B.I.B.L.E. (a backronym for Basic Instructions Before Leaving Earth) is the debut studio album by American rapper Fivio Foreign. It was released on April 8, 2022, through Columbia Records and RichFish. The production on the album was handled by multiple producers including Kanye West, Mike Dean, the Chainsmokers and Dem Jointz among others. It also features guest appearances from KayCyy, Quavo, Kanye West, Alicia Keys, Queen Naija, Coi Leray, Chlöe, A$AP Rocky, Lil Yachty, Lil Tjay, Yung Bleu, DJ Khaled, Vory, Polo G, Blueface, Ne-Yo, and The Kid LAROI (who was added after the album was released).[1]
| B.I.B.L.E. | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Studio album by | ||||
| Released | April 8, 2022 | |||
| Genre | Drill | |||
| Length | 53:36 | |||
| Label |
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| Producer |
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| Fivio Foreign chronology | ||||
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| Singles from B.I.B.L.E. | ||||
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The album was preceded by two singles: "City of Gods" (with West and Keys) and "Magic City", the former of which peaking at number 46 on the US Billboard Hot 100. The album received generally positive reviews from music critics and moderate commercial success. The album debuted at number nine on the US Billboard 200 chart, earning 29,000 album-equivalent units in its first week. "What's My Name" was later released as the third single. A fourth single, "Paris to Tokyo" (with The Kid LAROI), was released after the album was, but was soon added to the tracklist afterwards.
Critical reception edit
| Aggregate scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| Metacritic | 68/100[2] |
| Review scores | |
| Source | Rating |
| AllMusic |    [3] |
| Clash | 7/10[4] |
| HipHopDX | 3.3/5[5] |
| NME | [6] |
| Pitchfork | 5.2/10[7] |
| Rolling Stone | [8] |
B.I.B.L.E. was met with generally positive reviews from music critics. At Metacritic, which assigns a normalized rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream music critics, the album received an average score of 68, based on 4 reviews, which indicates "generally favourable reviews". Writing for Clash, Ath'e Zihle felt that "although I would not say that this album breaks boundaries or sparks deep emotional response, it is Fivio's formal introduction to the world with a heavy-hitting drill project which will lead the way for future drill projects globally".[4] Kyann-Sian Williams of NME compared B.I.B.L.E. to Kanye West's tenth studio album, Donda (2021), opining that "Fivio Foreign's delivery remains pin-sharp throughout the album, proving that with a few inspired beats, he can produce utter greatness", "with its drill influences and eclecticism, this is perhaps the record 'Donda' could have been, proving that Fivio has plenty of scope to transcend drill culture".[6] Joe Coscarelli of The New York Times wrote that on the album, Fivio "hopes to smooth a path for the city's [New York's] ascendant hip hop scene, even as it draws criticism amid a rise in gun violence" and "tries to maneuver an unconventional sound onto a more conventional path: smoothing down drill's street edge into something safely marketable".[9] David Crone from Allmusic stated that "The majority of B.I.B.L.E. roots itself in cross-over appeal, offering up radio-primed drill anchored in familiar samples and big-hit collaborators, but instead of looking to fight for drill's new boundaries, Fivio makes a quick, and disappointing, grab for stardom. It's hard to fault him for getting the bag, but as long as Fivio keeps his ambitions on the brand, he will step further from excellence. This is a disappointing backpedal from America's drill ambassador."[10]
Commercial performance edit
B.I.B.L.E. debuted at number nine on the US Billboard 200 chart, earning 29,000 album-equivalent units (including 1,000 copies in pure album sales) in its first week, according to MRC Data.[11] This became Fivio's first US top-ten debut on the chart.[11] The album also accumulated a total of 37.75 million on-demand official streams of the album's songs.[11]
Track listing edit
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Producer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "On God" (featuring KayCyy) |
|
| 3:06 |
| 2. | "Through the Fire" (featuring Quavo) |
|
| 3:25 |
| 3. | "Magic City" (featuring Quavo) |
|
| 2:38 |
| 4. | "City of Gods" (with Kanye West and Alicia Keys) |
|
| 4:16 |
| 5. | "What's My Name" (with Queen Naija featuring Coi Leray) |
|
| 3:21 |
| 6. | "For Nothin" |
|
| 2:07 |
| 7. | "Hello" (featuring Chlöe and KayCyy) |
|
| 4:24 |
| 8. | "Confidence" (featuring ASAP Rocky) |
| AyoAA | 1:50 |
| 9. | "Slime Them" (featuring Lil Yachty) |
| AyoAA | 2:26 |
| 10. | "Feel My Struggle" |
| Axl | 2:00 |
| 11. | "World Watching" (featuring Lil Tjay and Yung Bleu) |
| J. Perry | 3:31 |
| 12. | "B.I.B.L.E. Talk" (featuring DJ Khaled) |
|
| 1:45 |
| 13. | "Changed on Me" (featuring Vory and Polo G) |
|
| 4:01 |
| 14. | "Left Side" (featuring Blueface) |
|
| 3:40 |
| 15. | "Love Songs" (featuring Ne-Yo) |
|
| 2:38 |
| 16. | "Whoever" |
|
| 1:55 |
| 17. | "Can't Be Us" |
|
| 4:13 |
| 18. | "Paris to Tokyo" (with the Kid Laroi) | SB | 2:10 | |
| Total length: | 53:36 | |||
Notes
- "City of Gods" features additional vocals from Playboi Carti.
