Death Race for Love

Death Race for Love is the second studio album by American rapper Juice Wrld and the last album to be released during his lifetime. It was released on March 8, 2019, through Grade A Productions and distributed by Interscope Records. It follows his two 2018 projects: his solo project, Goodbye & Good Riddance, and his collaborative mixtape with Future, Wrld on Drugs. The album's artwork and title is inspired by the Twisted Metal series of games for the original PlayStation console. The album features guest appearances from Brent Faiyaz, Clever, and Young Thug.

Death Race for Love
Studio album by Juice Wrld
Released	March 8, 2019 (2019-03-08)
Recorded	2018–2019[1]
Genre	Hip hop rock[2]
Length	72:04
Label	Grade A Interscope
Producer	Andrew Watt Boi-1da Brent Faiyaz Cardo Camden Bench DY Krazy Frank Dukes G. Ry Hit-Boy Jahaan Sweet Louis Bell Nick Mira No I.D. Paperboy Fabe Power Purps Rex Kudo Rvssian Tommy Brown Tone Yung Exclusive
Juice Wrld chronology
Wrld on Drugs (2018) Death Race for Love (2019) Legends Never Die (2020)
Singles from Death Race for Love
"Robbery" Released: February 13, 2019 "Hear Me Calling" Released: March 1, 2019

Death Race for Love includes the Nick Mira-produced lead single, "Robbery", which was released on February 13, and the Purps-produced "Hear Me Calling", which was released on March 1, 2019. The album received generally favorable reviews from critics and debuted at number one on the US Billboard 200 with sales of 165,000 album-equivalent units. It is Juice Wrld's first US number-one album and became certified gold by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA).

Promotion

On February 7, 2019, Juice Wrld announced the album on Twitter, writing: "I'm losing my mind and loving every minute of it... Just in time for the drop of the album... MARCH 8th..."[3] On February 20, Wrld revealed he would be headlining a North America concert tour in support of the album, with fellow rapper Ski Mask the Slump God.[4] On March 4, 2019, he revealed the official tracklist for the album.[5] Juice Wrld appeared on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon to perform "Hear Me Calling" on April 8, 2019.[6]

Singles

The album's lead single, "Robbery", was released on February 13, 2019. The song was produced by Nick Mira and peaked at number 27 on the US Billboard Hot 100.[7][8][9] The album's second single, "Hear Me Calling", was released on March 1, 2019. The song was produced by Purps and peaked at number 38 on the Hot 100 following the album's release.[10][9]

Artwork and title

The album's artwork and title is inspired by the Twisted Metal series of games for the original PlayStation console.[11]

Critical reception

Professional ratings

Aggregate scores
Source	Rating
Album of the Year	61/100[12]
AnyDecentMusic?	5.4/10[13]
Metacritic	61/100[14]
Review scores
Source	Rating
AllMusic	[15]
Consequence of Sound	C[16]
The Guardian	[17]
HipHopDX	3.9/5[18]
HotNewHipHop	69%[19]
NME	[20]
Pitchfork	6.8/10[21]
PopMatters	4/10[22]
RapReviews	6.5/10[23]
Rolling Stone	[24]

Death Race for Love was met with generally favorable reviews. At Metacritic, the album received an average score of 61, based on 11 reviews.[14] Aggregator AnyDecentMusic? gave it 5.4 out of 10, based on their assessment of the critical consensus.[13] Album of the Year assessed the critical consensus as 61 out of 100, based on 14 reviews.[12]

