Darold (album)

Darold
Darold
Studio album by ASAP Ferg
Released	November 8, 2024
Genre	Hip-hop
Length	40:37
Label	ASAP Worldwide; Polo Grounds; RCA Records;
ASAP Ferg chronology
Singles from Darold
	"Allure"; Released: October 4, 2024; "Thought I Was Dead"; Released: October 18, 2024;

Darold is the third studio album by American rapper ASAP Ferg, released on November 8, 2024 by ASAP Worldwide, Polo Grounds, and RCA Records, his first project in four years. The album features artists such as Future, Denzel Curry, Mike Will Made It, and Mary J. Blige.

Background

On October 4, 2024, Ferguson announced his third studio album Darold with the release of its debut single "Allure", with rapper Future and producer Miek Will Made It as features.^[1]

Ferguson told Hypebeast that Darold would be "his most vulnerable album yet." As Ferguson explained the album, he said "I'm getting – I won't say older, but I'm getting wiser – and I've lived a lot of life. It's okay to grow up, and that's what I want to show my community on this album." "Alive", an example of his vulnerability, is brought up as the rapper reflects on his hardships, as said: "As I get more aware it's hard to stay engaged / When you notice all your peers ain't on the same page / I'm unhappy about music in its current state / I'm unhappy about my appetite and my current weight / I'm unhappy about my friends and how they handle certain things / Growing pains make it stressful to go through certain change."^[2]

Shortly after the album's release, Ferguson revealed an experience when he was sexually molested when he was a child, which served as the story for one of its tracks, "Pool". As stated, "At ten I was drowned and touched when I was in the pool/All the breath left my body where I couldn't move," he raps on the song. "Violated, hand on my private by a bigger dude/Seconds felt like forever, really wasn't cool/When he seen me 'round the block, he'd smile and laugh/As if we had a little secret, and I hated that/Thinking 'bout what he did really made me mad/Even thought about murder, wanted to kill his ass/Told nobody except my cousin/One time, he made a joke, but he ain't know nothing/I asked God, 'Why me? Let me know something!'/I like girls, fuck he thought, that nigga on something?"^[3]

Release

Darold was released to streaming services on November 8, 2024 by ASAP Worldwide, Polo Grounds, and RCA Records. Ferguson states that the album title comes from his birth name (Darold Brown Ferguson) and that he made the cover art for the album and singles himself.

"This album means the world to me!!!", he wrote in a separate post. "This is a literal work of art. I started painting again during the pandemic and flirted with the idea of doing my own cover art for my album. The therapeutic nature of brush on canvas put me in a zone and I decided I'd just do all my single covers myself. The vibe was fresh and I was back hooked on painting again."^[4]

Track listing

*Darold* track listing
No.	Title	Writer(s)	Producer	Length
1.	"Light Work (feat. Bloody Osiris, DD Osama, Soul II Soul, and the Alumni Ensemble of Harlem)"	Darold Brown	Youagoodkid MCVertt Taavi Haapala	2:32
2.	"Thought I Was Dead"	Lex Luger Michael Williams Brown	Mike Will Made It Lex Luger	2:28
3.	"Alive :( (feat. Dapper Dan)"	Kelvin Krash Ade Odunlami Daoud Anthony Brown Rodaidh McDonald	Eric Hudson Acyde McDonald Daoud	4:05
4.	"Allure (feat. Future & Mike Will Made It)"	Brown Jean Marcel Day Williams Nayvadius Wilburn	Mike Will Made It Truebeatzz	3:28
5.	"Demons (feat. Denzel Curry)"	Mills Perkins Jo-Vaughn Scott Derek Gamlam Mario Luciano Tobias Breuer	Krash	2:16
6.	"Messy"	Odunlami Bron McDonald	Hudson Acyde McDonald	3:20
7.	"French Tips (feat. Coco Jones)"	Brown Courtney Jones	Mario Winans Tropkillaz	3:06
8.	"Dead Homies (feat. BLKPRL & Elminene)"	Krash Abdala Elamin Odunlami BLKPRL Brown Kelvin Magnusen McDonald	Krash Acyde McDonald	3:53
9.	"Casting Spells (feat. Mary J. Blige)"	Odunlami Anthony Brown Winans McDonald Mary Blige	Winans Acyde McDonald Daoud	3:54
10.	"Pool (feat. Elmiene)"	Elamin Odunlami Anthony Brown McDonald	Acyde McDonald Daoud	4:34
11.	"Chosen (feat. Mary J. Blige & Shay Rock)"	Angela Winbush Brown Winans Blige	Winans	4:04
12.	"Darold (feat. Nikki Nelms)"	Allan Lopez Brown Emmanuel Kouadio Kingsley Izenwata Powers Pleasant	Kash Beats Powers Pleasant Tweek Tune Manny Laurenko	2:51
Total length:				40:37

References

^ Breiham, Tom (October 4, 2024). "FERG – "Allure" (Feat. Future & Mike WiLL Made-It)". Stereogum. Retrieved January 10, 2025.
^ Bernstein, Elaina (November 8, 2024). "Ferg Grows Up on 'DAROLD'". Hypebeast. Retrieved January 10, 2025.
^ Aydelotte, Bato (November 15, 2024). "A$AP Ferg Breaks Silence On Childhood Trauma In 'DAROLD' Album". HOT 97.1. Retrieved January 10, 2025.
^ Centeno, Tony (November 8, 2024). "Rap Rising: FERG Drops His Most Personal Album Yet 'DAROLD'". Power 105.1]. Retrieved January 10, 2025.

[1] Breiham, Tom (October 4, 2024). "FERG – "Allure" (Feat. Future & Mike WiLL Made-It)". Stereogum. Retrieved January 10, 2025.

[2] Bernstein, Elaina (November 8, 2024). "Ferg Grows Up on 'DAROLD'". Hypebeast. Retrieved January 10, 2025.

[3] Aydelotte, Bato (November 15, 2024). "A$AP Ferg Breaks Silence On Childhood Trauma In 'DAROLD' Album". HOT 97.1. Retrieved January 10, 2025.

[4] Centeno, Tony (November 8, 2024). "Rap Rising: FERG Drops His Most Personal Album Yet 'DAROLD'". Power 105.1]. Retrieved January 10, 2025.

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