! (Trippie Redd album)

On May 29, 2019, Trippie was featured on Beats 1 Radio and confirmed that his upcoming album would be called "!". The album's name is a reference to XXXTentacion's album ?; RapReviews opined that the album "is a tribute to his [Redd's] fallen comrade." It has also been speculated that the name is short for the word 'Immortal'. On May 29, 2019, Trippie Redd released the lead single from the project: a song called "Under Enemy Arms". In June 2019, Redd stated that the purpose of the album was all about "elevation" and taking the next step in his career. During the 2019 Wireless Festival, Trippie confirmed the album's release date of 9 August 2019. ==Promotion==

Redd held an album release party in Los Angeles, California. ==Songs==

Tracks 1–7 The album's opener, "!", is produced by Diplo. The two previously collaborated on Wish. The song opens with the voice of Apple's Siri repeating the album's title. The next song, "Snake Skin", focuses on themes of suicide. Redd stated: "It's kind of suicidal, in a stay away from it type of shit... That's the whole concept of it, stay away from suicide. Don't worry about what other people say, you could be doing what they're doing or even better than them. It's just living life and knowing how to overcome shit." The fourth song, "I Try", sees Redd detail a rocky relationship with his girlfriend. The song became the center of controversy after Kid Buu claimed that Redd had stolen "I Try" from him on Instagram on September 21, 2019. The track makes the first – and, to date, last – collaboration between the two artists. The seventh track, "Keep Your Head Up", marks his second collaboration with producer Murda Beatz. He previously collaborated with him on "Forever Ever" on his debut album, ''Life's a Trip''. The ninth song, "Mac 10", serves as the album's second single. The song is produced by Wheezy and Bobby Raps and is a collaboration between Trippie Redd, Lil Duke and Lil Baby. Redd debuted the song at a concert in March 2019, performing it with Lil Duke. In an interview with Zane Lowe, Redd stated: "Baby was sleep [sic] on the couch and Duke was up with me, we were just smoking and vibing then Wheezy came in the studio, I asked him for a beat. I did the chorus, Duke got on it then I woke Baby's ass up told him [sic] to record his shit... He took damn near 30 minutes but he woke up out his sleep and got that out the way." Lil Duke and Lil Baby have previously collaborated on "Up" (Perfect Timing), "I'm Gettin' Paid," and "Still On My Shit". The title of the track is a play off Leray's debut project Everythingcoz. The song juxtaposes violent lyrics over an upbeat, orchestral instrumental. The end of the video sees the appearance of a rainbow-colored rat, seemingly referring to 6ix9ine testifying as a witness for the state against his criminal associates. Initially, the record project was supposed to contain a collaboration with Lil Wayne, but after the song leaked online Redd replaced it with "Lil Wayne". The thirteenth and final song on the album is called "Signing Off". Other The album previously contained the track "They Afraid of You" (featuring Playboi Carti), but it was later removed from streaming services and physical releases just six days after its release, on August 15, 2019. RapReviews speculated that there had been sample clearance issues. ==Critical reception==

! was met with lukewarm reviews. At Metacritic, which assigns a normalized rating out of 100 to reviews from professional publications, the album received an average score of 59, which indicates "mixed or average reviews", based on 6 reviews. "Mac 10" and "Immortal", among other songs, were identified as highlights of the album. Blurred Culture said that "! is truly a personal glimpse into his [Redd's] own life." The magazine concluded: "The album has a bit of everything for everyone. ... On this album, Trippie Redd does a great job of trying new sounds and styles. It's still dark, emotional Trippie, but he is really showcasing his versatility here." ==Commercial performance==

The album debuted at number three on the US Billboard 200 with 51,000 album-equivalent units, of which 7,000 were pure album sales in its first week. The album charted behind only Slipknot's We Are Not Your Kind and Rick Ross' Port of Miami 2. From the record project, "Under Enemy Arms" peaked at No. 94 on the Billboard Hot 100, giving Redd his tenth appearance on that chart. On 9 November 2022, "Mac 10" achieved Platinum certification from the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA). ==Track listing==

Credits adapted from Apple Music. Notes • "They Afraid of You" (featuring Playboi Carti) originally appeared on the album, but was later removed (including physical), and from all streaming platforms. ==Trippie Redd Call ==

Alexis sky Higgins Trippie Redd Call Weekly charts Year-end charts ==References==