The old adage “the more, the merrier” just about always feels right on when it comes to hip-hop. Sure going platinum with no features is an impressive feat, but the amazing work created consistently by the genre’s changing guard of top tier acts teaming up is undeniably a big part of what makes the culture so strong. And when that partnership extends to more than just one track, but possibly a whole album, you’re basically guaranteed a hell of a good time.
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Enter Lil Wayne and T-Pain in 2008. After collaborating on “Got Money” from Wayne’s Tha Carter III and “Can’t Believe It” from Pain’s Three Ringz, talks of a joint album began circulating. Alas the album never came to fruition, until now. On Thursday, T-Pain finally liberated the long-awaited T-Wayne album from his archive on Thursday, nearly 10 years after the fact, causing fans to tweet fire emoji’s up and down Twitter feeds.
That #TWayne mixtape —-
— javi (@javialeman27) May 19, 2017
The new @TPAIN and @LilTunechi is HIGH KEY FIIIRE!! — #twayne pic.twitter.com/44IrqgsVnC
— bobby_fav (@bobbyfavoretto) May 19, 2017
T-Wayne may have finally seen the light of day, but many other almost mythological collaborative projects still have us wondering whether they’ll ever be heard. From Lil Wayne and Juelz Santana‘s I Can’t Feel My Face to the long-rumored J. Cole and Kendrick Lamar joint effort, here are six other albums we’re still waiting on.
Drake and Kanye West, untitled
Yeezus and the 6 God have joined forces on a number of tracks including “Forever” feat. Lil Wayne and Eminem, Big Sean‘s “Blessings” and more recently “Glow” from Drake’s latest offering More Life, giving fans a preview of what the fabled joint album would sound like should it ever be released. In August 2016, a billboard appeared in Los Angeles displaying the logos of both Drake and Kanye’s record labels, whetting the appetite of the artists’ fans even more. Speaking to Vogue about the project, Kanye revealed that the two were “working on a bunch of music together, just having fun going into the studio” and that “exciting things are coming up soon.” However, things took a turn for the worst when Drake revealed in an interview with DJ Semtex that he didn’t “respect” Kanye for “publicly shitting on me and DJ Khaled for being on the radio too much.” West once rapped, “they say good things come to those that wait” but how long is too long?
J. Cole and Kendrick Lamar, untitled
Kendrick Lamar and J. Cole have each undoubtedly left significant marks on the rap game. The two rappers have been lauded for their lyrical prowess, storytelling abilities and chart success. One holds albums that have gone “platinum with no features” while the other’s latest album went platinum in under a month. So what happens when rap’s introverts lay their flow over each other’s beat? “Black Friday” happens. On November 25, 2015, both rappers released remixes to each other’s songs as Kendrick took over the beat for Cole’s “A Tale of Two Citiez” while J. Cole rapper over K. Dot’s “Alright.” Lamar unloads lines about his lethal flow, while Cole reveals the reason the rumored Kendrick/J. Cole album might never happen: “When you and K. Dot shit drop?” he rapped. “B—- never, they can’t handle two black n—– this clever.”
Lil Wayne and Juelz Santana, I Can’t Feel My Face
It’s been almost 10 years since rumors started swirling about Lil Wayne and Juelz Santana’s highly-anticipated joint LP, I Can’t Feel My Face, and it doesn’t seem like the project will see release anytime soon. That’s mainly because the tracks have been reworked into one of Lil Wayne’s actual albums. “I started putting extra verses on those songs and I’ve moved on,” he said in a 2012 MTV News interview. “Now what probably would’ve been I Can’t Feel My Face, has now turned into I Am Not a Human Being.” Although Lil Wayne has released a slew of tapes since then, the rapper is still tangled up in his own legal battles with his label Cash Money. The release of T-Wayne satisfied fans but it was only a matter of time before the I Can’t Feel My Face requests started flowing in. This project may be shelved, but according to Birdman, Tha Carter V is “coming out this year”.
CAN WE GET I CANT FEEL MY FACE NEXT? @LilTunechi
— get hasty (@suavendt) May 18, 2017
Childish Gambino and Chance the Rapper, untitled
When Chance posted an image on Instagram earlier this year that read “Hawaii then LA, back to work. #roscoeswetsuit“, next to Childish Gambino, internet wondered what the two artists were up to. Perchance a follow up to 2013’s “The Worst Guys” from Gambino’s Because the Internet and “Favorite Song” from Chance’s Acid Rap? While visiting Big Boy’s Neighborhood in February, Gambino revealed that he “met up” with Chance before. “We actually sat down in the studio and were talking for a little bit. I mean, we’re both busy, but when he has like a moment we’ve just been sitting down and just working together,” he said. “I think it’s about catching a vibe.”
Fabolous and Jadakiss, Freddy vs. Jason
New York’s seasoned veterans have teased the Nightmare on Elm Street-inspired project for quite a while and even dropped a teaser trailer earlier this year. The rappers stated that they’re taking their time to craft the project, comparing the creative process to the process of cooking a “home-cooked meal.” Fabolous and Jadakiss have previously collaborated on songs “The Hope” from Fab’s 2013 mixtape The Soul Tape, freestyled over Future‘s “Wicked” beat and actually even recently released supposed Freddy vs. Jason lead single “Rapture” featuring Tory Lanez.
Fabolous kicked off the new year with a joint mixtape titled Trappy New Years with Trey Songz, leaving fans to wonder when an official release date for Freddy vs. Jason would drop.
Quavo and Travis Scott, untitled
Unlike most of the above joint albums, a Quavo and Travis Scott project is almost certainly going to happen. Snippets of the duo’s project recently surfaced online via a video showing Beats 1 radio host Zane Lowe on Facetime with the “goosebumps” rapper as he previewed his unreleased music with Quavo. And, speaking to GQ this week, Scott revealed he’d drop the project as a surprised but assured the collab “is coming soon.”
SNIPPETS OF THE TRAVIS SCOTT & QUAVO COLLAB ALBUM —- pic.twitter.com/pn4SR6659k
— FTP Flame — (@FTPflame) April 3, 2017