Migos – Culture II

Culture II is the third studio album by American hip hop trio Migos. It was released on January 26, 2018, by Quality Control Music, Motown and Capitol Records.[3] The album features guest appearances from Cardi B, Nicki Minaj, Big Sean, Drake, Travis Scott, 2 Chainz, 21 Savage, Gucci Mane, Ty Dolla Sign and Post Malone. The album was executive produced by Quavo and DJ Durel, alongside production work from a variety of collaborators including Murda Beatz, Metro Boomin, Buddah Bless, Pharrell Williams and Kanye West, among others. The album serves as a sequel to Migos’ previous album, Culture.

The album was supported by three singles: “MotorSport”, “Stir Fry” and “Walk It Talk It”, as well as the promotional single, “Supastars”. Culture II received generally positive reviews from critics and debuted at number one on the US Billboard 200. It is Migos’ second US number-one album.

Background
In July 2017, a rumor surfaced that Culture II was on a hard drive that was lost by Quavo. Migos confirmed that a single from the album will be dropping soon and was previewed on Rap-Up. Anticipation regarding the upcoming album has built due to the Atlanta rap group’s use of social media. Posts have included many names such as Kanye West, Donald Glover and others who they have worked with, and have mentioned a specific music icon who executive produced the album which was revealed on January 22, posted on the Migos official Instagram page.

In a November 21, 2017, The New York Times story on the group, it was revealed that the updated release date for the album was January 2018; earlier reports suggested an October release. Quavo announced on January 8 that he and DJ Durel were mixing the album. On January 15, 2018, Migos announced the release date of January 26 via their official social media accounts. The same day, Quavo posted a snippet of the song “Culture National Anthem”. Merchandise for the album has been released within Bloomingdale’s ‘Music Is Universal’ pop-up space in conjunction with Universal Music Group.

Migos’ DJ known as DJ Durel says that group only spend 20 to 45 minutes to do each song. He also stated “when they’re in the zone, there’s no way you can stop them from laying down a good song. It’s going to come out perfect. It’s not going to come out rushed or anything.”

The album’s lead single, “MotorSport”, was released on October 27, 2017, and includes lead vocals from Cardi B and Nicki Minaj. The song is produced by Murda Beatz and Cubeatz. It was originally previewed at Powerhouse 2017 the night before release. The song peaked at number six on the US Billboard Hot 100.

The album’s second single, “Stir Fry”, was released on December 20, 2017. The song is produced by Pharrell Williams. The song peaked at number eight on the US Billboard Hot 100.

Singles
The album’s third single, “Walk It Talk It” featuring Drake, was sent to British urban contemporary radio on March 18, 2018, the same day as the release of the official music video. The song peaked at number 10 on the US Billboard Hot 100.

Promotional singles
“Supastars” was released as a promotional single on January 22, 2018, shortly after premiering on Zane Lowe’s Beats 1 radio. The song is produced by Honorable C.N.O.T.E., Buddah Bless, Quavo and DJ Durel. The song peaked at number 53 on the US Billboard Hot 100.

Critical reception
Culture II received generally positive reviews from critics. At Metacritic, which assigns a normalized rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream publications, the album received an average score of 69, based on 19 reviews. Dave Heaton of PopMatters praised the album saying, “While not all of these 24 songs are equally impressive, nothing about Culture II feels like they’re going through the motions.” Jordan Bassett of NME said, “Migos are firing on all cylinders here, their new record a lush, chaotic patchwork that pops with primary colours. The fab three have done it again.” Alex Petridis of The Guardian stated that “for such a gargantuan album, it’s surprisingly light on its feet, skipping nimbly between musical styles”, complimenting the album’s production, but criticising the lyrical themes. Dan Weiss of Consequence of Sound said, “The trio gave a double album their best, with plenty of head-turning lines, hilarious stray shouts (“dinner rolls!” on “CC” is a fave), and productions that further dilate the luxury trap spectrum, but not wildly so.” In his review, Neil Z. Yeung of AllMusic states, “With enough highlights to form a single digestible effort, Migos could have delivered another culture-defining classic with just a little trimming. Instead, they’ve taken what should have been a potent, big league statement and diluted it.” Meaghan Garvey of Pitchfork said, “It’s still a joy to hear the Migos rap, which is why it’s especially depressing that Culture II ultimately feels like a drag—a formless grab bag compiled without much care.” Scott Glaysher of XXL said, “Although the creative achievements aren’t revolutionary, they are thorough and consistent.”

In a mixed review, Rolling Stone’s Charles Aaron stated: “Culture II ultimately feels less like a celebratory howl from the mountaintop than a transitional inventory dump. With its easily-trimmable 24 tracks, Culture II appears to be tailored to finesse chart rules, which count 1,500 individual song streams toward one full album sale.” In another mixed review, Exclaim!’s Calum Slingerland stated: “Having more songs available to stream results in more royalties, though it doesn’t equate to a flawless full-length.” Kitty Empire of The Observer said, “Culture II was never going to be a modest affair, in which three self-effacing twentysomethings quietly enumerated their blessings. Apart from some anxiety (“Tryna be like the Carters/Gotta be like the Carters” – Too Playa) and exhaustion (Work Hard), Culture II is wall-to-wall diamonds, watches, cars, chains, brands, fashion houses and exotic fauna.” Arcade of Sputnikmusic saying “Culture II sounds like a satire of every other rap album released by a major label these days, catering to the lowest common denominator of casual music listener. As a business decision, it’s genius; as a piece of music, it’s little more than an elaborate consumer scam.”

Commercial performance
Culture II debuted at number one on the US Billboard 200 with 199,000 album-equivalent units, of which 38,000 were pure album sales in its first week. It is Migos’ second US number-one album.

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