Die Lit

Die Lit is the debut studio album by American rapper Playboi Carti. It was released on May 11, 2018, by AWGE Label and Interscope Records. The album features guest appearances from Skepta, Travis Scott, Lil Uzi Vert, Pi'erre Bourne, Nicki Minaj, Bryson Tiller, Chief Keef, Gunna, Red Coldhearted, Young Thug, and Young Nudy. The production on the album was mainly handled by Pi'erre Bourne, with assistance from Don Cannon and IndigoChildRick, among others.

Die Lit
Studio album by Playboi Carti
Released	May 11, 2018
Recorded	2017–2018
Genre	Hip hop trap mumble rap[1]
Length	57:39
Label	AWGE Interscope
Producer	Art Dealer Don Cannon IndigoChildRick Maaly Raw Pi'erre Bourne Playboi Carti
Playboi Carti chronology
Playboi Carti (2017) Die Lit (2018) Whole Lotta Red (2020)

Die Lit received generally positive reviews from critics and debuted at number three on the US Billboard 200.

Background and release

In December 2017, a video showed Playboi Carti behind a mixing board, presumably listening to new material with the caption "Album Mode".[2] In March 2018, Pi'erre Bourne teased that the project had been finalized via Twitter.[3][4] On May 10, 2018, Carti announced the album's release date via Twitter.[3] On the same day, ASAP Rocky revealed the album's artwork.[5] Upon release, the album was briefly released exclusively via Tidal, before showing up on other streaming services.[6]

Critical reception

Professional ratings

Aggregate scores
Source	Rating
Metacritic	71/100[7]
Review scores
Source	Rating
AllMusic	[8]
Exclaim!	6/10[9]
Highsnobiety	4.0/5[10]
HipHopDX	3.0/5[11]
HotNewHipHop	79%[12]
Pitchfork	8.5/10[13]
Spectrum Culture	[14]
Sputnikmusic	3.8/5[15]
Tiny Mix Tapes	4/5[16]

Die Lit was met with generally positive reviews. At Metacritic, which assigns a normalized rating out of 100 to reviews from professional publications, the album received an average score of 71, based on seven reviews.[7]

Evan Rytlewski of Pitchfork stated that Die Lit is "an album that works almost completely from its own lunatic script. It is a perversely infectious sugar high, rap that fundamentally recalibrates the brain's reward centers", praising the production and simplicity.[13] Corrigan B of Tiny Mix Tapes said, "Like its predecessor, it's an album of party records; these are songs that will be played ad infinitum at functions until the hooks, the breaks, and, of course, the bass are burned into the brain of every attendee."[16] Maxwell Cavaseno of HotNewHipHop concluded that Die Lit "feels like the closest to a fully realized album as Carti is ever going to come close to achieving" and that it "should, at the very least, be respected for doing so much while doing so very little."[12] Online publication Sputnikmusic stated: "A lot of the gratification of this record is in the production, which takes the age-old hip-hop trick of taking a fractional melodic idea, barely a song by itself, and spinning out of it a thick sonic weave."[15]

A. Harmony from Exclaim! criticized the album for having a lack of variety, saying "It's fun enough but, save for a few keepers, has the lifespan of a mayfly. Rock to it for the summer and forget most of it by September."[9] Riley Wallace of HipHopDX stated, "Through a more respectable body of work—is unlikely to win over any naysayers."[11] Neil Z. Yeung of AllMusic said, "Like Rae Sremmurd and Migos, these big-bass trap anthems owe much to their club-friendly vibe, but offer little in terms of substance or lasting impact."[8]

Accolades

Year-end lists

Publication	List	Rank	Ref.
Complex	50 Best Albums of 2018	45	[17]
Fact	The 50 Best Albums of 2018	35	[18]
Highsnobiety	The 25 Best Albums of 2018	17	[19]
Noisey	Noisey's 100 Best Albums of 2018	23	[20]
Pitchfork	The 50 Best Albums of 2018	25	[21]
Spin	51 Best Albums of 2018	18	[22]

Commercial performance

Die Lit debuted at number three on the US Billboard 200 chart, earning 61,000 album-equivalent units (including 5,000 copies as pure album sales) in its first week.[23] On July 31, 2019, the album was certified gold by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) for combined sales and streams in excess of 500,000 units in the United States.[24] As of January 2021, the album has earned 1.1 million album-equivalent units and net 1.67 billion on-demand streams for its tracks.[25]

Track listing

All tracks produced by Pi'erre Bourne, except where noted.[26][27]

