The Gold Album: 18th Dynasty

The Gold Album: 18th Dynasty
Studio album by Tyga
Released	June 23, 2015
Recorded	2014–15
Genre	Hip hop
Length	44:33
Label	Last Kings
Producer	Kanye West (exec.) Mike Dean (exec.) Jess Jackson (exec.) SAP Dupri FKi Soundz David D.A. Doman D-Nice Rasool Diaz Bedrock
Tyga chronology
Fan of a Fan: The Album (2015) The Gold Album: 18th Dynasty (2015) Fuk Wat They Talkin Bout (2015)
Singles from The Gold Album: 18th Dynasty
"Hollywood Niggaz" Released: May 19, 2015 "Pleazer" Released: June 16, 2015

The Gold Album: 18th Dynasty is the fourth and debut independent studio album by American rapper Tyga. The album premiered exclusively on Spotify on June 23, 2015,^[1] by his independently-owned record label Last Kings Records. The album has received mixed to negative reviews from critics.

Recording and production

Kanye West was the executive producer of the album.

On May 1, 2014, Tyga made a tweet, stating the executive producer of the album would be Kanye West, and the production would be handled by Mike Dean; along with his longtime collaborator Jess Jackson.^[2][3]

Promotion

In 2013 through 2014, Tyga has released three of his promotional singles; including "Wait for a Minute" featuring guest vocals from Canadian recording artist Justin Bieber,^[4] "Hookah" featuring guest vocals from a fellow rapper Young Thug, and "Real Deal".

On January 8, 2015, the album was availably for pre-ordered on iTunes;^[5] including two of his promotional singles, "Make It Work", and "40 Mill" (which was produced by Kanye West alongside Mike Dean).^[6] As of June 2015, the pre-order tracks have been removed and were not included in the album's final track listing. The album itself differs from other Tyga albums as it was not released physically by CD or Vinyl pressings which could've contributed to the albums lackluster commercial performance.

Critical reception

Professional ratings
Aggregate scores
Source	Rating
Metacritic	45/100[7]
Review scores
Source	Rating
HipHopDX	[8]
Pitchfork Media	3.9/10[9]
PopMatters	[10]
XXL	L (3/5)[11]

At Metacritic, which assigns a normalized rating out of 100 to reviews from music critics, the album has received an average score of 45 based on 4 reviews, signifying "mixed or average reviews".^[12] In a negative review, Meaghan Garvey of Pitchfork wrote "Tyga doesn't even sound like he's having fun here; the prevailing mood is one of vague bitterness, directed at everyone, but particularly women." Garvey further lamented that the songs "Hookah", "Wait for a Minute", "Make It Work" and "40 Mill" were not part of the album's final track listing.^[9] Writing for The News Hub, Samson Pharaoh stated "The latter parts of the record flicker with depth and the rapper often comes off well-roundedly", but still felt the production of the album was "sleepy" on tracks like "4 My Dawgs". Ultimately, he gave the album 5 out of 10 stars.^[13] In an average review, PopMatters said "the album is full of songs that falter either for a lack of a guiding beat or because of misguided lyrics that carry little purpose [...] On '4 My Dawgz', Lil Wayne delivers a painful-sounding few bars, describing his 'going crazy', which is an apt feeling after listening to the ten songs preceding it."^[10]

Commercial performance

Following nearly a full week of streaming and three days of sales, The Gold Album: 18th Dynasty failed to reach the Billboard 200;^[14] it sold 2,200 copies during the tracking week.^[15] Tyga defended the album's low sales on Twitter, explaining that streaming was the release's primary focus. Indeed, track streams from the album during the tracking week numbered around 4 million.^[15] Nevertheless, even with consumption from streaming included, the album's total equivalent album units count for the week numbered less than 5,000.^[14]

Singles

On May 19, 2015, the album's first single was released, titled "Hollywood Niggaz".^[16] The album's second single "Pleazer" featuring guest appearance from American rapper Boosie Badazz, was released June 12, 2015.

