Future has been one of the most consistently visible artists in hip-hop since his national breakout in the early 2010s — and by all indications, even a decade into his career, his star only continues to grow.
This week, the rapper scores the biggest single-week number of 2022 (and the biggest single-week number for any of his solo albums) with 222,000 equivalent album units earned, according to Luminate, for his new album I Never Liked You, released on April 29. While he easily debuts at No. 1 the Billboard 200 albums chart, he also bows atop the Billboard Hot 100 with the album’s “Wait For U,” which additionally features Drake and Tems, and charts all 16 of the set’s tracks across the listing.
How is Future still reaching new commercial heights this deep into his career? And why do the blockbuster album drops suddenly seem to be coming fast and furious this May? Billboard staffers discuss these questions and more below.
1. I Never Liked You moves a whopping 222,000 first-week units in its debut frame — highest of any non-collab album of Future’s career, and best of any set for 2022. What do you primarily attribute this sort of high-water-mark performance to, a decade-plus into the rapper’s stardom?
Rania Aniftos: Future has always done a great job at pulling you in with the high-profile collaborations, but keeping you around for the raps and artistry. With Drake, Kanye, Gunna, Kodak Black and Young Thug on the roster, Future’s solo tracks like “Puffin On Zooetiez” and “712PM” still ended up being two of the standout songs, which says more about him as an artist than the boost of his high-profile friendships within the hip-hop world.
Carl Lamarre: I think this time around, Future won us over by building enough intrigue around his latest album. I’ll be the first to say, features aside, I thought he hasn’t been at peak form from a lead artist perspective for a while. “Worst Day” had a modest debut on the Hot 100 but wasn’t a grand-slam effort that we’re accustoming to seeing from the ATL behemoth, a la “Life Is Good” and “Mask Off.” In addition, his only press came from his recent GQ cover, which dubbed him the “Best Rapper Alive.” Of course, with a gaudy headline, fans clamored over the claim and investigated if it was proven valid. Fortunately, keeping a minimalistic rollout and building curiosity helped garner the hype to push him over the edge.
Elias Leight: It helped that there has been a dearth of major albums so far this year. In addition, Future has been relatively quiet in the last two years, at least by his usually prolific standards. He frequently releases multiple projects a year, but hadn’t put out a meaty album or mixtape for nearly two years before I Never Liked You. That surely built up demand.
Jason Lipshutz: A combination of three things: Future’s continued enormity in mainstream hip-hop, with six No. 1 albums prior to this year; his recent hot streak as a hitmaker, thanks to pivotal roles on top 10 smashes like Drake’s “Way 2 Sexy” and Gunna’s “Pushin P”; and the lack of pre-release singles for I Never Liked You generated a ton of interest in the album upon its release. Future is an A-list artist with multiple hits over the past few months, and he made this new release a major event in order to score 2022’s best week so far.
Andrew Unterberger: It feels like it’s been a while since the last Future full-length album, even though it hasn’t really been that long — High Off Life, which now admittedly seems like a relatively minor release in his catalog, came out in May 2020, and the Lil Uzi Vert full-length team-up Pluto x Baby Pluto came a half-year after that. But I Never Liked You had a savvy rollout, the rapper has been on some enormous songs in the past year, and two years between solo releases does seem like a pretty long gap on Planet Future.
2. “Wait For U” also becomes Future’s second No. 1 debut on the Hot 100 — and second alongside frequent co-star Drake, with the pair originally topping the chart in 2021 with “Way 2 Sexy.” Does it feel to you like a song that will actually end up as a defining hit from the album, or is its pole position bow more about the collective star power of the hitmakers (which also includes breakout Afrobeats singer-songwriter Tems) involved?
Rania Aniftos: I do think it will be a defining hit for a few reasons, the first being that Drake and Future seem to really connect as collaborators, and I think the fans can tell. Second, “Wait For U” has started to make its rounds on TikTok, and we all know that once a song goes viral on the platform, it keeps its position on the charts for a while.
