F-1 Trillion
| F-1 Trillion | ||||
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| Studio album by | ||||
| Released | August 16, 2024 | |||
| Length | 57:51 | |||
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| Producer |
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| Post Malone chronology | ||||
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| F-1 Trillion - Long Bed | ||||
 Deluxe edition cover | ||||
| Singles from F-1 Trillion | ||||
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F-1 Trillion is the sixth studio album by American rapper and singer Post Malone. It was released through Republic and Mercury Records on August 16, 2024. The album features guest appearances from Tim McGraw, Hank Williams Jr., Morgan Wallen, Blake Shelton, Dolly Parton, Brad Paisley, Luke Combs, Lainey Wilson, Jelly Roll, Ernest, Sierra Ferrell, Chris Stapleton, Hardy, and Billy Strings. Production was handled by Louis Bell, Charlie Handsome, and Hoskins. The album was supported by the release of three singles: "I Had Some Help", "Pour Me a Drink", and "Guy for That". It serves as the follow-up to Malone's previous album, Austin (2023).
Background and promotion
[edit]In June 2022, Malone was interviewed by The Howard Stern Show, in which he was asked by host Howard Stern about potentially making a country album in the future: "To be honest, there's nothing stopping me from taking a camera or setting up in my studio in Utah and just recording a country album [to put] on YouTube. I'm allowed to do that. I'm a human being". He further explained:
I split my time between a lot of different things because I am happily obligated to do concerts and show love to my fans … and then I'm happily obligated to write music and make beats by myself, and I'm happily obligated to, you know, take care of my family. So, it's a lot of time, and it's about finding that space to allot that time. If I get another year to myself, maybe I'll make a fucking country album.[1]
On May 10, 2024, Malone released the lead single of the album, "I Had Some Help", which features American country music singer Morgan Wallen. Commercially, the song debuted atop the Billboard Hot 100 with the highest weekly sales and streams since 2020, giving Malone his sixth number-one song.[2] On May 16, 2024, Malone performed the unreleased song "Never Love You Again" and "I Had Some Help" at 59th Academy of Country Music Awards in Frisco, Texas. On June 21, 2024, Malone released the second single of the album, "Pour Me a Drink", which features American country music singer Blake Shelton, and also shared its the cover art. Four days later, he shared the dates for the F-1 Trillion Tour, which will begin on September 8, 2024, at the Utah First Credit Union Amphitheatre in West Valley City, Utah, and will conclude on October 27, 2024, at the Germania Insurance Amphitheater in Austin, Texas.[3] On July 16, he performed at Music City's Marathon Music Works in Nashville, Tennessee, which included the unreleased songs "Yours" and "Hide My Gun", with Hardy joining him for the latter song. On July 26, 2024, Malone released the third single of the album, "Guy for That", which features American country music singer Luke Combs. The tracklisting of the album was confirmed on July 31 via social media.
Critical reception
[edit]| Aggregate scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| Metacritic | 72/100[4] |
| Review scores | |
| Source | Rating |
| Clash | 7/10[5] |
| Rolling Stone |    [6] |
| The Guardian | [7] |
| The Independent | [8] |
F-1 Trillion was met with generally positive reviews. At Metacritic, which assigns a rating out of 100 to reviews from professional publications, the album received a weighted average score of 72, based on four reviews, indicating "generally favorable reviews".[4]
Robin Murray of Clash gave the album a positive review, commending Malone's creativity and his commercial appeal. Murray states that even though F-1 Trillion at times is "struggling beneath its own weight", the album "is a love letter to the genre".[5] In a positive review, Joseph Hudak of Rolling Stone wrote that the album would have benefited from containing less features and more solo songs from Malone. Hudak praised "the most stripped-down" tracks, highlighting "Never Love You Again", "Missin' You Like This" and "M-E-X-I-C-O".[6] Writing for The Independent, Helen Brown praised Malone's songwriting skills and states that the album showcases his skills in songcrafting. She wrote that although F-1 Trillion "loses some of his distinctive sound – and has none of the cool experiments of Beyoncé's record – it also showcases his undeniable song-crafting chops. Drivetime DJs are going to love it, and their listeners are all going to feel they're at the wheels of beaten-up American trucks".[8]
In a mixed review, Michael Cragg of The Guardian believed the album to be "a little formulaic" and in need of more risk-taking by Malone. Cragg wrote that "there's a lot to enjoy about F-1 Trillion, and it feels tailor-made for chart domination, but as much as Malone felt hip-hop was limiting his oeuvre, it at least gifted him moments to really let loose, as on the ludicrous epic "Take What You Want" featuring Ozzy Osbourne and Travis Scott. On F-1 Trillion, trussed up in full country cosplay, he's shooting a little too straight".[7]
Track listing
[edit]All tracks produced by Louis Bell and Charlie Handsome, with "I Had Some Help", "Guy for That", and "Devil I've Been" also being additionally produced by Hoskins.
