Passing by the three-year anniversary of Run The Jewels 3 this past December, Run The Jewels have been more than ready to share the fourth installment in the series, but a number of factors have stopped them from doing so just yet. In February, El-P revealed that the album was finished but Run The Jewels counterpart Killer Mike wanted to make some changes.
As the coronavirus pandemic began to make its impact across the music industry, El-P hoped that the album would not be delayed, but by the end of March the rapper told fans he was unsure of a release date for Run The Jewels 4. Entering a new month without Run The Jewels 4, April has presented a new problem for the duo: clearing samples.
pro tip: sample clearance can really be hell.
— el-p (@therealelp) April 18, 2020
and now you know why we haven’t posted the release date
. one. damn. song. https://t.co/wuL1mpIguB
— el-p (@therealelp) April 18, 2020
Taking to Twitter to voice a bit of frustration, El-P tweeted, “pro tip: sample clearance can really be hell.” Sensing that this issue may affect Run The Jewels 4, a fan replied saying, “Might this affect the tracklisting for RTJ4?” to which El-P replied back “and now you know why we haven’t posted the release date [shoulder-shrug emoji]. one. damn. song.”
Last month, Run The Jewels shared two singles, “The Yankee And The Brave” and “Ooh La La” with the latter sporting guest appearances from DJ Premier and Greg Nice. Hopefully the sample clearance issue can be resolved rather quickly to take the next step toward the album’s release.