Vince Staples released his Dark Times album on Thursday night (May 23) via Blacksmith Recordings and Def Jam Recordings.
Dark Times is Staples’ seventh and final project on Def Jam. “Eleven years ago, a young, uncertain version of myself was given an opportunity with Def Jam Recordings. I released my first project under their banner, Shyne Coldchain Vol 2, a year later. I was unsure of what to expect from the world of music but deeply aware of what I needed: a change in my surroundings and a clear understanding of self,” he wrote via Instagram on May 19. “Ten years and seven projects later, I’ve found that clarity. Now, I share with you my final Def Jam release, Dark Times. 5.24.24.”
Dark Times features a faint image of a noose on the album artwork. “I’m Black, and that’s what we’re evading,” he said of the inspiration behind the cover in a press release. “We all have our things that could kill us. We all have that imminent threat.”
He released “Shame on the Devil” as the first single earlier this week, along with its visual. Staples called “Shame on the Devil” a “personal achievement” in the release. “It’s me mastering some things I’ve tried before that I wasn’t great at in the beginning. It’s a testament to musical growth, song structure — all the good stuff.”
See the Dark Times tracklist below.
- “Close Your Eyes and Swing”
- “Black & Blue”
- “Government Cheese”
- “Children’s Song”
- “Shame On the Devil”
- “Étouffée”
- “Liars”
- “Justin”
- “Radio”
- “Nothing Matters”
- “Little Homies”
- “Freeman”
- “Why Won’t the Sun Come Out?”
Dark Times arrives two years after Staples released his fifth studio album, Ramona Park Broke My Heart, which reached No. 21 on the Billboard 200 and No. 10 on Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums. Earlier this year, the Long Beach rapper released his own five-episode Netflix series titled The Vince Staples Show.
Listen to Dark Times below.
