PartyNextDoor’s PARTYMOBILE : Four Questions We Have

These days, the immediate horizon isn’t exactly rich in things to look forward to (mealtimes, guarded walks around the block, D-Nice’s DJ sets… what am I missing?). But here’s something coming as soon as tomorrow(!) that we’ve got high hopes for: the new PartyNextDoor album, PARTYMOBILE. The 26-year-old Drake acolyte is back with his fourth LP (his first since 2016’s partynextdoor 3). And while Party’s quietly left a big mark on popular music in his young career (he’s crafted hits like Rihanna’s “Work” and DJ Khaled’s “Wild Thoughts,” and has done extensive work with Drake), what we know about PARTYMOBILE has us excited that it could be his personal breakthrough. Here are four things we’re on the look-out for.

Will Party Put All the Pieces Together?

For Jahron Brathwaite—Party’s given name—talent’s never been a question. He signed a publishing deal with Warner/Chappell at 18. By 20, he became the first signee to Drake’s OVO Sound label. He produces his own songs—as well as tracks for Drake, Rihanna, Big Sean, and others—and on recent albums, his production has arguably eclipsed his writing. On the mic, his voice is versatile—he can coo softly (“THE NEWS”), rap dirty (“Break from Toronto”), accentuate his Carribean roots (“LOYAL”) or make you forget them altogether. He’s a stylistic ancestor of his OVO boss, but sometimes it’s unclear who’s taken more from whom (see: Drake’s propensity to slide into Party’s Carribean patois).

And yet, to date, a Party project has never quite added up to the sum of its parts. Maybe that’s because Party’s given his best lines and beats away. Or maybe it’s because he’s taken on too much of the burden himself and has needed someone to steer his course. On the other hand, he’s still only 26; it takes time for voice and style to firmly click. The singles Party has released ahead of PARTYMOBILE—“LOYAL,” “SPLIT DECISION,” and “THE NEWS”—have been some of his strongest to date. So perhaps now’s the time.

Who Will Show Up?

Despite his ample rolodex—in addition to the aforementioned artists he’s produced for, he’s also added vocals to tracks by Post Malone, Kanye West, and DJ Khaled—Party tends to limit the number of guests on his own projects. A typical album only has one or two features (usually Drake). But the remix to “LOYAL,” his biggest hit to date, features not just Drake, but Bad Bunny. There are rumors that PARTYMOBILE will include songs with Rihanna and Jeremih, among possible others. (Note that I’m resisting the urge to call PARTYMOBILE a… party.)

How Will PARTYMOBILE Fit Within This Distressing Moment?

What does a person listen to at a time like this? Do you lean into the bleak fog with some Sarah McLachlan sad puppy music or try to shine a light through it with the good vibrations of The Beach Boys? This is my first pandemic, so forgive me, but your guess is as good as mine. Party skews more towards gloom, which could conceivably be a bummer, but alternatively could be a blessing: it could be an unintentionally appropriate soundtrack. Beyond the sound, though, Party’s music is often interior-rooted—about desires as much as actions. And right now, what else is there?

Is Party Ready to Win Over the Masses?

When Party released his first full-length album under his current moniker (he previously went by his given name), in 2013, he was being grouped together with contemporaries like The Weeknd (still a frequent comparison) and Frank Ocean. Though he has an ardent fan base, his star obviously hasn’t ascended the way theirs did. His name, for better or worse, hasn’t become a household one (TMZ didn’t know who he was when he was rumored to be in a love triangle with Kyrie Irving and Kehlani).

A-List stardom isn’t for everyone, and Party might very well prefer things this way. “I could make a PartyNextDoor album that’s clean, all hits,” he told the New York Times when he released PARTYNEXTDOOR 3, in 2016. “That’s not what I care about doing.” But the infinitely-playable Bad Bunny and Drake-featuring remix to “LOYAL” suggests that Party might have had a change of heart—and also that he was indeed capable of crafting mega-hits all along. If the album follows suit, maybe those 2013 comparisons won’t feel so lopsided anymore.

Partymobile, the OVO signee's new one, drops on Friday.

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

Originally Appeared on GQ