The Allegory is the eighth studio album by American rapper Royce da 5'9". It was released through eOne Music on February 21, 2020.[1] It features guest appearances from Benny the Butcher, Conway the Machine, KXNG Crooked, Cyhi the Prynce, DJ Premier, Eminem, Grafh, Sy Ari da Kid, T.I., Vince Staples, Westside Gunn, and Cedric the Entertainer among others.[2] Production was handled by Royce da 5'9" himself on all of the album's tracks, making it his first album to be entirely self-produced.[3]
| The Allegory | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
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| Studio album by | ||||
| Released | February 21, 2020 | |||
| Genre | Hip hop | |||
| Length | 68:04 | |||
| Label | eOne | |||
| Producer |
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| Royce da 5'9" chronology | ||||
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| Singles from The Allegory | ||||
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Background
editOn December 11, 2019, Royce da 5'9" revealed the album's title and cover art on Instagram. The cover art is a reflection of the album's politically inspired themes, containing lyrics that focus on societal issues, similar to some of Royce's previous work such as the track "America" from his 2016 album Layers.[4]
Speaking about the album's title in an interview, Royce said "The goal was to make something that feels like a hip-hop album, but that has a lot of layers you may not necessarily get on the first time. It's really abstract in the way that it's constructed. It goes against all the normal standard laws and shit that everybody's creating right now. 'This can't be this length... This has to be longer... This has to be shorter... That has to be that way.' It's going in a different direction. It's the anti-everything."[5]
Unlike Royce's previous album Book of Ryan, the album did not necessarily focus on a central theme. He explained that "it's whatever it needs to be. Usually, when I do albums, there is a main theme. With [my last album] Book of Ryan, there was a main theme. That was my focus when I was making the individual songs. But this album, I didn't want any song to be a focus of a theme. I wanted it to be: you're enjoying the grassroots elements of hip-hop, then out of nowhere there's a line or two that I could've said on a song three songs back. I wanted everything to be very splashes of paint all over the canvas. I wanted it to sound like Quentin Tarantino directed it. I didn't want it to be anything traditional. There's no one conceptual song. There's no one song that sums up anything, but everything together creates the complete concept of the Allegory.[5]
The Allegory was Royce da 5'9"'s first self-produced album. Speaking on the production process, he said "My integrity means everything to me. If I say I'm producing it, I want people to feel 'OK, Royce said he produced it, he produced it.' I don't want to be one of these guys, you hear about 'em later like 'oh, he didn’t really do that beat. I heard such and such did that beat.' You run the risk of that happening when you have people in the room. Because I realized how much of a luxury it is to have DJ Premier sitting in a room or Mr. Porter sitting in a room. To the naked eye, why would he be there? Unless he's doing something. If he wasn't doing anything, I didn't have him around this time. Like, for Book of Ryan, I'd have [Mr. Porter] around because I love his creative input. But with this album, I shied away from even having any of those guys around. Because I don't want them to hold my hand."[5]
Singles and promotion
editThe lead single, "Black Savage" featuring Sy Ari da Kid, White Gold, Cyhi the Prynce, and T.I., was released on November 15, 2019. The song was released as part of Jay-Z's "Inspire Change" campaign,[6] and its music video premiered on November 14, 2019. The second single, "Overcomer" featuring Westside Gunn, was released on January 17, 2020, along with a music video. The third single, "I Don't Age", was released on January 31, 2020. The album's final single, "Upside Down" featuring Ashley Sorrell and Benny the Butcher, was released on February 7, 2020. The music video was released the same day.[7]
The music video for "I Don't Age" was released on February 23, 2021, and was directed by Joe LeFleur.[8] A music video for "Hero", featuring White Gold and directed by Lanfia, was released on March 4, 2021.[9]
On March 6, 2020, Royce da 5'9" announced The Allegory US Tour to promote the album, which included dates from April 21 to May 20, 2020.[10] However, the tour was postponed due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.
