Anderson .Paak, Cordae Don New ‘Crown’

Anderson .Paak and Cordae are turning a friendship forged in the studio into a full-length collaboration: the artists’ joint album Heavy Is the Crown, which will be released Oct. 23 via APESHIT/Mass Appeal/EMPIRE.

The project grew out of a relationship that dates back to Cordae’s 2019 debut, The Lost Boy, where .Paak appeared on the fan favorite “RNP.” Since then, the two have kept the chemistry alive through the Cordae songs “Two Tens,” “Summer Drop” and a run of live appearances, including the BET Awards.

More from Spin:

• Tyler Taps Future, Turnstile For Camp Flog Gnaw
• Geese’s Cameron Winter Memorializes Carnegie Hall Gig
• Secret Wu-Tang Clan Album Saga Gets A Documentary

Heavy Is the Crown promises to take that easy camaraderie into album territory. The artwork tips its hat to the cult classic Will Ferrell/John C. Reilly comedy Step Brothers, an appropriate visual cue for a project built around brotherhood, humor and two artists who apparently have as much fun making music together as they do performing it.

The duo is going particularly deep on the physical edition of the project, with six retailer-exclusive vinyl variants spanning Amazon and independent retail, plus an animated zoetrope edition for direct-to-consumer customers. A cassette and CD will round out the offerings, with the latter featuring a lenticular cover that transforms the album artwork into an image of .Paak and Cordae fighting.

For .Paak, the album follows renewed attention to Malibu, his landmark 2016 album, which received a 10th anniversary vinyl and cassette reissue earlier this year. In contrast, Cordae has kept a low profile this year; his most recent studio album was 2024’s The Crossroads.

To see our running list of the top 100 greatest rock stars of all time, click here.