A$AP Rocky delays album due to leaks and sample approval issues

A$AP Rocky has announced that the release of his highly anticipated fourth album, ‘Don’t Be Dumb’, has been delayed. Find out why below.

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‘Don’t Be Dumb,’ Rocky’s first album since 2018’s ‘Testing,’ was set to be released on August 30 but has now been pushed back to fall 2024, according to a new interview the rapper has with Billboard.

Billboard‘s interview with Rocky didn’t reveal a reason for the delay, but the rapper has since publicly confirmed that it stems from unauthorized leaks and sample clearance issues. A$AP Rocky wrote on X (formerly Twitter), “LEAKS & SAMPLE CLEARANCES MAKE SURE THE ALBUM IS RUINED. ITS BEEN 6 YEARS AND I WANT TO MAKE THE BEST ALBUM EVER. I’M SORRY THE WAIT.”

LEAKS & SAMPLE CLEARANCES ARE RUINING THE ALBUM. IT’S BEEN 6 YEARS AND I WANT TO MAKE THE BEST ALBUM EVER. I’M SORRY I WAITED. https://t.co/rA0Z9u66Sy

— LORD FLACKO JODYE II (@asvpxrocky) August 22, 2024

No final release date has been announced for the album yet, but it is expected to come out sometime between September and November.

Elsewhere in the Billboard chat, Rocky revealed that he played the album for Tim Burton, who seemed to like the record. The rapper tried to get Burton to design the cover of “Don’t Be Dumb,” but the two couldn’t coordinate their schedules to make it work. He was still able to play the record for Burton, though: “I sat down and I played the album for Tim Burton, and he was all into it, and he was bobbing his head around and he was like, ‘Wow! I didn’t know you did that kind of music!'”

Rocky also confirmed that although his collaboration with Burton failed, he did manage to work with Burton’s regular collaborator and composer Danny Elfman to produce pieces of music for the album.

The album’s delay comes after A$AP Rocky released the single ‘Highjack’ featuring Jessica Pratt earlier this month – a music video for the track was released yesterday (August 22). The New Yorker also hinted at collaborations with Fatman Scoop, Flavor Flav, Slick Rick, Morrissey and Busta Rhymes on an upcoming track called ‘Hood Happy’, saying: “It’s a little crazy” while promising it would be “coming soon”.

Although a tracklist for the album has not yet been announced, NFR Podcast reported that the album will feature work from Tyler, The Creator, Metro Boomin, Madlib, Pharrell Williams, Swedish House Mafia, The Alchemist, Clams Casino, Mike Dean and more.

Elsewhere it was suggested that he would respond to Drake’s disses on the album, with DJ Kast One saying: “I definitely heard A$AP Rocky touch on a lot of the major topics that are going on here right now. Let’s just say the list goes on and on,” on Warm 97.

In other news, the rapper told fans in February that Rihanna was working on her ninth album. However, the singer said in June that she was “starting over” with the album. Her last album was 2016’s ‘Anti.’