Bandana (album)

Bandana is the second collaborative studio album by American rapper Freddie Gibbs and record producer Madlib. It was released on June 28, 2019, by ESGN, Keep Cool Records, Madlib Invazion, and RCA Records. Entirely produced by Madlib, it is the follow up to their critically acclaimed 2014 album Piñata, and their sixth project as MadGibbs overall. The album features guest appearances from Pusha T, Killer Mike, Anderson Paak, Yasiin Bey, and Black Thought.

Bandana
Studio album by
Freddie Gibbs and Madlib
ReleasedJune 28, 2019 (2019-06-28)
Recorded2016–2019
GenreHip hop
Length46:17
Label
ProducerMadlib
Freddie Gibbs and Madlib chronology
Knicks
(2014)		 Bandana
(2019)		 Montana
(TBA)
Freddie Gibbs chronology
Fetti
(2018)		 Bandana
(2019)		 Alfredo
(2020)
Madlib chronology
Bad Neighbor
(2015)		 Bandana
(2019)
Singles from Bandana
  1. "Flat Tummy Tea"
    Released: February 20, 2019
  2. "Crime Pays"
    Released: May 30, 2019
  3. "Giannis"
    Released: June 13, 2019

Background

During Madlib's talk with Red Bull Music Academy on May 7, 2016, he announced that he and Freddie Gibbs will be releasing a second collaborative studio album called Bandana.[1] On May 11, 2019, Freddie Gibbs and Madlib announced that Bandana will be the second installment of a planned trilogy, following Piñata, and that the third project will be called Montana.[2]

The day after the album's release, Madlib tweeted that he made all the beats for Bandana on his iPad.[3]

Promotion

Gibbs and Madlib released the lead single "Flat Tummy Tea" on February 20, 2019.[4] A titular non-album single, "Bandana" featuring the dancehall artist Assassin, was released on March 5, 2019.[5]

On May 28, 2019, the official album cover was revealed, featuring Madlib's animated alter-ego Quasimoto wearing a bandana around his neck and sitting on a zebra as they watch buildings in Hollywood being set on fire.[6] On May 30, the second single "Crime Pays" was released along with the album's release date being confirmed for June 28.[7]

The third single, "Giannis" featuring singer Anderson Paak, was released on June 13, 2019.[8]

Critical reception
Professional ratings
Aggregate scores
SourceRating
AnyDecentMusic?8.1/10[9]
Metacritic88/100[10]
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[11]
The A.V. ClubB+[12]
Consequence of SoundA−[13]
Exclaim!9/10[14]
Financial Times[15]
The Guardian[16]
NME[17]
Pitchfork8.1/10[18]
Q[19]
Rolling Stone[20]

Bandana was met with widespread critical acclaim. At Metacritic, which assigns a normalized rating out of 100 to reviews from professional publications, the album received an average score of 88, based on 23 reviews.[10] Aggregator AnyDecentMusic? gave it 8.1 out of 10, based on their assessment of the critical consensus.[9]

Accompanied by a perfect score, Dean Van Nguyen of The Guardian described the album as "unvarnished and utterly dazzling hip-hop", highlighting Gibbs' performance and the production and direction of Madlib.[16] Thomas Hobbs of NME labelled Bandana the "best rap album of 2019", praising Gibbs' improved lyricism compared to Piñata and Madlib's inventive use of samples: "On Bandana, Gibbs hits another level as a lyricist. He still makes an art out of violent imagery (on the potent "Flat Tummy Tea" he threatens to stab "white Jesus" with a sword), but now has developed much more of a philosophical edge, too. Gibbs' bars, with which he triumphantly talks about going from food stamps to making millions, are inspiring and have a real resilience about them." Hobbs concluded: "The chemistry between Madlib and Gibbs is perfect and there's a timelessness to these songs that will make you think of raw black cinematic worlds such as Super Fly or Truck Turner. Gibbs is basically Isaac Hayes if he could spit a hot 16, his union with Madlib proves opposites really do attract."[17] Christopher Thiessen of Consequence of Sound saying "From beginning to end, Bandana is a perfectly-paced album. Madlib never lingers on a single musical idea as he chops samples and switches beats, often midway through songs. Meanwhile, Gibbs, an expert in flows and rhythms, glues each song together with his undaunted, straightforward performances, which offer an illusion of effortlessness."[13]

Kyle Mullin of Exclaim! concluded that Bandana "stands on its own as one of the very best rap albums of 2019, or any other year in recent memory", praising the album's guest appearances and production.[14] Jack Bray of The Line of Best Fit stated: "It is an exceptional modern hip-hop album unafraid of exploring the darker sides of the modern rap persona, all whilst creating a rich, textured sonic environment within which it can be best ingested."[21] Clayton Purdom of The A.V. Club said, "The first record was a grower, gradually establishing itself as one of the great producer-emcee efforts of the young millennium, but Bandana seems designed to dazzle, to assert a joint legacy."[12] Pitchfork's critic Stephen Kearse said, "For Bandana, the pair taps into that heritage and allow themselves to be shaped by its highs and lows, its heroes and villains. Finding themselves within that slipstream of black thought and life, they plot their course on their terms. Bandana is tradition and transgression: one rapper, one producer, no limitations."[18]