Sample credits
- "City of Gods" contains samples from "New York City", written by Andrew Taggart and Britney Amaradio, and performed by the Chainsmokers.
- "What's My Name" contains samples from "Say My Name", written by Beyoncé Knowles-Carter, Kelendria Rowland, LeToya Luckett, LaTavia Roberson, LaShawn Daniels, Rodney Jerkins, and Fred Jerkins III, and performed by Destiny's Child.
- "World Watching" contains samples from "Lights", written by Ellie Goulding, Richard Stannard, and Ash Howes, and performed by Ellie Goulding.
- "Love Songs" contains samples from "So Sick", written by Shaffer Smith, Mikkel Eriksen, and Tor Erik Hermansen, and performed by Ne-Yo.
- "Can't Be Us" interpolates "Slippin'", written by Earl Simmons, and performed by DMX.
- "Paris to Tokyo" contains sample vocals from "Rocketeer", written by Kevin Nishimura, James Roh, Virman Coquia, Jae Choung, Jonathan Yip, Ray Romulus, Jeremy Reeves, Peter Hernandez, Philip Lawrence, and performed by Far East Movement featuring Ryan Tedder.
Personnel edit
- Mike Dean – mastering, mixing
- German Valdez – mixing, engineering (track 5)
- Todd Bergman – engineering (1)
- Bordeaux – engineering (2, 3)
- Non Native – engineering (2, 4–8, 10, 13–17)
- John Cunningham – engineering (4)
- Earl Washington – engineering (5)
- Simone Torres – engineering (7)
- Gentuar Memishi – engineering (9)
- Barrington Hall – engineering (11)
- Joe Grasso – engineering (12)
- Juan Peña – engineering (12)
- Sean Solymar – engineering assistance
- Tommy Rush – engineering assistance
- Loren Fleisher – engineering assistance (1)
- Carlos Mora – engineering assistance (16)
Charts edit
| Chart (2022) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| Belgian Albums (Ultratop Flanders)[12] | 93 |
| Belgian Albums (Ultratop Wallonia)[13] | 153 |
| Canadian Albums (Billboard)[14] | 8 |
| Dutch Albums (Album Top 100)[15] | 47 |
| New Zealand Albums (RMNZ)[16] | 40 |
| Swiss Albums (Schweizer Hitparade)[17] | 49 |
| UK Albums (OCC)[18] | 65 |
| US Billboard 200[19] | 9 |
| US Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums (Billboard)[20] | 5 |
References edit
- ^ Price, Joe (April 8, 2022). "Fivio Foreign Shares Debut Album B.I.B.L.E f/ Kanye West, Quavo, ASAP Rocky, and More". Complex. Retrieved April 8, 2022.
- ^ "Critic Reviews for B.I.B.L.E. at Metacritic". Metacritic.
- ^ "B.I.B.L.E. Review by David Crone". allmusic.com. April 8, 2022. Retrieved April 8, 2022.
- ^ a b Zihle, Ath'e (April 8, 2022). "Fivio Foreign - B.I.B.L.E.". Clash. Retrieved April 8, 2022.
- ^ Wallace, Riley (April 28, 2022). "Fivio Foreign 'B.I.B.L.E' Smooths Brooklyn Drill's Hard Edges With Mixed Results". HipHopDX.
- ^ a b Williams, Kyann-Sian (April 8, 2022). "Fivio Foreign – B.I.B.L.E review: the Ye-assisted record Donda could have been". NME. Retrieved April 8, 2022.
- ^ Pierre, Alphonse (April 13, 2022). "Fivio Foreign: B.I.B.L.E. Album Review". Pitchfork. Retrieved April 13, 2022.
- ^ Dukes, Will (April 11, 2022). "Fivio Foreign Makes a Joyful Noise on B.I.B.L.E.". Rolling Stone.
- ^ Coscarelli, Joe (April 7, 2022). "Fivio Foreign Had an Epiphany. Can He Change Drill Rap?". The New York Times. Retrieved April 7, 2022.
- ^ "B.I.B.L.E. Review by David Crone". allmusic.com. April 8, 2022. Retrieved April 8, 2022.
- ^ a b c Caulfield, Keith (April 17, 2022). "Lil Durk's '7220' Returns to No. 1 on Billboard 200 Albums Chart". Billboard. Retrieved April 10, 2022.
- ^ "Ultratop.be – Fivio Foreign – B.I.B.L.E." (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved April 17, 2022.
- ^ "Ultratop.be – Fivio Foreign – B.I.B.L.E." (in French). Hung Medien. Retrieved April 17, 2022.
- ^ "Billboard Canadian Albums: Week of April 23, 2022". Billboard. Retrieved April 19, 2022.
- ^ "Dutchcharts.nl – Fivio Foreign – B.I.B.L.E." (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved April 16, 2022.
- ^ "NZ Top 40 Albums Chart". Recorded Music NZ. April 18, 2022. Retrieved April 16, 2022.
- ^ "Swisscharts.com – Fivio Foreign – B.I.B.L.E.". Hung Medien. Retrieved April 17, 2022.
- ^ "Official Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved April 15, 2022.
- ^ Caulfield, Keith (April 17, 2022). "Lil Durk's '7220' Returns to No. 1 on Billboard 200 Albums Chart". Billboard. Retrieved April 18, 2022.
- ^ "Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums: Week of April 23, 2022". Billboard. Retrieved April 19, 2022.