New York, NY (Top40 Charts) Multi-platinum, Grammy Award-winning rappers 2 Chainz and his long-time friend and collaborator Lil Wayne climax a dramatic months-long run-up campaign with the arrival of their new album, WELCOME 2 COLLEGROVE, available at all platforms today via Def Jam Recordings/ Universal Music. Also released today is "Transparency" featuring Usher, the third single pick from the album.
"Transparency" follows up WELCOME 2 COLLEGROVE's first two advance single releases: "Presha" (October) was premiered by 2 Chainz and Lil Wayneon NBC's The Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon.
The single + video of "Long Story Short" was then released on November 10th. Three nights later, the duo premiered the song on ABC's Jimmy Kimmel Live!
WELCOME 2 COLLEGROVE is the long-awaited sequel to ColleGrove, their first groundbreaking collaborative album (2016). ColleGrove is a portmanteau of Chainz' hometown, College Park, Georgia; and Wayne's hometown, Hollygrove, Louisiana.
2 Chainz and Lil Wayne - both rap royalty in their own right - have been close friends and collaborators for nearly two decades, since Wayne first showed up in 2007 as a feature on the street classic "Duffle Bag Boy" by Playaz Circle. The single hit #2 on the Billboard Rap chart and Top 15 on the Hot 100. Other collabs by Chainz and Wayne over the years have included the RIAA-certified platinum tracks "Rich As Fuck" and Juicy J's strip club anthem "Bandz a Make Her Dance."
Over the course of his legendary career, 2 Chainz has sold over 10 millionalbums globally and amassed over 11.5 billion streams. Lil Wayne has cemented his legacy forever as "one of the best-selling artists of all time," tallying sales in excess of 100 million records worldwide with 35 million albums and 90 million digital tracks sold in the United States alone.
Visit https://shop.2chainz.com/ for updates on exclusive WELCOME 2 COLLEGROVE merch, customizable lithographs and limited edition autographed CDs, and more.
WELCOME 2 COLLEGROVE by 2 CHAINZ & LIL WAYNE - official tracklist:
1. Scene 1: Welcome 2 Collegrove
2. G6
3. Big Diamonds ft. 21 Savage
4. Presha
5. Long Story Short
6. Scene 2: Duffle Bag Boys
7. Millions From Now
8. Crazy Thick
9. Transparency ft. Usher
10. Significant Other
11. Scene 3: Ladies Man
12. P.P.A. Ft. Fabolous
13. Oprah & Gayle ft. Benny the Butcher
14. Shame
15. Bars
16. Scene 4: No Fent
17. Godzilla ft. Vory
18. Crown Snatcher
19. Can't Believe You ft. Rick Ross
20. Scene 5: Never Was Lost
21. Moonlight ft. Marsha Ambrosius
Following his run as a founding member of Def Jam duo Playaz Circle from his native Atlanta, 2 Chainz' name was on everyone's lips in 2012, when he stole a verse on "Mercy," fellow Def Jam artist Kanye West/G.O.O.D. Music's RIAA triple-platinum #1 R&B/#1 Rap hit (from Cruel Summer). Chainz' T.R.U REALigion mixtape (November 2011) was his first release to crack the Billboard Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart, setting the stage for his signing to Def Jam. His official debut studio album, Based on a T.R.U. Story (August 2012) entered Soundscan at #1 and was certified RIAA gold. Its success was fueled by the RIAA platinum #1 "No Lie" featuring Drake, double-platinum "Birthday Song" featuring Kanye West, and double-platinum "I'm Different." "Mercy" was subsequently a Grammy® nominee for Best Rap Song and Best Rap Performance, while B.O.A.T.S. was nominated for Best Rap Album. Chainz' dominance was extended when the sequel, B.O.A.T.S. II: Me Timeentered Soundscan hip-hop chart at #1 in September 2013, and spun off the RIAA gold single, "Feds Watching" featuring Pharrell.
In 2016, Chainz brought it back to his essence with a series of mixtapes that dominated the streets: Felt Like Cappin, Daniel Son, Necklace Don, and Hibachi For Lunch. Also in 2016, he released the lauded collaborative album ColleGrove with New Orleans hip-hop luminary Lil Wayne. Critics agreed that 2 Chainz conquered 2016, with the New York Times proclaiming "all hail our greatest punch line rapper, 2 Chainz." The year was capped off with his first Grammy Award, Best Rap Performance for his verse on Chance the Rapper's hit song "No Problem."
With momentum on his side, 2 Chainz released his first solo album in four years: Pretty Girls Like Trap Music (June 2017) was accompanied by a 35-city tour of North America through September. The album racked up three multi-platinum hits: "4 AM" featuring Travis Scott; "It's A Vibe" featuring Ty Dolla $ign, Trey Songz and Jhené Aiko; and "Good Drank" featuring Quavo and Gucci Mane. Chainz' TV appearances included visits with Jimmy Kimmel (HERE), Jimmy Fallon (HERE), and Trevor Noah (HERE).
