The New PartyNextDoor Album Is Coming—Here's What You Need to Know

The Weeknd's After Hours aside, new music offerings have (understandably) been few and far between lately. But Friday, a worthy contender by PartyNextDoor is set to arrive: Partymobile, the latest album from the OVO signee, which has a real shot at successfully capturing this moment's frustrated, isolating, angsty vibes.

The hype behind this album is understandably huge, but for the uninitiated, we've prepared a PartyNextDoor primer on what to expect from the R&B singer's newest release.

Who is PartyNextDoor?

PartyNextDoor is one of the music industry's more prolific singer-songwriters, but he's reached this point relatively quietly. He was OVO's first-ever signee in 2013, and has earned his stripes while teaming up with Drake ever since. He has his own hits, like "Come and See Me," "Recognize," "Freak in You," and "Break from Toronto." But there are also the songs he's played a hand in crafting: Rihanna's "Work" and "Sex with Me," DJ Khaled's (and Rihanna's) "Wild Thoughts," and a bunch of Drake tracks, like "Elevate," "Ratchet Happy Birthday," and "U with Me?" The man can craft a tune.

What do I need to know about his new album?

It's been two-and-a-half years since a proper PartyNextDoor album. That album, Seven Days, was produced one major hit: "Damage," which featured Halsey.

In PartyNextDoor's defense, he says he made Seven Days in, well, seven days. Partymobile has been in the works for a while (its release date has even been pushed back), which bodes well. If an album produced in seven days cultivated one banger, then PartyMobile should produce approximately a million bangers (don't check the math on that one).

Also, if you're social distancing (and you should be), you're stuck at home with nothing to do and very little to listen to. This is exactly the right moment for a dynamite PartyNextDoor album.

Do you have any tangible proof the new album will be good?

Beyond my unparalleled intuition and ability to predict the future? No. But we do have a single from Partymobile off which we can base our intuition. "Split Decision," released in late February, seems like a fair barometer for what's to come—thumpy, brooding vocals about being a player, which feels like one of the few genres worth replaying right now. It's also likely "Loyal" (feat. Drake) will appear on the album, which is a certifiable dance hall heater—especially the remix with Bad Bunny.

Diehard PartyNextDoor fans were instructed to call a special number this week, which revealed additional snippets from the new album:

Anything else I should know?

Without lauding too much praise on celebrities right now, PartyNextDoor does deserve credit for donating 100% of his latest merch drop proceeds to the WHO and local Toronto charities.

Merch rollout with a new album has become an inescapable, sometimes annoying sideshow, so it's refreshing that this one is solely being used for good, rather than as a chart-boosting tactic.

Any notable guests I should know about?

The big rumor of late is that Rihanna might be featured on Partymobile. There is no definitive proof, though there is this kind of hard to hear soundbite from PartyNextDoor playing... Fortnite.

Rihanna News, thank you. It does make sense that she'd show up on Partymobile, given that Party played a huge role in creating two of her most popular Anti songs. You'll just have to wait until Friday to find out for sure.

He doesn’t want to be Drake’s sidekick and he’d like you to stop kidnapping his puppy Boo.

Originally Appeared on GQ