Thomas Hobbs of NME gave a positive review, stating "Juice WRLD is far less indulgent than XXX, not getting lost in the idea that he's a messianic creative. This will be the moment that solidifies his status as one of rap's most exciting new stars."[20] Scott Glaysher of HipHopDX said, "Genre-blending albums (no matter how commonplace they might be these days) are not easy to pull off and for that, Juice WRLD should be given credit. From the seemingly sincere lyrics to the equally candid delivery, Juice truly goes with his gut in whichever way (rap, sing, hum, sob)."[18] Danny Schwartz of Rolling Stone saying "Death Race succeeded in its most fundamental mission, which was to prove that "Lucid Dreams" was not a fluke. Songs like "Fast", "Ring, Ring", "Hear Me Calling" strike a dynamic balance of raw charisma and profound anxiety. ... While his melodrama tends to grow old over the course of a 22-track, 72-minute album, it is captivating in small doses."[24] Pitchfork's Alphonse Pierre wrote, "Fifty percent of the lyrics are bad ("Back on my bullshit, devil emoji") and the other 50 percent are also bad, but then they get stuck in your head and ultimately turn good ("Tell me your darkest secret shit you wouldn't even tell Jesus"). ... Death Race For Love feels like the real Juice WRLD, wearing his influences and heart on his sleeve, putting his ups and downs into the music in real time."[21]

In a mixed review, The Guardian's Kate Hutchinson stated: "It's slim on features (only Young Thug, Clever and Brent Faiyaz) but big on misanthropic head-nodders that put Juice's Fall Out Boy-style whine or raspy flow to the fore: he is more versatile than his peers and also more gifted. ... But ultimately, the suicide references of songs such as Empty and casual misogyny in the tauntingly violent Syphilis leave an uncomfortable taste."[17] PopMatters critic Mike Schiller said, "The ratio of bangers to duds, however, is not great, and Death Race for Love feels an awful lot like an unabridged teenage diary; while the occasional clever turn of phrase and moment of profundity is sure to bubble up, most of it is simple self-indulgence, an onslaught of pure emotion whose sincerity is never in question, but all of which starts to blur together after a mere few pages or songs."[22] Fred Thomas was also critical of the album in the review for AllMusic, stating "There's no shortage of highlights, but the lack of editing or focus means every song goes on a little too long and leads to another one that struggles to connect stylistically or emotionally."[15]

Accolades

Year-end lists

Publication	List	Rank	Ref.
GQ (Russia)	Best Music Albums of 2019	N/A	[25]
NME	The 50 Best Albums of 2019	49	[26]
Rolling Stone	50 Best Albums of 2019	40	[27]
Uproxx	The Best Albums of 2019	50	[28]

Commercial performance

Death Race for Love debuted at number one on the US Billboard 200 with 165,000 album-equivalent units, of which 43,000 were pure album sales in its first week. It is Juice Wrld's first US number-one album.[29] In its second week, the album remained at number one on the chart, moving an additional 74,000 equivalent units that week.[30] In its third week, the album dropped to number three on the chart, moving another 54,000 units that week.[31] In its fourth week, the album dropped to number five on the chart, moving 44,000 units that week.[32] As of May 2019, the album has earned 515,000 album-equivalent units and 53,000 copies in the United States.[33] On June 20, 2019, the album was gold by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) for combined sales and album-equivalent units of over 500,000 units.[34]

Track listing

Track listing adapted from iTunes and Tidal.[35][36]

