Freddie Gibbs has released the James Blake-produced single “Dark Hearted” in advance of the release of his eagerly anticipated new album Soul Sold Separately.
In the reflective song, Gibbs discusses the criminal underworld in Gary, Indiana, as well as the looming danger of police violence. Over Blake’s instrumental, he raps, “Police might shoot me and kill me over my dark skin.”
The song was released shortly after Gibbs announced on Twitter the cover art and release date for Soul Sold Separately. He told his admirers at the beginning of the month that the project would ultimately be released on September 30.
$oul $old $eparately 💲💲💲
— Big 🐰 (@FreddieGibbs) September 2, 2022
September 30, 2022 🛸🐰https://t.co/dtOBrxRwxg pic.twitter.com/AnnX2aWjkI
After revealing the song, Gibbs released the “Too Much” music video, starring Moneybagg Yo. The song gave us our first listen to his fifth studio album and adopted a more radio-friendly tone than “Dark Hearted.” It will be his first release on a big label, about two years after he committed to a contract with Warner Records. The 40-year-“refusal old’s to compromise his values or integrity under the constraints of the industry,” as stated in the press release for Soul Sold Separately, is referenced in the title.
Gibbs last put out a solo album with Freddie in 2018, but he’s been very busy since then. He collaborated with Madlib on their second album, Bandana, released in 2019, and he released the Grammy-nominated Alfredo with The Alchemist in 2020.
