Lil Yachty is gearing up for the release of his next album, Let’s Start Here, and like much of his career, he’s doing things unconventionally. The 25-year-old shared the cover art earlier this week, which was generated through artificial intelligence.
“Let’s start here,” the Atlanta-bred rapper said on Tuesday (Jan. 17) via Twitter. “1/27. LP. Thank You 4 Your Patience friends.” The tweet was accompanied by the album cover, which features smiling men and women with distorted faces wearing professional clothing.
Variety described them as a “demented board of executives.” This cover art, which heavily differs from his previous album artwork, signifies a new direction for the Michigan Boy Boat rapper, which he alluded to in a January 2022 interview with Icebox.
“It’s the first time I’m actually speaking on it. It’s a non-rap album,” Lil Boat said. “It’s alternative. It’s sick.” His October 2022 single “Poland,” which generated a heavy buzz after leaking online before its official release and subsequent video, displayed the different sounds Yachty was exploring.
Last week, the “Minnesota” rapper put a call out for an all-women band in now-deleted Instagram and Twitter posts. It is unclear whether the tryouts, originally set for Jan. 12 in Lithonia, GA, actually took place and whether the band was meant to contribute to Let’s Start Here or accompany him on tour.
Lil Yachty is riding a wave of momentum after receiving high praise for his contributions to Drake and 21 Savage’s November 2022 collaborative project Her Loss. He had production credits on “BackOutsideBoyz,” “Privileged Rappers,” “Pu**y & Millions,” and “Jumbotron Sh*t Poppin,” the last of which the Toronto rapper shared a music video for this week.