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Wrong Ones" (featuring Tim McGraw) | 3:15 | |
| 2. | "Finer Things" (featuring Hank Williams Jr.) |
| 3:05 |
| 3. | "I Had Some Help" (featuring Morgan Wallen) |
| 2:58 |
| 4. | "Pour Me a Drink" (featuring Blake Shelton) |
| 3:15 |
| 5. | "Have the Heart" (featuring Dolly Parton) |
| 3:03 |
| 6. | "What Don't Belong to Me" |
| 3:27 |
| 7. | "Goes Without Saying" (featuring Brad Paisley) |
| 3:32 |
| 8. | "Guy for That" (featuring Luke Combs) |
| 2:44 |
| 9. | "Nosedive" (featuring Lainey Wilson) |
| 3:12 |
| 10. | "Losers" (featuring Jelly Roll) |
| 3:29 |
| 11. | "Devil I've Been" (featuring Ernest) |
| 3:02 |
| 12. | "Never Love You Again" (featuring Sierra Ferrell) |
| 3:06 |
| 13. | "Missin' You Like This" (featuring Luke Combs) |
| 3:42 |
| 14. | "California Sober" (featuring Chris Stapleton) |
| 3:24 |
| 15. | "Hide My Gun" (featuring Hardy) |
| 3:40 |
| 16. | "Right About You" |
| 3:03 |
| 17. | "M-E-X-I-C-O" (featuring Billy Strings) |
| 2:35 |
| 18. | "Yours" |
| 3:19 |
| Total length: | 57:51 | ||
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Fallin' in Love" |
| 2:51 |
| 2. | "Dead at the Honky Tonk" |
| 3:33 |
| 3. | "Killed a Man" |
| 3:05 |
| 4. | "Ain't How it Ends" |
| 3:21 |
| 5. | "Hey Mercedes" |
| 3:22 |
| 6. | "Go to Hell" |
| 4:27 |
| 7. | "Two Hearts" |
| 3:26 |
| 8. | "Who Needs You" |
| 2:49 |
| 9. | "Back to Texas" |
| 2:47 |
| Total length: | 87:44 | ||
Personnel
[edit]Musicians
- Post Malone – lead vocals
- Craig Young – bass
- Aaron Sterling – drums
- Derek Wells – electric guitar (all tracks), acoustic guitar (tracks 8, 9, 15)
- Larry Franklin – fiddle
- Dave Cohen – keyboards
- Louis Bell – programming
- Charlie Handsome – programming
- Paul Franklin – pedal steel (tracks 1–4, 6, 9–11, 13–15, 18), steel guitar (8)
- Wes Hightower – background vocals (tracks 1, 2, 6–8, 12–18)
- Bryan Sutton – acoustic guitar (tracks 1, 3, 4, 6, 7, 10–13, 16, 17)
- Tim McGraw – vocals (track 1)
- Todd Lombardo – acoustic guitar (tracks 2, 5, 14, 18)
- Hank Williams Jr. – vocals (track 2)
- Morgan Wallen – vocals (track 3)
- Brent Mason – electric guitar (tracks 4, 7, 12, 16, 17)
- Justin Schipper – steel guitar (track 4), pedal steel (7, 12, 16)
- Blake Shelton – vocals (track 4)
- Dolly Parton – vocals (track 5)
- Brad Paisley – electric guitar, vocals (track 7)
- Luke Combs – vocals (tracks 8, 13)
- Lainey Wilson – vocals (track 9)
- Jelly Roll – vocals (track 10)
- Ernest – vocals (track 11)
- Sierra Ferrell – vocals (track 12)
- Chris Stapleton – vocals (track 14)
- Hardy – vocals (track 15)
- Billy Strings – vocals (track 17)
Technical
- Louis Bell – production, engineering, vocal production
- Charlie Handsome – production
- Hoskins – co-production (tracks 3, 8)
- Ted Jensen – mastering
- Ryan Gore – mixing
- Trent Woodman – engineering (tracks 1–7, 9–18)
- Eric Lutkins – engineering (track 1)
- Byron Gallimore – vocal engineering (track 1)
- Joey Moi – vocal engineering (tracks 3, 15)
- Scott Hendricks – vocal engineering (track 4)
- Andrew Boullianne – engineering assistance
- Collin Reynolds – engineering assistance
- Grant Morgan – engineering assistance (tracks 1–8, 10–18)
- Nick Mac – engineering assistance (tracks 1, 2, 15)
- Ryan Oswald – engineering assistance (tracks 1, 2, 15)
References
[edit]- ^ Mendelsohn, Jon (June 9, 2023). "Post Malone Answers The Question: 'Are You Going to Do a Country Album?'". American Songwriter. Retrieved June 21, 2024.
- ^ Lorie Hollabaugh (May 14, 2024). "Morgan Wallen & Post Malone Make History With 'I Had Some Help'". Music Row. Retrieved May 14, 2024.
- ^ Nicholson, Jessica (June 25, 2024). "Post Malone Is Taking a 'Collection of Country Songs' on the Road for F-1 Trillion Tour: Here Are the Dates". Billboard. Retrieved August 12, 2024.
- ^ a b "F-1 Trillion by Post Malone Reviews and Tracks". Metacritic. Retrieved August 17, 2024.
- ^ a b Murray, Robin (August 16, 2024). "Post Malone – F-1 Trillion Album Review". Clash. Retrieved August 17, 2024.
- ^ a b Hudak, Joseph (August 16, 2024). "Post Malone's Summer Vacation in Nashville Turned Out Pretty Darn Good". Rolling Stone. Retrieved August 17, 2024.
- ^ a b Cragg, Michael (August 16, 2024). "Post Malone: F-1 Trillion review – catchy country cosplay". The Guardian. Retrieved August 17, 2024.
- ^ a b Brown, Helen (August 16, 2024). "Post Malone review, F-1 Trillion: Former rapper two-steps his way into country with stompin' guitar jams'". The Independent. Retrieved August 17, 2024.
