Donald Glover’s days as Childish Gambino are over. Speaking with the New York Times, Glover reveals why he is dropping his rap name.
“It really was just like, ‘Oh, it’s done.’ It’s not fulfilling,” Glover said. “And I just felt like I didn’t need to build in this way anymore.”
That makes his upcoming album the ending of the Gambino era.
Donald Glover, the Emmy- and Grammy-winning actor, is officially retiring his rap alter ego Childish Gambino with the release of “Bando Stone & the New World,” on Friday. “It really was just like, ‘Oh, it’s done.’” Read our full interview with Glover: https://t.co/1Q8kOI7KnX pic.twitter.com/cddn6022Rk— The New York Times (@nytimes) July 17, 2024
Donald Glover hosted an exclusive listening party for “Bando Stone & the New World,” ahead of the July 19 release at New York’s cozy outdoor venue, Little Island.
Manhattan’s Little Island was packed for the event, tickets sold out within minutes despite the humid 90-degree Saturday night.
Onto the show … Glover performed 15 tracks from “Bando Stone & the New World” in a non-sequential order, showcasing styles from the hard rap of “Camp” and “Because the Internet” to the experimental, pitched-up vocals of “Awaken, My Love.”
Get this, two tracks that had the audience nodding along to the powerful bass were “Talk My Shit” and “Yoshinoya.” The former features Flo Milli and includes a pitched-up verse that Glover described as his favorite on the album. After a brief technical issue with the bass speakers, Glover returned to “melt faces off” with “Yoshinoya,” spitting verses with intensity and dispelling any notion that he’s merely an actor who raps.
Move over North West, as one standout track, “Can You Feel Me?”, featured touching lyrics from Glover’s young son, Legend. The duo sings together over a chorus reciting the ABCs, with Glover reflecting on his father’s death and themes of family and fatherhood.
When it comes to other notable collaborations on “Bando Stone” include Steve Lacy and Fousheé on the sentimental, stripped-down track “Steps Beach.” Both artists sat in the front row at Little Island, with Lacy playing gentle guitar riffs as Glover sang a soothing melody. Fousheé returned for “Runnin’ Around,” a lively party anthem. Though not present at the listening party, Yeat features on “Cruisin’,” a dramatic track from 2014 that Glover recently completed, and Jorja Smith and Amaarae contribute to the groovy “In the Night.”
Sounds like it was a Donald Glover type of night.The post Donald Glover Says Being Known as Childish Gambino is No Longer ‘Fulfilling’ first appeared on The Source.The post Donald Glover Says Being Known as Childish Gambino is No Longer ‘Fulfilling’ appeared first on The Source.
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