Zero Fatigue/Motown Records released the vinyl edition of Smino’s new album, Luv 4 Rent. Get it HERE. The acclaimed St. Louis artist, rapper, songwriter, producer and disruptor also dropped the Phillip Youmans-directed visual for the album opener, “4rm Da Source.” View HERE. Youmans, who is the youngest and first black director to win the Founders Prize at the Tribeca Film Festival, also helmed the video for the album’s first single, “90 Proof” [with J. Cole]. Check out the full Luv 4 Rent tracklist below.
On March 29, Smino will wrap up the Luv Is 4Ever Tour, which he is co-headlining with JID, in Nashville, TN with a sold-out show at Marathon Music The run, which included sold-out dates at the Hollywood Palladium in Los Angeles and New York City’s Terminal 5, comes to The Fillmore Detroit tonight. Limited tickets are on sale at LuvIs4Ever.com. Smino’s upcoming European/UK tour is completely sold out. See below for itinerary.
Produced primarily by The Yute (Monte Booker, Groove, Phoelix, Smino) as well as Kal Banx and Childish Major, and narrated by ‘The Luv Lord,’ Luv 4 Rent serves as an audio representation of the Black experience for millennials. Smino explains, “Luv 4 Rent is based on the different types of love. Bad love, petty love, obsessive love, real good love, family love. It’s about the different ways I leant out my heart to the point where I didn’t have enough left for myself.”
Praising “90 Proof” [with J. Cole], Rolling Stone declared, “Both Smino and Cole have a penchant for unearthing the intertwined roots of hip-hop and blues with tender melodies and concerns…it’s why they make an excellent duo when they reconnect on ‘90 Proof.’” Hypebeast touted the track’s “exquisite production work,” and Vibe described it as “smooth like a cognac.” Pitchfork and The FADER also spotlighted the track.
Among many other highlights on Luv 4 Rent, “Matinee” [with Kal Banx] showcases Smino’s wild high-register wails as he admits, “I don’t stress her; I just stretch her,” as a jazz-y groove simmers. V Magazine declared, “[‘Matinee’] does so much more with shifting genre and blurring into different ideas of what a rap hit could be. It’s inventive in the best way.” Then there’s “Pro Freak” [with Doechii & Fatman Scoop], which struts through an old school sample, claps, and gospel-style harmonies. Smino locks into an undeniable and unpredictable fast-paced flow between Doechii’s instantly irresistible hook only to double back to one final funky breakdown offset by fire courtesy of Fatman Scoop. Lil Uzi Vert lights up “Pudgy,” while the rollercoaster concludes on the otherworldly soul of “Lee & Lovie” [with Reggie], presenting the perfect comedown awash in vocal bliss. Check out Smino performing a medley of “Lee & Lovie” and “Blu Billy” on “The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon” HERE.
LUV 4 RENT TRACKLIST:
1. 4rm Da Source
2. No L’s
3. 90 Proof [with J. Cole]
4. Pro Freak [with Doechii & Fatman Scoop]
5. Ole Ass Kendrick
6. Louphoria [with Cruza]
7. Blu Billy
8. Matinee [with Kal Banx]
9. Nondenominated [with Phoelix & Lucky Daye]
10. Defibrillator
11. Garden Lady
12. Settle Down [with Ravyn Lenae & Cory Henry]
13. Pudgy [with Lil Uzi Vert]
14. Curtains
15. Lee & Lovie [with Reggie]
NORTH AMERICAN TOUR DATES:
Fri Mar 17 – Detroit, MI – The Fillmore Detroit
Sat Mar 18 – Grand Rapids, MI – GLC Live at 20 Monroe
Tue Mar 21 – Chicago, IL – Byline Bank Aragon Ballroom
Thu Mar 23 – Madison, WI – The Sylvee
Fri Mar 24 – Minneapolis, MN – The Fillmore Minneapolis
Sat Mar 25 – Kansas City, MO – Arvest Bank Theatre at the Midland*
Tue Mar 28 – Cincinnati, OH – The Andrew J Brady Music Center
Wed Mar 29 – Nashville, TN – Marathon Music Works
*Not A Live Nation Date
EU/EK TOUR DATES:
Sun Apr 16 – Copenhagen, Denmark – Lille Vega
Tue Apr 18 – Amsterdam, Netherlands – Melkweg Max
Wed Apr 19 – Berlin, Germany – Gretchen
Fri Apr 21 – Antwerp, Belgium – Trix
Sat Apr 22 – Paris, France – Trabendo
Tue Apr 25 – London, UK – o2 Kentish Town Forum
Thu Apr 27 – Dublin, Ireland – Button Factory
ABOUT SMINO:
Christened “one of hip-hop’s most refreshing voices” by Pitchfork, Smino is one of the game’s most dynamic musical disruptors. Raised in a family of musicians, the rapper, writer, and producer began playing drums in his native St. Louis at an early age. As an adult, he moved to Chicago and connected with Classick Studios to release his first two EPs, S!ck S!ck S!ck and blkjuptr. In 2017, Smino dropped his debut album blkswn–hailed by Rolling Stone as one of the ‘40 Best Rap Albums of the Year’–and followed that with the 2018 release of NØIR, which landed on year-end lists from Complex, The Atlantic, REVOLT, and more. Between those critically acclaimed projects, he has generated over half-a-billion streams and counting in addition to selling out US headline tours in 2017 and 2019. Furthermore, Smino is a thread in the contemporary artist community with standout feature verses with Doja Cat, J. Cole, EARTHGANG, and Chance the Rapper, among others. He’s also appeared in campaigns for DKNY, Billionaire Boys Club, and Topicals Skincare. In 2021, Smino inked a deal with Motown Records (in partnership with his independent label Zero Fatigue) and unveiled his deepest vision yet with his latest album offering, Luv 4 Rent, which boasts singles “90 Proof” [with J. Cole], “Pro Freak [with Doechii & Fatman Scoop], and “Matinee” [with Kal Banx].
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