There’s no looking in the rearview for Future. The Atlanta rapper has been going pedal to the metal since he hopped in the rap game, which has resulted in one of the most prolific catalogs in hip-hop. There are no signs that he’s ready to get out of the fast lane. He just revealed a new album is on the way. This will mark the fourth project he’s dropped in a year if he stays on schedule.
Since the release of his 2010 mixtape 1000, Future has put out 35 albums, mixtapes, joint projects and EPs. That’s an average of 2.3 projects every single year for the last decade and a half. The studio junky satiates fans’ need for new music on a regular basis. And there are some memorable moments in the mix. Dirty Sprite, DS2, Monster, Beast Mode, 56 Nights, to name a few. He’s been stamped as one of the most influential artists of the last decade. Many people have him in their Big 3.
So why still go so hard while other artists of his ilk take their sweet time putting out new product?
“I am still achieving goals that I have set for myself,” Future told XXL in 2020. “And if they give me too much credit now, it ain’t gonna be fair ’cause I am constantly finding ways to evolve and I feel like sometimes you can speak too soon and I don’t want nobody to speak too soon and then curse me. So, just let me work. I understand and I recognize it, but at the end of the day, I am still achieving certain goals that I set out for myself and that’s how I look at it.”
That sentiment has continued. Last year was a banner year for Hendrix. Though it marked his 14th year in the rap game, it was his most accomplished calendar year to date. In March of 2024, he released the highly anticipated We Don’t Trust You joint project with Metro Boomin, which yielded the No. 1 single “Like That” featuring Kendrick Lamar. He followed that up in April with the sequel We Still Don’t Trust You. Both albums debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard 200 chart.
Yet, Future wasn’t done. He released the solo mixtape Mixtape Pluto last September, which also hit No. 1. The feat made Future the first solo artist to notch three No. 1 projects in six months. He now has 11 total No. 1 albums, which puts him only behind Drake (13) and Jay-Z (14) for rappers with the most chart-topping projects.
After that, one might think Future would be somewhere high off life, taking a vacation. And that would be a completely wrong assumption. Hendrix isn’t letting his foot off the gas. In January, he teased a new offering, telling fans “New Tape OTW,” in an Instagram caption. That tape has apparently morphed into a full-length album. On March 4, the Freebandz head honcho teased the upcoming LP. “Album bout ot be [six fire emojis] trust me,” he tweeted.
Though the new car smell faded a long time ago, the 41-year-old rapper continues to be one of the most pristine rides on the showroom floor. With his Tupac-like work ethic, the checkered flag doesn’t seem to be anywhere in sight.
