serious, detail-rich production free from the binds of a previous story or series, and one that turns its back completely on any pressure to placate commercial radio."[18]

Justin Hunte of HipHopDX said, "Tetsuo & Youth glistens with maturity and imagination. Where the Judo Master Of Juxtaposition has grown more challenging lyrically, he’s also grown more naturally emotive."[19] Kellan Miller of XXL said, "Lupe Fiasco’s career has been a mix of blooming ingenuity and surprising mediocrity. Sonically separated by the four different seasons, Lupe has arguably released his most thematically layered and engaging album to date."[23]

Accolades

Country Publication List Rank
United States Complex The Best Albums of 2015 (So Far)[24]
11
The Best Albums of 2015[25]
11
HipHopDX Top 25 Albums of 2015[26]
*
Rolling Stone 40 Best Rap Albums of 2015[27]
27

* denotes an unordered list

Commercial performance

The album debuted at number 14 on the Billboard 200, selling 42,000 copies in total.[28] The sales figures may be a result of the declining relationship between Lupe Fiasco and Atlantic Records, with the album receiving little to no promotion from the record label.[19]

In its second week the album fell to number 37, selling 12,000 copies.[29]

Track listing

No. TitleWriter(s)Producer(s) Length
1. "Summer"     1:26
2. "Mural"  
The Buchanans 8:48
3. "Blur My Hands" (featuring Guy Sebastian)
 5:27
4. "Dots & Lines"  
  • Jaco
  • Simon Morel
 6:32
5. "Fall"     1:13
6. "Prisoner 1 & 2" (featuring Ayesha Jaco)
  • Jaco
  • Maurice "MoeZ'art" Thomas
MoeZ'art 8:36
7. "Body of Work" (featuring Troi and Terrace Martin)
  • Jaco
  • L. Griffin, Jr.
  • J. Griffin
  • S1
  • Vohn Beatz
 5:53
8. "Little Death" (featuring Nikki Jean)
  • S1
  • Vohn Beatz
 4:29
9. "No Scratches" (featuring Nikki Jean)
DJ Simonsayz 4:22
10. "Winter"     1:31
11. "Chopper" (featuring Billy Blue, Buk of Psychodrama, Trouble, Trae tha Truth, Fam-Lay and Glasses Malone)
DJ Dahi 9:32
12. "Deliver"  
  • Jaco
  • Tyrone Griffin
  • M. Thomas
  • P. Jones
  • MoeZ'art
  • Marcus Stephens
 3:52
13. "Madonna (And Other Mothers in the Hood)" (featuring Nikki Jean)
  • Jaco
  • Natche
  • Leary
DJ Dahi 4:43
14. "Adoration of the Magi" (featuring Crystal Torres)
  • Jaco
  • Natche
DJ Dahi 5:06
15. "They. Resurrect. Over. New." (featuring Ab-Soul and Troi)
  • DJ Dahi
  • Blood Diamonds
 5:38
16. "Spring"     1:35
Notes
Sample credits

Charts

Chart (2015) Peak
position
Australian Albums (ARIA)[30] 69
Belgian Albums (Ultratop Flanders)[31] 183
UK Albums (OCC)[32] 58
US Billboard 200[33] 14
US Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums (Billboard)[34] 2

