I know I said Flo Milli should strike while the iron is hot in my spring hip-hop albums preview, but she’s really going for it. Today, the Alabama rapper announced the surprising release for her long-awaited third studio album, Fine Ho, Stay: This Friday, March 15. Presumably, she would like to capitalize on the buzzy success of her viral single “Never Lose Me,” which even found its way into A-list stars’ Instagram Stories (see below), but a two-day turnaround from announcement to release is Beyoncé levels of audacity.
The fan part of me hopes the strategy will not only be successful but also catch wildfire among artists who want to take control of their careers and shock fans out of the weird complacency/demanding cycle we’ve been in the last couple of years. The journalist part of me is terrified it does because that spring preview was hard enough to pull together with the five announced projects and speculation. If they all start pulling these shenanigans, Imma be scrambling every Friday to figure out what’s even out. Still, you gotta love the chaotic energy, especially if it proves Joe Budden wrong (again) about his declaration that the “girl rapper wave is over.”
Fine Ho, Stay will be out on 3/15 via RCA Records.