Death Race for Love track listing

No.	Title	Writer(s)	Producer(s)	Length
1.	"Empty"	Jarad Higgins Nicholas Mira	Nick Mira	4:08
2.	"Maze"	Higgins Matthew Samuels	Boi-1da	2:24
3.	"HeMotions"	Higgins Chauncey Hollis	Hit-Boy	3:07
4.	"Demonz (Interlude)" (featuring Brent Faiyaz)	Higgins Christopher Wood Fabbien Nahounou Atupele Ndisale Paris Kirk	Paperboy Fabe Brent Faiyaz	1:35
5.	"Fast"	Louis Bell Higgins Andrew Wotman Adam Feeney Carl Rosen	Bell Andrew Watt Frank Dukes	3:28
6.	"Hear Me Calling"	Higgins George Dickinson Nathanial Caserta	Purps	3:09
7.	"Big"	Higgins Hollis	Hit-Boy	3:44
8.	"Robbery"	Higgins Mira	Mira	4:00
9.	"Flaws and Sins"	Higgins Mira	Mira	3:38
10.	"Feeling"	Higgins Mira	Mira	3:21
11.	"Syphilis"	Higgins Daveon Jackson Ronald LaTour	Cardo Yung Exclusive	2:11
12.	"Who Shot Cupid?"	Higgins Dickinson Caserta	Purps	3:34
13.	"Ring Ring" (featuring Clever)	Higgins Joshua Huie Tarik Johnston	Rvssian	2:51
14.	"Desire"	Higgins Dickinson Caserta	Purps	3:09
15.	"Out My Way"	Higgins Hollis	Hit-Boy	2:36
16.	"The Bees Knees"	Higgins Hollis Ernest Wilson	Hit-Boy No I.D. G. Ry	5:25
17.	"On God" (featuring Young Thug)	Higgins Jeffery Williams Dwan Avery Masamune Kudo	DY Krazy Rex Kudo	4:10
18.	"10 Feet"	Arin Ray Camden Bench Higgins	Ray Bench	3:32
19.	"Won't Let Go"	Higgins Dickinson Caserta Michael Montoya	Purps	3:20
20.	"She's the One"	Higgins Hollis	Hit-Boy	3:08
21.	"Rider"	Higgins Brandon Mandolf	Power	3:12
22.	"Make Believe"	Tommy Brown Higgins Samuels	Boi-1da Jahaan Sweet Brown Tone	2:22
Total length:				72:04

Personnel

Credits adapted from Tidal.[36]

• Max Lord – recording (tracks 1–22)
• Jaycen Joshua – mixing (track 1–4, 6–22)
• Manny Marroquin – mixing (track 5)
• Lil Bibby – mixing (track 8)
• Jacob Richards – mixing asisstant (track 6)
• Rashawn McLean – mixing asisstant (track 6)
• Mike Seaberg – mixing asisstant (track 6)
• Colin Leonard – mastering (tracks 1–22)

Charts

Weekly charts Chart performance for Death Race for Love Chart (2019) Peak position Australian Albums (ARIA)[37] 8 Austrian Albums (Ö3 Austria)[38] 13 Belgian Albums (Ultratop Flanders)[39] 15 Belgian Albums (Ultratop Wallonia)[40] 76 Canadian Albums (Billboard)[41] 1 Danish Albums (Hitlisten)[42] 4 Dutch Albums (Album Top 100)[43] 3 Finnish Albums (Suomen virallinen lista)[44] 7 French Albums (SNEP)[45] 52 German Albums (Offizielle Top 100)[46] 32 Irish Albums (IRMA)[47] 9 Italian Albums (FIMI)[48] 51 Latvian Albums (LAIPA)[49] 3 Lithuanian Albums (AGATA)[50] 3 New Zealand Albums (RMNZ)[51] 4 Norwegian Albums (VG-lista)[52] 6 Swedish Albums (Sverigetopplistan)[53] 4 Swiss Albums (Schweizer Hitparade)[54] 16 UK Albums (OCC)[55] 12 US Billboard 200[56] 1 US Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums (Billboard)[57] 1

Year-end charts 2019 year-end chart performance for Death Race for Love Chart (2019) Position Australian Albums (ARIA)[58] 73 Belgian Albums (Ultratop Flanders)[59] 109 Canadian Albums (Billboard)[60] 31 Danish Albums (Hitlisten)[61] 48 Dutch Albums (Album Top 100)[62] 55 New Zealand Albums (RMNZ)[63] 46 US Billboard 200[64] 22 US Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums (Billboard)[65] 13 Decade-end charts Decade-end chart performance for Death Race for Love Chart (2010–2019) Position US Billboard 200[66] 159

Certifications

Certifications for Death Race for Love

Region	Certification	Certified units/sales
Denmark (IFPI Denmark)[67]	Gold	10,000
United States (RIAA)[34]	Gold	500,000
^*sales figures based on certification alone ^^shipments figures based on certification alone sales+streaming figures based on certification alone

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