Track listing

The Gold Album — Standard edition
No.	Title	Writer(s)	Producer(s)	Length
1.	"Spitfire"	Michael Nguyen-Stevenson Derrick Jones Mike Dean Jess Jackson	D-Nice Dean Jackson	2:10
2.	"Muh Fucka" (featuring A.E.)	Stevenson Alexander "A.E." Edwards Jackson	Bedrock Jackson	3:01
3.	"Shaka Zulu"	Stevenson Johnathan King Jackson	SAP Jackson	4:14
4.	"God Talk"	Stevenson Kenneth Coby Jackson	Soundz Jackson	3:14
5.	"Hard for You"	Stevenson Regis "Dupri" Bell Dean Jackson	Dupri Dean Jackson	3:14
6.	"Down for a Min"	Stevenson King Dean Jackson	SAP Dean Jackson	4:13
7.	"Pure Luxury"	Stevenson Bell Dean Jackson	Dupri Dean Jackson	4:59
8.	"Wham"	Stevenson David D.A. Doman Jackson	Doman	3:19
9.	"Pleazer" (featuring Boosie Badazz)	Stevenson Jackson Torrence Hatch Markous Roberts	FKi Jackson	4:18
10.	"Hollywood Niggaz"	Stevenson Jackson	Jackson	3:32
11.	"4 My Dawgs" (featuring Lil Wayne)	Stevenson Dwayne Carter, Jr. Rasool Diaz Brian "The Order" Soko Jackson	Soko Diaz Jackson	3:56
12.	"Bloodline"	Stevenson Jackson	Jackson	4:23
Total length:				44:33

Charts

Weekly charts

Chart (2015)	Peak position
US Independent Albums (Billboard)[17]	35
US Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums (Billboard)[18]	27

References

1. "Spotify Player". spotify.com. Retrieved 2 July 2015.
2. "Twitter / Tyga: #TheGoldAlbum @therealmikedean". Twitter.com. Retrieved 2014-06-22.
3. "Kanye West To Executive Produce Tyga's Next Album?". Vibe. 2014-02-25. Retrieved 2014-06-22.
4. Saad, Megan (October 21, 2013). "New Music: Tyga feat. Justin Bieber ‘Wait For A Minute’". Vibe.
5. "Tyga ~ The Gold Album: 18th Dynasty (Pre-Order on iTunes Now!)". OVO Forums - Hip Hop, Drake, Music, and Lifestyle forum. Retrieved 2 July 2015.
6. "Tyga – 40 Mill (Produced by Kanye West & Mike Dean)". HYPETRAK. Retrieved 2 July 2015.
7. "Critic Reviews for The Gold Album: 18th Dynasty". Metacritic. Retrieved July 7, 2015.
8. "The Gold Album: 18th Dynasty Review on HipHopDX". HipHopDX. Retrieved July 7, 2015.
9. Pitchfork. "Tyga: The Gold Album: 18th Dynasty Review". Retrieved July 1, 2015.
10. PopMatters. "Tyga: The Gold Album: 18th Dynasty Review". Retrieved July 1, 2015.
11. "The Gold Album: 18th Dynasty review on XXL Mag". XXL. Retrieved July 7, 2015.
12. "Tyga: The Gold Album: 18th Dynasty Critics Review". Metacritic. Retrieved July 7, 2015.
13. "Review: Tyga - "The Gold Album: 18th Dynasty"". The News Hub. Retrieved June 1, 2015.
14. Smith, Trevor (July 4, 2015). "Charts Don't Lie: July 4th". HotNewHipHop. Retrieved July 4, 2015.
15. Tharpe, Frazier (July 1, 2015). "Here's How Many Copies Tyga's 'The Gold Album' Sold Since It Hit iTunes on Friday". Complex. Complex Media. Retrieved July 4, 2015.
16. "iTunes - Music - Hollywood Niggaz - Single by Tyga". iTunes. Retrieved 2 July 2015.
17. "Tyga – Chart history" Billboard Independent Albums for Tyga. Retrieved December 28, 2015.
18. "Tyga – Chart history" Billboard Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums for Tyga. Retrieved December 28, 2015.