Playboi Carti Finally Delivers 'I Am Music' News

Travis Scott’s Days Before Rodeo debuted at No. 2 with 361K units sold, blocked by Sabrina Carpenter for the No. 1 spot. In other news: 

• Playboi Carti might drop I Am Music this year 😭

• Future’s teases a Mixtape Pluto snippet 🙌

• Industry Insights 🔎

We Finally Got An Update on Playboi Carti’s I Am Music 

MIA from social media since 2022 and rarely making public appearances, Playboi Carti truly has been in his vampire bag for the last couple of years. However, he briefly stepped into the sun to talk with Billboard about his creative process, frustration with leaks, and relationship with his fans. 

Most importantly, though, he gave an update on when I Am Music is coming—but who knows if that can be truly trusted. 

Carti’s team speaks on his creative process

After waiting literal years, Carti began 2024 by dropping songs for those praying to hear something new to rage to. So far this year, he has dropped new tracks, including “2024,” produced by Ye, “H00DBYAIR,” “BACKR00MS” with Travis Scott, “EVILJ0RDAN,” and “KETAMINE.”

His music notoriously doesn’t have a quick creative process. Carti’s frequent collaborator and producer, Cardo, has had plenty of recording all-nighters with the rapper when creating his upcoming music and classics like WHOLE LOTTA RED. 

Recalling a particularly long all-nighter, Cardo finally went to sleep around 6 am before Carti woke him and said, “‘You ready, twin?’ I was up for a whole damn near 48 hours with Carti — straight up working,” says Cardo. 

The blood, sweat, and tears put into the 2022 album wasn’t the only reason for its particularly long wait. The demand from his die-hard fan base makes him a frequent victim of leaks. Admitting they are infuriating, his manager explained to Billboard why he chose to rework the album rather than officially release what’s already out there.

“It delays the process. You don’t want to see the Mona Lisa in an art museum before it is a finished piece of work,” Carti’s manager said.  

The passion of his fan base can sometimes turn dangerous, with Carti also revealing that he’s had to move due to fans finding his address and even his mother’s home to send her flowers “presumably to thank her for birthing him.”

“I’m very blessed,” Carti says. “But it is frustrating because [that’s where] we have to lay our heads.”

What to expect from ‘I Am Music’

Trying to satisfy his fans’ never-ending appetite for new music, Carti is still in the studio (surprise, surprise) working on I Am Music, which Billboard confirmed is set to release by the end of the year. Given his notoriety for album delays, fans jokingly ask if Carti is aware of this but Cardo did give an update on the sound they’ve been curating in the studio.

With influences from “the sonics of DJ Toomp, DJ Paul, Juicy J, The Legendary Traxster and even the aesthetic of John Carpenter’s movies,” Cardo describes the sound as “burnt music.”

Naturally, Carti is still in his secretive bag, giving minimal descriptions of the album and dodging topics he doesn’t want to touch. This includes his past legal issues like his 2017 domestic battery arrest and “relatively benign topics” like his friendships with Lil Yachty and Lil Uzi Vert. 

Nevertheless, Carti seems to reveal who he always has been in his new interview—a fiery performer onstage and one of rap’s biggest mysteries once the final song plays. Hopefully, his latest release date doesn’t stay a secret for too long. 

 Future Delivers A Preview of Mixtape Pluto 

Future has been teasing Mixtape Pluto for months, tweeting that he “can’t sleep until its complete” in May. However, while continuing his We Trust You Tour with Metro Boomin, he gave fans some good news. 

Future drops “Lil Demon” snippet

Along with the pre-save link for the album, Future also dropped a teaser for an upcoming song on the project called “Lil Demon.” Showing off music video footage with him sliding through the streets, hanging out with baddies, and turning up in the studio, it seems like this is far from an R&B Future album. 

One of his longtime producers, Southside, confirmed in his 2024 XXL freshman interview that he will be working on the album.

Previously speaking about working with the rapper, Southside said, “Ever since Monster, he’s just been at my back, man. That’s the hardest-working dude in rap, to me, as far as making music. I never seen anybody make music like him. Like, if I send him 20 beats, Future would make 20 songs then ask me to send him 20 more. Our relationship is real. He treats me like he treats Metro Boomin.”

Fans are excited to hear Future return to his mixtape-era sound, and the “Lil Demon” teaser draws comparisons to the 2015 project DS2. Nearly a decade later, there’s no Future fatigue in sight, and even his frequent collaborators like Travis Scott want more heat.

“Future is on an insane run. Longevity is crazy and isn’t talked about enough,” X user SportsArenaTz said in a September 2 post. 

• Travis Scott just had a major legal win. His Miami charges for disorderly intoxication and trespassing have been officially dropped.   

• Glorilla was honored by her hometown. She received the key to the city of Memphis on “901 Day.” 

• The NBA 2K25 soundtrack has officially dropped.  It features songs from Key Glock, Lil Baby, NBA Youngboy and more. 

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