References

  1. ↑ "Lupe Fiasco Drops Dates For Tetsuo And Youth Tour Dates Okayplayer". Okayplayer. Retrieved 2 December 2014.
  2. ↑ "Whose featured on T&". Retrieved 2 December 2014.
  3. ↑ "Lupe Fiasco's 'Tetsuo & Youth' Avoiding Politics – Rolling Stone". Rolling Stone. Retrieved 2 December 2014.
  4. ↑ "Lupe Fiasco Raps About Smoking Crack In New Song With Chris Brown". XXL. Retrieved 1 February 2015.
  5. ↑ "'Drizzy's Law' – What's Drake Got To Do With Lupe Fiasco's New Song?". MTV News. Retrieved 1 February 2015.
  6. ↑ "Featured Single Review: "Old School Love" Lupe Fiasco featuring Ed Sheeran". Billboard. Retrieved 2 December 2014.
  7. ↑ "Lupe Fiasco And Ed Sheeran Go ‘Old School’... To 2003". MTV News. Retrieved 2 December 2014.
  8. ↑ "Lupe Fiasco". Billboard. Retrieved 2 December 2014.
  9. ↑ "Rap-Up.com – Video: Lupe Fiasco f/ Ed Sheeran – ‘Old School Love’". Rap-Up. Retrieved 2 December 2014.
  10. ↑ "Lupe Fiasco Creates Booming Anti-Cancer Anthem, 'Mission'". Rolling Stone. Retrieved 2 December 2014.
  11. ↑ "iTunes – Music – Next To It (feat. Ty Dolla $ign) – Single by Lupe Fiasco". iTunes. Retrieved 2 December 2014.
  12. ↑ "Listen To Lupe Fiasco’s New Single, "Deliver," Featuring Ty Dolla $ign". The Source. Retrieved 2 December 2014.
  13. 1 2 "Reviews for Tetsuo & Youth by Lupe Fiasco". Metacritic. Retrieved January 24, 2014.
  14. ↑ Jeffries, David. "Tetsuo & Youth – Lupe Fiasco". AllMusic. Retrieved May 30, 2015.
  15. 1 2 Pearce, Sheldon (January 20, 2015). "Lupe Fiasco puts off being rap’s conscious voice and rediscovers his own". The A.V. Club. Retrieved January 20, 2015.
  16. 1 2 "Lupe Fiasco – Tetsuo & Youth". Consequence of Sound. Retrieved February 1, 2015.
  17. ↑ Christgau, Robert (March 19, 2015). "Robert Christgau: Expert Witness". Cuepoint. Retrieved June 2, 2015.
  18. 1 2 Kevin Jones (January 20, 2015). "Lupe Fiasco – Tetsuo & Youth". Exclaim!. Retrieved January 26, 2015.
  19. 1 2 3 Hunte, Justin (January 20, 2015). "Album Review: Lupe Fiasco – Tetsuo & Youth". HipHopDX. Cheri Media Group. Retrieved January 20, 2015.
  20. ↑ Greene, Jayson (January 22, 2015). "Lupe Fiasco: Tetsuo & Youth". Pitchfork Media. Retrieved January 22, 2015.
  21. ↑ McCarthy, Sean (February 6, 2015). "Lupe Fiasco: Tetsuo & Youth". PopMatters. Retrieved February 6, 2015.
  22. ↑ Weingarten, Christopher R. (February 12, 2015). "Tetsuo & Youth". Rolling Stone. Retrieved February 12, 2015.
  23. 1 2 Miller, Kellan (January 22, 2015). "Lupe Fiasco’s ‘Tetsuo & Youth’ Is A Return To Form". XXL. Retrieved January 22, 2015.
  24. ↑ "Best Albums of 2015 (So Far)". Complex. June 15, 2015. Archived from the original on June 23, 2015. Retrieved December 26, 2015.
  25. ↑ "Best Albums of 2015". Complex. December 1, 2015. Retrieved December 20, 2015.
  26. ↑ "The Top 25 Albums Of 2015". HipHopDX. Retrieved January 28, 2016.
  27. ↑ "Lupe Fiasco, 'Tetsuo & Youth' – 40 Best Rap Albums of 2015". December 23, 2015. Retrieved December 26, 2015.
  28. ↑ Balfour, Jay (January 28, 2015). "Hip Hop Album Sales: Joey Bada$$, Nicki Minaj, Lupe Fiasco". HipHopDX. Retrieved January 28, 2015.
  29. ↑ Harling, Danielle (February 2, 2015). "Hip Hop Album Sales: Ne-Yo, Pitbull & Joey Bada$$". HipHopDX. Retrieved February 2, 2015.
  30. ↑ "The ARIA Report: Week Commencing 2 February 2015" (PDF). Pandora Archive. February 2, 2015. Retrieved February 6, 2015.
  31. ↑ "Ultratop.be – Lupe Fiasco – Tetsuo & Youth" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved April 22, 2015.
  32. ↑ "Lupe Fiasco | Artist | Official Charts". UK Albums Chart
  33. ↑ "Lupe Fiasco – Chart history" Billboard 200 for Lupe Fiasco.
  34. ↑ "Lupe Fiasco – Chart history" Billboard Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums for Lupe Fiasco.
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