Carl Lamarre: Upon listening, “Wait For U” was a standout winner from the 16-track collection. We’re aware of how explosive Drake and Future are as a pair, but with the emergence of Tems — who enjoyed incredible success last year with Wizkid’s Hot 100 top 10 “Essence” — her pillowy touch lifted the record to higher heights and made the song an indelible gem.
Elias Leight: A lot of this is collective star power — before this album, Future had relied on co-stars and featured collaborators to help him achieve seven of his eight top 20 Hot 100 hits as a lead artist. The success also has to do with the long history of collaboration between Future and Drake in particular, which stretches around a decade at this point and is reliable like a long-running sitcom. That said, “Wait For U” also feels like it’s constructed to achieve maximum appeal. Thanks to the flickering guitar riff and Tems’ vocal, this single is shockingly melodic relative to the many parched, pummeling moments on I Never Liked You. It’s a long way from an old chest-thumping hit like “Jumpman” or even the other Drake collaboration on the new album, “I’m on One;” it feels engineered for the airwaves.
Jason Lipshutz: I would have said the latter a few days ago – frankly, I was surprised that “Wait For U” was trending so high, considering its tempo and more contemplative lyrical slant – but after a couple more listens, I found myself gravitating toward the moodiness, crystallized so elegantly in Tems’ “Higher” hook. Considering its No. 1 debut and emotional impact, “Wait For U” does indeed seem like the song that will define I Never Liked You when it’s all said and done.
Andrew Unterberger: Star power was probably the reason it debuted at the top of the Hot 100, but the song itself is the reason it might stick around near there for a while still. Everything about it feels like a 2022 hit, from the Tems sample to the melancholy-but-not-morose vibe to the overall efficiency, packing a whole lot of its stars into a just-over-three-minute runtime. There might be another song that ultimately has a longer streaming halflife — the “Knife Talk” to its “Way 2 Sexy” — but I imagine “Wait” isn’t going away anytime soon.
3. All of the album’s 16 tracks debut on the Hot 100 this week — which one a little lower than “Wait” do you think has a shot of being the slower-burning smash from the album?
Rania Aniftos: I’m thinking “Keep It Burnin’” will keep on burning. Similar to my response to the first question, it was the Ye feature that stood out to me in the first place, but I ended up really enjoying how clever the verses were and I just love that “Money like Sage in my house keep it burnin’” hook. The whole song is really cinematic but catchy at the same time, which are qualities that I think will allow “Keep It Burnin’” to stand the test of time.
Carl Lamarre: I’ve always appreciated how Future collides with younger artists. His stout resume of twenty-somethings includes Juice WRLD, Lil Uzi Vert, Nardo Wick, 42 Dugg, and more. I think he and EST Gee complemented each other well on “Chickens,” as it has the perfect blend of street appeal and mainstream sonics.
Elias Leight: The other lovely melodic moment on I Never Liked You comes right after “Wait for U:” “Love You Better,” a glum ballad that alternates between Future chiding an ex (for “takin’ our memories on love and treatin’ it like gossip”) and sending her his best wishes (“hope you can find someone to love you better than I did”). Future plays with his vocal delivery — turning “pray” into a series of a hoarse, broken syllables — in a way that could spur the imagination of the TikToking masses. And if “Wait For U” proves to have legs, “Love You Better” is best positioned to snag listeners who want more mournful Future ballads.
Jason Lipshutz: “Chickens” is the one that has stuck with me the most so far — spaced-out but slightly menacing, with a repetitive hook that doesn’t grate and a snarling verse from EST Gee that might serve as an even bigger breakout. Future excels in the mode that “Chickens” offers, and I could see the track scoring its own moment in the spotlight.
Andrew Unterberger: Give me “Holy Ghost,” which had already given I Never Liked You its biggest adrenaline shot before the operatic choral voices joined the production. Never knew how much I needed this kind of Future song in my life before I heard it; I imagine many fans — especially those in the business of setting music to video, to viral ends — will feel similarly.