Die Lit track listing

No.	Title	Writer(s)	Producer(s)	Length
1.	"Long Time (Intro)"	Jordan Carter Jordan Jenks Jung Cho	Art Dealer	3:31
2.	"R.I.P."	Carter Jenks Donald DeGrate, Jr. Reginald Moore Shirley Murdock Larry Troutman Roger Troutman		3:12
3.	"Lean 4 Real" (featuring Skepta)	Carter Joseph Adenuga Jenks Stewart Mullings	IndigoChildRick	2:57
4.	"Old Money"	Carter Jenks		2:15
5.	"Love Hurts" (featuring Travis Scott)	Carter Jacques Webster II Jenks	Pi'erre Bourne Playboi Carti	3:00
6.	"Shoota" (featuring Lil Uzi Vert)	Carter Symere Woods Jamaal Henry	Maaly Raw	2:33
7.	"Right Now" (featuring Pi'erre Bourne)	Carter Jenks		3:27
8.	"Poke It Out" (with Nicki Minaj)	Carter Onika Maraj Jenks		4:29
9.	"Home (KOD)"	Carter Jenks		2:42
10.	"Fell in Luv" (featuring Bryson Tiller)	Carter Bryson Tiller Jenks Megan James Corbin Roddick Isaac Gerasimou		3:26
11.	"Foreign"	Carter Maraj Jenks		2:22
12.	"Pull Up"	Carter Maraj Jenks		3:36
13.	"Mileage" (featuring Chief Keef)	Carter Keith Cozart Jenks		2:29
14.	"FlatBed Freestyle"	Carter Maraj Jenks		3:13
15.	"No Time" (featuring Gunna)	Carter Sergio Kitchens Donald Cannon Tjshan Stennett	Don Cannon Treshaun Beatz^[a]	3:39
16.	"Middle of the Summer" (featuring Red Coldhearted)	Carter Dashia Aaron Jenks		2:17
17.	"Choppa Won't Miss" (featuring Young Thug)	Carter Jeffery Williams Jenks		3:37
18.	"R.I.P. Fredo (Notice Me)" (featuring Young Nudy)	Carter Quantavious Thomas Maraj Jenks		2:41
19.	"Top" (featuring Pi'erre Bourne)	Carter Cameron Pitts Jenks		2:13
Total length:				57:39

Notes

• ^{^[a]} signifies an uncredited co-producer

Sample credits

• "R.I.P." contains a sample from "What About Us", written by Donald DeGrate, Jr., Reginald Moore, Shirley Murdock, Larry Troutman and Roger Troutman, as performed by Jodeci.[28]
• "Fell in Luv" contains a sample from "Grandloves", written by Megan James, Corbin Roddick and Isaac Gerasimou, as performed by Purity Ring.[29]

Charts

Weekly charts Chart performance for Die Lit Chart (2018) Peak position Australian Albums (ARIA)[30] 49 Belgian Albums (Ultratop Flanders)[31] 41 Belgian Albums (Ultratop Wallonia)[32] 116 Canadian Albums (Billboard)[33] 9 Dutch Albums (Album Top 100)[34] 19 Irish Albums (IRMA)[35] 38 New Zealand Albums (RMNZ)[36] 27 Swiss Albums (Schweizer Hitparade)[37] 37 UK Albums (OCC)[38] 27 US Billboard 200[23] 3 US Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums (Billboard)[39] 2

Year-end charts 2018 year-end chart performance for Die Lit Chart (2018) Position US Billboard 200[40] 123 US Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums (Billboard)[41] 54 2019 year-end chart performance for Die Lit Chart (2019) Position US Billboard 200[42] 145

Certifications

Certifications for Die Lit

Region	Certification	Certified units/sales
United States (RIAA)[24]	Gold	500,000
sales+streaming figures based on certification alone

References

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2. Espinoza, Joshua (December 8, 2017). "Playboi Carti Has Locked Into 'Album Mode'". Complex. Archived from the original on May 11, 2018. Retrieved May 11, 2018.
3. Coleman II, C. Vernon (May 11, 2018). "Playboi Carti Surprises Fans With Debut Album 'Die Lit'". XXL. Archived from the original on May 11, 2018. Retrieved May 11, 2018.
4. Espinoza, Joshua (March 31, 2018). "Playboi Carti's Debut Album Is Reportedly Finished". Complex. Archived from the original on May 11, 2018. Retrieved May 11, 2018.
5. Issa MVP (May 11, 2018). "Playboi Carti – Die Lit [Album Stream]". OnSMASH. Archived from the original on May 11, 2018. Retrieved May 11, 2018.
6. Hughes, Josiah (May 10, 2018). "Playboi Carti Drops Surprise Album 'Die Lit'". Exclaim!. Archived from the original on May 11, 2018. Retrieved May 11, 2018.
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11. Wallace, Riley (May 24, 2018). "Review: Playboi Carti's "Die Lit" Rages & Crashes Hard". HipHopDX. Archived from the original on May 27, 2018. Retrieved May 20, 2018.
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21. "The 50 Best Albums of 2018". Pitchfork. December 11, 2018. Archived from the original on December 11, 2018. Retrieved December 11, 2018.
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23. Caulfield, Keith (May 20, 2018). "Post Malone's 'Beerbongs & Bentleys' Nets Third Straight Week at No. 1 on Billboard 200". Billboard. Archived from the original on May 22, 2018. Retrieved May 21, 2018.
24. "American album certifications – Playboi Carti – Die Lit". Recording Industry Association of America. Retrieved July 31, 2019. If necessary, click Advanced, then click Format, then select Album, then click SEARCH. 
25. Caulfield, Keith (January 3, 2021). "Playboi Carti Lands First No. 1 Album on Billboard 200 Chart With 'Whole Lotta Red'". Billboard. Retrieved January 12, 2021.
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