Accolades
Accolades for Bandana
Publication List Rank Ref.
AllMusic AllMusic Best of 2019 N/A
[22]
The A.V. Club 50 Favorite Albums of the 2010s
35
[23]
The 20 Best Albums of 2019
4
[24]
Clash Clash Albums of the Year 2019
24
[25]
Complex Best Albums of 2019
2
[26]
Consequence of Sound Top 50 Albums of 2019
12
[27]
Crack Magazine The Top 50 Albums of the Year
23
[28]
The Line of Best Fit The Best Albums of 2019
40
[29]
Noisey The 100 Best Albums of 2019
57
[30]
Slant Magazine The 25 Best Albums of 2019
14
[31]
Spin 10 Best Albums of 2019
6
[32]
Stereogum Best Albums of 2019
30
[33]
Uproxx The Best Albums of 2019
29
[34]
Vibe The 30 Best Albums of 2019 N/A
[35]
Vulture The Best Albums of 2019
6
[36]

Commercial performance

Bandana debuted on number 21 on the US Billboard 200 and number 13 on the Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums, with 18,000 album-equivalent units in its first week.[37][38]

Track listing

All tracks produced by Madlib.

Bandana track listing
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."Obrigado"
0:29
2."Freestyle Shit"
  • Tipton
  • Jackson
2:28
3."Half Manne Half Cocaine"
  • Tipton
  • Jackson
  • Frank Dukes
  • Denzie Beagle
  • Winston Riley
  • Wilbert Williams
3:12
4."Crime Pays"
  • Tipton
  • Jackson
  • Mary Ellen Haberman
  • Steve Haberman
3:02
5."Massage Seats"
  • Tipton
  • Jackson
2:26
6."Palmolive" (featuring Pusha T and Killer Mike)
4:05
7."Fake Names"
  • Tipton
  • Jackson
  • Sylvers III
3:44
8."Flat Tummy Tea"
  • Tipton
  • Jackson
2:34
9."Situations"
  • Tipton
  • Jackson
3:48
10."Giannis" (featuring Anderson Paak)
3:18
11."Practice"
2:54
12."Cataracts"
  • Tipton
  • Jackson
3:39
13."Gat Damn"
  • Tipton
  • Jackson
2:50
14."Education" (featuring Yasiin Bey and Black Thought)
4:22
15."Soul Right"
3:26
Total length:46:17

Samples

  • "Freestyle Shit" contains a sample from "Elastic Lover", as performed by Revelation Funk.
  • "Half Manne Half Cocaine" contains samples of "Gregorian", written and performed by Frank Dukes; "Dust a Sound Boy", written by Denzie Beagle, Winston Riley, and Wilbert Williams, as performed by Super Beagle; and "Graveyard Ismael", written by Dominique Di Rienzo, as performed by Alpha Centori.
  • "Crime Pays" contains a sample from "Free Spirit", written by Mary Ellen Haberman and Steve Haberman, as performed by Walt Barr.
  • "Massage Seats" contains a sample from "Dance Hall Pt. 1", as performed by Tenor Saw.
  • "Palmolive" and "Fake Names" contain a sample from "Cry of a Dreamer", written by Leon Sylvers III, as performed by The Sylvers.
  • "Flat Tummy Tea" contains a portion of the composition "Orbit", written by Kaidi Tatham, as performed by Agent K; contains samples from "Love Theme from The Godfather", as performed by Professionals; and "Different Strokes", as performed by Syl Johnson.
  • "Giannis" contains samples from "Aasman Ke Neeche", written by S. D. Burman and Majrooh Sultanpuri, as performed by Lata Mangeshkar and Kishore Kumar; and "Say It Loud – I'm Black and I'm Proud", written by James Brown and Alfred James Ellis, as performed by James Brown.
  • "Practice" contains a sample from "Make It on Your Own", written and performed by Donny Hathaway.
  • "Cataracts" contains a sample from "Teach Me How", written by Norman Whiteside, as performed by Wee.
  • "Education" contains a sample from "Mukti Music", written and performed by R. D. Burman.
  • "Soul Right" contains a sample from "Noises and Conversations", written by Malcolm Catto, Jake Ferguson, and Mike Burnham, as performed by The Heliocentrics.

Charts
Chart performance for Bandana
Chart (2019) Peak
position
Australian Albums (ARIA)[39] 61
Belgian Albums (Ultratop Flanders)[40] 95
Canadian Albums (Billboard)[41] 47
Dutch Albums (Album Top 100)[42] 63
Finnish Albums (Suomen virallinen lista)[43] 50
German Albums (Offizielle Top 100)[44] 82
Irish Albums (IRMA)[45] 85
Norwegian Albums (VG-lista)[46] 31
Scottish Albums (OCC)[47] 57
Swiss Albums (Schweizer Hitparade)[48] 30
UK Albums (OCC)[49] 88
UK R&B Albums (OCC)[50] 10
US Billboard 200[51] 21
US Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums (Billboard)[38] 13

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