Tetsuo and Youth

Background

On February 10, 2013, on the red carpet for the Grammy Awards, Lupe Fiasco has announced that his fifth studio album would be titled Tetsuo & Youth. LupEND (which is a blog for Lupe Fiasco fans) confirmed on his Tumblr account that features on his album would include the guest appearances from Rick Ross, Big K.R.I.T., Chance the Rapper, Ab-Soul, Ed Sheeran and Ty Dolla Sign, among others. Lupe Fiasco says the name of the album was loosely inspired by Tetsuo Shima, a character from the Japanese manga series Akira. "For me, Tetsuo sounds cool" he stated.

Singles

On August 24, 2013, Lupe revealed a preview of "Crack", a single featuring Chris Brown. The track was first said to be the first single released from the album, but since then has not been officially released. Another song, entitled "Drizzy's Law" which was intended to make the album cut, has also not officially been released. Though he still plans to release these songs according to his Twitter account, they were not included on the album.

On October 14, 2013, Lupe released a standalone single "Old School Love" featuring English singer-songwriter Ed Sheeran, who contributes vocals to the song's hook. The song peaked at number 93 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart. Its music video was filmed with Sheeran in Chicago, and was premiered on December 9, 2013.

On May 19, 2014, Lupe released the first promotional single titled "Mission", which tells the story of several cancer sufferers. The intro to the song features singer-songwriter (and cancer survivor) Charlie Wilson and other cancer survivors detailing their type of cancer and when they were diagnosed.

On June 24, 2014, Lupe released the second promotional single titled "Next to It" featuring Ty Dolla Sign. The song was produced by Ty Dolla Sign, and co-produced by Shafiq Husayn of the Los Angeles production team Sa-Ra.

On November 10, 2014, Lupe released the first official single from Tetsuo & Youth titled "Deliver"; which features background vocals by recent frequent collaborator Ty Dolla Sign.

Critical reception

Tetsuo & Youth received generally positive reviews from critics. At Metacritic, which assigns a normalized rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream publications, the album received an average score of 80, based on 12 reviews. David Jeffries of AllMusic said, "His 2006 debut may still be the one to pick, since it's leaner and more instant, but Tetsuo & Youth strolls its way into greatness after a couple listens and wipes out all the bitter aftertaste of Lasers as if that misstep never happened." Sheldon Pearce of The A.V. Club said, "Tetsuo & Youth finds its equilibrium by not pushing as hard, opting for subtle and interesting angles to get points across (See: "Deliver")." Michael Madden of Consequence of Sound said, "Lupe is still a guy to root for, and Tetsuo & Youth is full of daring songs that remind you of why." Kevin Jones of Exclaim! said, "Tetsuo & Youth is Lupe's "magnum opus" record — a serious, detail-rich production free from the binds of a previous story or series, and one that turns its back completely on any pressure to placate commercial radio." Stephen F. Kearse of Paste said, "On the whole, Tetsuo and Youth is a shaky album by a newly energized Lupe Fiasco who is newly energized. This energy isn't always wielded coherently or even interestingly, but he seems to have found comfort in his murals and dots and lines."

Steve "Flash" Juon of RapReviews.com said, "Lupe Fiasco doesn't present tracks that are just a hot beat and some memorable bars—he's aiming for cinematic moments and drawing you into the atmosphere he seeks to create." Justin Hunte of HipHopDX said, "Tetsuo & Youth glistens with maturity and imagination. Where the Judo Master Of Juxtaposition has grown more challenging lyrically, he's also grown more naturally emotive." Jayson Greene of Pitchfork said, "It's a tricky muse, but every Lupe project has found a way to harness at least 15 or 20 minutes of his fluid, fleeting mind. Tetsuo & Youth is the most generous gulp he's managed in years." Sean McCarthy of PopMatters said, "At the end of the album, it's more than clear that third, fourth, and fifth listens are demanded to appreciate its scope." Kellan Miller of XXL said, "Lupe Fiasco's career has been a mix of blooming ingenuity and surprising mediocrity. Sonically separated by the four different seasons, Lupe has arguably released his most thematically layered and engaging album to date." Christopher R. Weingarten of Rolling Stone said, "Lupe Fiasco's fifth album is a swirl of double meanings, extended metaphors about yoga and math, and increasingly labyrinthine ways to say "I'm dope"."

Commercial performance

The album debuted at number 14 on the Billboard 200, selling 42,000 copies in total. The sales figures may be a result of the declining relationship between Lupe Fiasco and Atlantic Records, with the album receiving little to no promotion from the record label. In its second week the album fell to number 37, selling 12,000 copies.

Track listing

Notes

Sample credits