Noname fans had been waiting for the album for years.
Chicago wordsmith and activist Noname sidelined her music career as of late to focus on efforts she felt were more worthwhile. Whether that be her book club which donates free reading materials to incarcerated Black people, or just community-based aid in general, Noname’s activism and empathy have been of the utmost importance to her.
With that being said, she still has released music from time to time, dropping two singles in the past two years. Both releases were potent, as Summer 2020’s “Song 33” was a response to J. Cole’s apparent diss to her in wake of the George Floyd murder, and February’s “Rainforest “was a revolutionary and spirited lyrical clinic about the plight of Black people in America.
Since the release of “Rainforest,” Noname had been telling her fans that her new album Factory Baby was on the horizon, and would release at some point in 2021. She explained that the album would depict her headspace in recent times, and elaborate on her philanthropic efforts.
However, today (Dec. 5), Noname took to Instagram to announce she would no longer be putting out Factory Baby, and may be done with making music for good. She said she has trouble finding production that connects with her and has had trouble rekindling the spark that helped her create her prior music like 2018’s Room 25 and 2016’s Telefone: “Most days I’m not sure if I’ll ever make music again. The last time I was consistently making songs was 4 years ago. It’s been so hard to find producers to link up with and who I genuinely connect with sonically. I’m truly grateful for the art I was able to release but that might be it from me. Like, it shouldn’t be this hard. No lie this sh*t actually makes me incredibly sad and I rarely leave the crib these days. I don’t want to keep lying and saying there’s an album on the way when there’s not. I’m sorry I’ve lead y’all on. I wanted to believe things would change but they haven’t.”
It’s tough to hear that Noname has been going through such a rough patch creatively, as she is one of the most captivating and powerful voices poets in hip-hop today.
Check out Noname’s Instagram Story below.
Via @nonamehiding/Instagram