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Invasion of Privacy is the debut studio album by American rapper Cardi B. It was released on April 5, 2018 through Atlantic Records. Primarily a hip hop album, Invasion of Privacy also comprises trap and Latin. It featured production by 30 Roc, Allen Ritter, Andrew Watt, Ayo, The Beat Bully, Benny Blanco, Boi-1da, Cassius Jay, Cheeze Beatz, Cubeatz, DJ Mustard, DJ SwanQo, Frank Dukes, Invincible, J. White, Keyz, Klenard Raphael, Murda Beatz, Needlz, NES, Nonstop Da Hitman, Official, Sean Allen, Scribz, Tainy and Vinylz. The album featured guest appearances by Migos, Chance the Rapper, Kehlani, SZA, 21 Savage, J Balvin, Bad Bunny and YG.
The album received widespread acclaim from music critics. It was certified gold by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA). The album debuted atop the US Billboard 200, earning 255,000 album-equivalent units in its first week, with 103,000 coming from pure album sales. It produced four singles—"Bodak Yellow", "Bartier Cardi" featuring 21 Savage, "Be Careful", and "Drip" featuring Migos.
Release and promotion
Prior to the release of Invasion of Privacy, Cardi B promoted its lead single "Bodak Yellow" in several live performances, including at the BET Awards 2017 afterparty on June 25, 2017, during the 2017 MTV Video Music Awards pre-show on August 27, at the 2017 BET Hip Hop Awards on October 6, and on Jimmy Kimmel Live! on October 18. While accepting her iHeartRadio Music Award for Best New Artist at the 2018 iHeartRadio Music Awards on March 11, 2018, Cardi B revealed that Invasion of Privacy would be released in April 2018. On March 26, 2018, she revealed both the official artwork and title for the album. The album was made available for streaming on April 5, 2018 through Atlantic Records, and was released for digital download worldwide the following day. On April 7, 2018, Cardi B performed the first three singles on Saturday Night Live. On April 9, she co-hosted The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon, becoming the first person ever to co-host the show. Cardi B also performed during the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival on April 15 and April 20, 2018. She also performed at the Broccoli City Festival 2018 on April 28, 2018; she was also supposed to perform at the Wireless Festival in July, however, the performance was cancelled due to her pregnancy. Her summer tour in support of the album, which would run from May 4 until July 29, 2018 in the United States, Norway and Ireland, and all performances until September were also cancelled. However, it was announced that she will still perform as a supporting act on Bruno Mars's 24K Magic World Tour in North America during September and October 2018.
Singles
The album's lead single, "Bodak Yellow", was released on June 16, 2017. It went on to top the US Billboard Hot 100 chart and was certified quintuple platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA). The second single, "Bartier Cardi", which features American rapper 21 Savage, was released on December 22, 2017. It peaked at number fourteen on the US Billboard Hot 100 and was certified platinum by the RIAA. "Be Careful" was released as the third single on March 30, 2018. It peaked at number eleven on the US Billboard Hot 100. "Drip" featuring Migos was released as the fourth single on April 4, 2018. It peaked at number twenty-one on the US Billboard Hot 100.
User Album Review
A magnificent debut that fuses vulnerability, sexual voraciousness, paranoia and party music shows the rapper is capable of far more than punchy put-downs
And there is far more to her than a Louboutin heel ground into a man’s chest. After four tracks of strutting self-confidence comes the vulnerable Be Careful, her husky plea that a cheating partner treats her better. Her usual anger, thrown off by pain, is modulated into need: “Tell me where your mind is, drop a pin, what’s the coordinates?” Thru Your Phone and Ring – the latter with a strong chorus from Kehlani – affectingly explore the contemporary romantic paranoia that comes from smartphones.
Then there’s I Like It, where she nods to her Latin heritage (her father is from the Dominican Republic) on a trap-salsa track with a penetrating bass wobble; and Best Life, whose laid-back beat invites self-reflection, and as Cardi raps about her triumph over adversity, there is something so keen and poignant about how badly she needs to tell her story. A brilliant guest turn by Chance the Rapper, adding his trademark blessing-counting energy, makes it a highlight.
In an age of slurred mumble-rap and sing-song delivery, there’s an old-school satisfaction in hearing someone deliver their bars with such, well, finesse. There’s even a touch of Biggie to the way she balances a thick local accent with absolute clarity and perfectly weighted metre, but her way of drawing out vowels before slamming them into teeth-kissing consonants is all her own. Cliches like “I did this on my own, I made this a lane” still work, meanwhile, because Cardi B actually has done it on her own and made her own lane. Thanks to her killer punchlines, emotional range and just being a total force of nature, she has absolutely earned her “real-life fairy tale, Binderella shit”.
Reviewed by Ben Beaumont-Thomas for theguardian.com.
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