Critical reception
edit| Aggregate scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| Metacritic | 79/100[11] |
| Review scores | |
| Source | Rating |
| AllMusic |   [12] |
| Exclaim! | 9/10[13] |
| HipHopDX | 4.2/5[14] |
| NME | [15] |
| Pitchfork | 5.8/10[16] |
| Q | [17] |
| RapReviews | 7/10[18] |
The Allegory received critical acclaim from music critics. At Metacritic, which assigns a normalized rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream critics, the album received an average score of 79 based on seven reviews, which indicates "generally favorable reviews".[11]
Kyle Mullin of Exclaim! praised the album saying, "That's right: sonically, thematically, lyrically — on every level, Royce gives The Allegory his all. And the result is the best LP yet in his 20-year-strong career".[13] HipHopDX critic Kevin Cortez stated, "The Allegory plays out as Royce's most consolidated offering yet. A definite career high-point for a rapper whose résumé spans over 20 years".[14] AllMusic's Neil Z. Young said, "Intense and thrilling, The Allegory is a powerful work with uncomfortably realistic and poignant snapshots of American life that linger long after the last song has finished".[12] Will Lavin of NME said, "Royce's 2018 album Book of Ryan was always going to be a tough act to follow, but The Allegory stands up as an accomplished body of work, packed full of poetic intricacies and life lessons, soundtracked by the sound of Detroit; it will likely end up on the majority of 2020 end-of-year rap lists".[15] George Garner of Q said, "At 22 tracks - including a spoken interlude by Eminem - there's a lot to digest here. But, crucially, a lot worth digesting".[17] RapReviews.com writer Sy Shackleford said, "While handling all of the production himself is a valiant effort, it's evident that Royce had a wobbly experience with it in that it isn't fully consistent. Even so, The Allegory is another solid effort from the Detroit rhyme sayer".[18]
In a mixed review, Jay Balfour of Pitchfork wrote: "His beats are generally chunky sample flips and simple loops, but he also has an ear for a good sound. But if you're listening to a Royce album it's because you want to hear the guy rap. To his credit, Royce has the rare effect of a rapper's extreme technical ability making him seem limber instead of rigid".[16]
At the 63rd Annual Grammy Awards, The Allegory received a nomination for the Grammy Award for Best Rap Album.[19]
Track listing
edit- All songs produced by Royce da 5'9".
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Mr. Grace (Intro)" |
| 4:07 |
| 2. | "Dope Man" (featuring Emanny and Cedric the Entertainer) |
| 3:41 |
| 3. | "I Don't Age" | R. Montgomery | 2:47 |
| 4. | "Pendulum" (featuring Ashley Sorrell) |
| 4:44 |
| 5. | "I Play Forever" (featuring Grafh) |
| 3:53 |
| 6. | "Ice Cream (Interlude)" |
| 1:09 |
| 7. | "On the Block" (featuring Oswin Benjamin and DJ Premier) |
| 3:54 |
| 8. | "Generation Is Broken" |
| 0:16 |
| 9. | "Overcomer" (featuring Westside Gunn) |
| 5:14 |
| 10. | "Ms. Grace (Interlude)" |
| 1:06 |
| 11. | "Thou Shall" (featuring Kid Vishis) |
| 3:15 |
| 12. | "Fubu" (featuring Conway the Machine) |
| 3:41 |
| 13. | "A Black Man's Favorite Shoe (Skit)" |
| 0:25 |
| 14. | "Upside Down" (featuring Ashley Sorrell and Benny the Butcher) |
| 4:29 |
| 15. | "Perspective (Skit)" |
| 2:24 |
| 16. | "Tricked" (featuring KXNG Crooked) |
| 3:40 |
| 17. | "Black People in America" |
| 0:37 |
| 18. | "Black Savage" (featuring Sy Ari da Kid, White Gold, Cyhi the Prynce and T.I.) |
| 4:43 |
| 19. | "Rhinestone Doo Rag" | R. Montgomery | 1:19 |
| 20. | "Young World" (featuring Vince Staples and G Perico) |
| 4:29 |
| 21. | "My People Free" (featuring Ashley Sorrell) |
| 4:37 |
| 22. | "Hero" (featuring White Gold) |
| 3:34 |
| Total length: | 68:04 | ||
Notes
- "Perspective (Skit)" contains additional vocals from Eminem.