4. I Never Liked You‘s distinction of owning 2022’s best single-week performance will be in heavy jeopardy over the next few release weeks — with recently released new albums by Jack Harlow and Bad Bunny impacting next week’s charts, followed by consecutive sets from Kendrick Lamar and Harry Styles. Do you see any particular reason why this May is seeing such a tightly packed run of major album releases after relatively few coming over the year’s first four months, or is it just a fluke of scheduling?
Rania Aniftos: It must be a fluke of scheduling, perhaps mixed with the summer coming up and subsequent summer and fall tours. I still find it so strange that for the first few months of 2022, no artist was taking advantage of the stagnant Hot 100 and claiming an easy No. 1 spot. I am, however, stoked that new music from top artists is finally on the way.
Carl Lamarre: It’s because we’re back outside! Festivals and tours are back at an all-time high, so artists are vying for spots on their fans’ soundtracks of the summer. Think about all the future outings: Rolling Loud, Governor’s Ball, Bonnaroo, Lollapalooza. Why not perform your newest material on a breezy summer day?
Elias Leight: There are a few factors at play. Some of these albums were likely delayed due to the chaos of the last two years; for the first time since 2019, a major artist can see a long and relatively clear runway to promote a project. With touring back in a major way, artists also want new music to perform — both Bad Bunny and Harry Styles hit stadiums starting in August. But there’s also a degree of chance involved in a traffic-jam like this; Bad Bunny and Jack Harlow released music at a steady clip, while Styles and Lamar have more idiosyncratic schedules.
Jason Lipshutz: Likely just a scheduling fluke – after all, if any of these artists could have released their album in February or March and earned a multi-week No. 1, they would have, right? May is typically a busy release period in the calendar, with artists jockeying to own the summer that lies ahead, but this especially jam-packed month is probably just the result of coincidence.
Andrew Unterberger: It does feel like the last couple years, with just a couple notable exceptions, most major artists are viewing the winter as unhospitable terrain for big new releases. You’d think the way a couple rising artists have been able to take advantage of that relative dead zone — like how Olivia Rodrigo and Morgan Wallen ruled the charts almost unchallenged in the first few months of 2021 — would inspire more to stake their claim, but not this year, certainly. Maybe we need to make “Song of the Winter” more of a thing.
5. GQ recently crowned Future the Best Rapper Alive in a much-discussed April profile. Fair, unfair, or a justifiable stretch?
Rania Aniftos: I’m going to a say a justifiable stretch, because while his accolades certainly put him in the top 10, it’s hard for me to say Future is the Best Rapper Alive with people like Jay-Z, Eminem, Missy Elliott and Kanye West walking around out there.
Carl Lamarre: After last week, he’s in the conversation. I think Future has a place on the 2010sRap Rushmore list alongside Drake, Kendrick, and J. Cole, which makes him a venerable hip-hop star and in contention for the aforementioned title. If we take it a step further, Future deserves more praise when mainstream conversations are concerned alongside some of your favorite pop titans. Eight No. 1 albums and close to 150 Hot 100 entries are nothing to sneeze at, especially knowing that he isn’t churning out bubblegum hits.
Elias Leight: It feels like every few years one magazine or another picks a new Best Rapper Alive. They do in the hopes of sparking some debate, then everyone moves on with their lives. I try to skip over the debate and get right to the second part.
Jason Lipshutz: Fair! “Best Rapper Alive” can mean different things to different people, and if you value influence, longevity, popularity and sonic creativity, Future belongs in any conversation. His technical skill and lyricism are not traditional, but he’s pushed rap music into places where it had never been before; he doesn’t resemble the archetype of a “Best Rapper Alive,” but in many ways, that’s a good thing. I would not personally declare Future the Best Rapper Alive at this moment, but also wouldn’t begrudge any person (or Gentleman’s Quarterly) that does.
Andrew Unterberger: Justifiable stretch. I don’t think I Never Liked You particularly demonstrates the verve, lyricism or versatility to really make such a literal claim for Future in 2022 — but then again, if you’re talking about which rapper of the last decade has had the widest and longest-lasting impact on the current state of hip-hop, you’d be hard-pressed to come up with many names to rival the artist born Nayvadius Wilburn. “Most Important Rapper Alive” might’ve been closer.