2018 brought the EP releases The Play Don't Care Who Makes It (February, with the RIAA gold "Proud" featuring YG and Offset), and Hot Wings Are A Girl's Best Friend (November). Rap Or Go To The League (March 2019), described at the time as 2 Chainz' most personal, most lyrical, most soulful record to date, spun off two smashes: the MTV VMA-nominated "Rule The World" featuring Ariana Grande, and the RIAA platinum "Bigger Than You"featuring Drake and Quavo, with total YouTube views near 100 million.
Chainz foresaw covid's new normal on his January 2020 single + video release, "Dead Man Walking" featuring Future. So Help Me God, Chainz' sixth studio album via Def Jam arrived November 2020, containing the singles "Money Maker" featuring Lil Wayne and "Quarantine Thick" featuring Mulatto. In a worldwide exclusive the day before the album release, unreleased songs from the album were premiered by NBA 2K21 on current- and next-gen consoles - a groundbreaking milestone for the release of major label music in a video game, yet another example of Chainz' impact on popular culture.
In November 2021, a massive campaign rolled out to celebrate the 10thanniversary of Chainz' T.R.U REALigion Mixtape. A reworked, reconfigured 10th anniversary expanded edition included two bonus tracks, "Wreck" featuring Big Sean, and "Sofa" featuring Wiz Khalifa. In support, the 'T.R.U. REALigion Ten Year Anniversary Tour' hit five cities, presented by iconic American apparel and accessories brand True Religion. Into 2022, Chainz dropped his seventh studio album in February, Dope Don't Sell Itself, containing the singles "Million Dollars Worth Of Game" featuring 42 Dugg, "Pop Music" featuring Moneybagg Yo & Beatking, and "Neighbors Know My Name." In top form, Chainz introduced the album on CBS's The Late Show with Stephen Colbert with a live performance of another album track, "Lost Kings" featuring Lil Durk and Sleepy Rose. Chainz then joined fellow hip-hop royalty Rick Ross, Lil Kim, Jeezy, and Gucci Mane on the nine-city Legendz of The Streets U.S. tour in February.
Chosen to star in the "Whose Back You Got" 2022 NFL Playoffs spot, the career of 2 Chainz is unstoppable. It encompasses not only music but his Most Expensivest cable tv series on VICELAND, his "Chain Reaction" sneaker collaboration with Versace, his GAS Cannabis Co. brand, and his 2019 Super Bowl LIII Expensify tv spot with Adam Scott. TheRinger.com was inspired to write: "Forget Mount Rushmore - 2 Chainz deserves his own national monument. This year dude is top five humans of all time."
Lil Wayne rewrote the entire game in his image- his reigning prevalence in the music industry has managed to influence millions across the globe for decades and his career has only continued to expand from there. The five-time GRAMMY Award-winning multi-platinum rap icon, Young Money Entertainment founder, acclaimed author, pro-skater, philanthropist, and history-making superstar continues to leave an indelible tattoo on the culture. He has cemented his legacy forever as "one of the best-selling artists of all time," tallying sales in excess of 100 million records worldwide with 35 million albums and 90 million digital tracks sold in the United States alone. In 2022, Wayne earned his first Diamond certification from the RIAA with his generational smash hit "Lollipop" feat. Static Major. Not to mention, he has garnered 26 BET Awards, 4 Billboard Music Awards, 7 MTV Awards, 4 Soul Train Awards and 52 BMI Awards, as well as having recently received the Global Impact Award at The Recording Academy Honors Presented By The BlackMusic Collective. He received the BMI Icon Award at the 2023 BMI R&B/Hip-Hop Awards, and was awarded the title R&B/Hip-Hop Songwriter of the Year consecutively in 2008 and 2009, and again in 2011 and 2013.
With a discography highlighted by five career spanning #1 debuts beginning with 2008's 6x platinum, 3x GRAMMY Award-winning opus Tha Carter III and its 5x platinum, 2011 successor Tha Carter IV, he released the latest version of the series - Tha Carter V - in 2018. Not only did it clinch #1 on the Billboard 200, but it also achieved "the second-largest streaming week for an album in history." Every song on the tracklist charted on the Billboard Hot 100 as he became "the first artist to debut two songs in the top 5." His accomplishments bulldozed the way for his thirteenth full-length album, Funeral, a year later. Simultaneously, Wayne owns and operates Young Money Entertainment as C.E.O., the company that ignited the careers of some of the most successful, admired artists of all-time—Tyga, Drake, Nicki Minaj. His business ventures expanded into philanthropy after committing his efforts to the One Family Foundation, a nonprofit aimed towards youth mentorship. He also created Young Money APAA Sports, which provides agency and marketing services to professional athletes worldwide. Wayne is also an owner of Bumbu, an authentic Caribbean rum. In addition, he has permeated the fashion industry through his partnership with Ethika.
His influence is demonstrated through his social media following, garnering over 44 million total, with Instagram being his largest platform, where he has collected 18 million followers. He has an engagement rate of 1.04%, which is 1.3x more than the average rate of other entertainment accounts on the app. With an astonishing 35M monthly listeners, his streaming numbers prove that his impact is timeless. The legendary Lil Wayne has continued to make his mark on the world, infiltrating the music industry through different generations, dominating multiple industries, and adapting to new changes in society along the way.