Charts
edit| Chart (2020) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| US Billboard 200[20] | 58 |
| US Independent Albums (Billboard)[21] | 6 |
| US Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums (Billboard)[22] | 32 |
References
edit- ^ "The Allegory by Royce da 5'9" on Apple Music". Apple Music. February 21, 2020. Retrieved February 22, 2020.
- ^ Espinoza, Joshua (February 20, 2020). "Royce da 5'9" Delivers 'The Allegory' f/ Westside Gunn, Vince Staples, T.I., and More". Complex. Retrieved February 22, 2020.
- ^ Markman, Rob (December 13, 2019). "Royce Da 5'9" Talks Eminem Vs. Nick Cannon & Drugs In Hip-Hop | For The Record". Genius. YouTube. Retrieved March 13, 2021.
- ^ Findlay, Mitch (December 12, 2019). "Royce Da 5'9" Announces New Album "The Allegory"". HotNewHipHop. Retrieved March 13, 2021.
- ^ a b c Ju, Shirley. "How Royce da 5'9" Made the "Anti-Everything" Album with 'The Allegory'". Okayplayer. Retrieved March 13, 2021.
- ^ "Royce da 5'9" Drops "Black Savage" For Jay-Z's Inspire Change Campaign: Stream". Vibe. November 14, 2019. Retrieved May 4, 2020.
- ^ Saponara, Michael (February 7, 2020). "Royce Da 5'9" Plays Pastor With Benny The Butcher for Blunt 'Upside Down' Video: Premiere". Billboard. Retrieved March 14, 2021.
- ^ "Watch Royce da 5'9" Flex His Skills in "I Don't Age" Video". Complex. February 24, 2021. Retrieved March 14, 2021.
- ^ "Royce Da 5'9" Premieres Video For His Track "Hero" Featuring White Gold". Allraps.com. March 6, 2021. Retrieved March 14, 2021.
- ^ "Royce Da 5'9" announces 'The Allegory' US Tour". Brooklyn Vegan. March 10, 2020. Retrieved March 14, 2021.
- ^ a b "Critic Reviews for The Allegory by Royce da 5'9". Metacritic. Retrieved March 1, 2020.
- ^ a b Z. Yeung, Neil (March 10, 2020). "The Allegory - Royce da 5'9". AllMusic. Retrieved April 19, 2020.
- ^ a b Mullin, Kyle (February 18, 2020). "Royce 5'9" The Allegory". Exclaim!. Retrieved March 1, 2020.
- ^ a b Cortez, Kevin (February 22, 2020). "Review: Royce Da 5'9 Consolidates His Styles On 'The Allegory'". HipHopDX. Retrieved August 2, 2020.
- ^ a b Lavin, Will (February 21, 2020). "Royce Da 5'9" - 'The Allegory' review". NME. Retrieved March 1, 2020.
- ^ a b Balfour, Jay (February 27, 2020). "Royce 5'9": The Allegory Album Review". Pitchfork. Retrieved February 28, 2020.
- ^ a b Garner, George (March 2020). "Q Magazine - March 2020 : Free Download, Borrow, and Streaming". Internet Archive. Retrieved August 2, 2020.
- ^ a b Shackleford, Sy (March 10, 2020). "Royce Da 5'9" :: The Allegory – RapReviews". www.rapreviews.com. Retrieved August 2, 2020.
- ^ "2021 GRAMMYs: Complete Nominees List". GRAMMY.com. November 24, 2020. Retrieved December 14, 2020.
- ^ "Royce da 59 Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard. Retrieved March 3, 2020.
- ^ "Royce da 59 Chart History (Independent Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved March 3, 2020.
- ^ "Royce da 59 Chart History (Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved March 3, 2020.