''Ivory'' is the debut

studio album An album is a collection of audio recordings (e.g., music) issued on a medium such as compact disc (CD), Phonograph record, vinyl (record), audio tape (like 8-track cartridge, 8-track or Cassette tape, cassette), or digital distribution, dig ...

by American singer

Omar Apollo Omar Apolonio Velasco (born May 20, 1997), known professionally as Omar Apollo, is an American singer, songwriter, and actor. After signing a record deal with Warner Records, his debut album, ''Ivory (Omar Apollo album), Ivory'', was released in ...

, released on April 8, 2022, by

Warner Records Warner Records Inc. (known as Warner Bros. Records Inc. until 2019) is an American record label. A subsidiary of Warner Music Group, it is headquartered in Los Angeles, California. It was founded on March 19, 1958, as the recorded music division ...

. The album was promoted by five singles: " Go Away", "Bad Life", " Invincible", " Killing Me" and "

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". The album's deluxe edition, titled ''Ivory (Marfil)'', featuring five additional tracks including the singles "Archetype" and "Highlight", was released on August 12, 2022. On October 4, 2022, "

Evergreen In botany, an evergreen is a plant which has Leaf, foliage that remains green and functional throughout the year. This contrasts with deciduous plants, which lose their foliage completely during the winter or dry season. Consisting of many diffe ...

" was released as the overall album's eighth single and Apollo's first radio single. ''Ivory'' received mostly positive reviews, with critics praising Apollo's musical growth and vocal performances. Commercially, the album became Apollo's first-ever entry on the US ''Billboard'' 200 peaking at number 74 selling 13,000

album-equivalent unit The album-equivalent unit, or album equivalent, often shortened to just unit, is a sales metric in the music industry that defines the number of streaming media, songs streamed and music download, songs downloaded equal to one Record sales, tradi ...

Background

Apollo's debut album had to go through a rewriting process as he was dissatisfied with the initial version of the album. Apollo explained, "I had this feeling that I didn't want to promote or tour this music. I wasn't excited about it. It was good music — it wasn't bad music, but it didn't feel like me". Despite the disappointment from his record label Warner, Apollo was allowed to proceed with the rewrite, starting in November 2021, after releasing two lead singles. On February 9, 2022, Apollo announced the release date as well as the title of the debut album.

Singles

The album's lead single " Go Away" was released on July 8, 2021. The single was accompanied by a music video and a live performance on ''

The Tonight Show ''The Tonight Show'' is an American late-night talk show that has been broadcast on NBC since 1954. The program has been hosted by six comedians: Steve Allen (1954–1957), Jack Paar (1957–1962), Johnny Carson (1962–1992), Jay Leno (1992–2 ...

''. "Bad Life" was released as the second single on November 3, 2021. The song features guest vocals from

Kali Uchis Karly Marina Loaiza (born July 17, 1994), known professionally as Kali Uchis ( ), is an American singer and songwriter. Her accolades include a Grammy Awards, Grammy Award, an American Music Awards, American Music Award, two Billboard Music Awar ...

, making it the second time they collaborate, since the track "Hey Boy" from ''

Apolonio ''Apolonio'' is the debut mixtape by American singer-songwriter Omar Apollo. It was released on October 16, 2020, through Warner Records Warner Records Inc. (known as Warner Bros. Records Inc. until 2019) is an American record label. A s ...

''. The single also has a music video. On February 9, 2022, along with the announcement of the debut album's release date and title, Apollo released the third single " Invincible", which features

Daniel Caesar Ashton Simmonds (born April 5, 1995), known professionally as Daniel Caesar, is a Canadian singer and songwriter. After independently building a following through the release of two EPs, ''Praise Break'' (2014) and ''Pilgrim's Paradise'' (2015) ...

. The single was also supported by a music video. On March 11, 2022, the fourth single " Killing Me" was released, which included another live performance on ''The Tonight Show''. The fifth single "

" was released on March 23, 2022. Following the release of the album, the music video for the single was released. On July 15, 2022, Apollo announced the release of a deluxe version of ''Ivory'' along with the release of "Archetype", the album's sixth single and one of the additional tracks from the album's deluxe edition. Another song "Highlight" was released on August 5, 2022. In September 2022, the track "

" went viral on the platform

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, boosting the song's streams on

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and

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and garnering Apollo his first

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chart entry. The song was sent to

contemporary hit radio Contemporary hit radio (CHR, also known as contemporary hits, hit list, current hits, hit music, top 40, or pop radio) is a radio format common in many countries that focuses on playing current and recurrent popular music as determined by the Top ...

on October 4, 2022, as the album's eighth single and Apollo's first radio single.

Composition

Musically, ''Ivory'' is described to be an eclectic, genre-hopping

pop Pop or POP may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media * Pop music, a musical genre Artists * POP, a Japanese idol group now known as Gang Parade * Pop! (British group), a UK pop group * Pop! featuring Angie Hart, an Australian band Album ...

and R&B album, that incorporates elements of

alternative R&B Alternative R&B (also referred to as alt-R&B, indie R&B, and originally known as PBR&B, hipster R&B, emo R&B, or R-Neg-B) is a term used by music journalists to describe a stylistic alternative to contemporary R&B that began in the mid 2000s and ...

hip hop Hip-hop or hip hop (originally disco rap) is a popular music genre that emerged in the early 1970s from the African-American community of New York City. The style is characterized by its synthesis of a wide range of musical techniques. Hip- ...

indie-pop Indie pop (also typeset as indie-pop or indiepop) is a music genre and subculture that combines guitar pop with a DIY ethic in opposition to the style and tone of mainstream pop music. It originated from British post-punk in the late 1970s and ...

,'''' along with sounds of

Latin trap Latin trap is a subgenre of Latin hip hop music that originated in Puerto Rico. A direct descendant of southern hip hop and trap, and influenced by reggaeton, R&B and urbano music. it gained popularity after 2007, and has since spread throug ...

funk Funk is a music genre that originated in African-American communities in the mid-1960s when musicians created a rhythmic, danceable new form of music through a mixture of various music genres that were popular among African-Americans in the ...

electropop Electropop is a popular music fusion genre combining elements of the electronic and pop styles. It has been described as a variant of synth-pop with emphasis on a hard electronic sound. The genre was developed in the 1980s and saw a rev ...

psychedelic music Psychedelic music (sometimes called psychedelia) is a wide range of popular music styles and genres influenced by 1960s psychedelia, a subculture of people who used psychedelic drugs such as Dmt, DMT, Lysergic acid diethylamide, LSD, mescaline, ...

and traditional Mexican music.

Songs

The album begins with the title track, "Ivory", serving as a short intro with Apollo singing a cappella. The second track, "Talk" is an uptempo

pop punk Pop-punk (also punk-pop, alternatively spelled without the hyphen) is a rock music fusion genre that combines elements of punk rock with power pop or pop music, pop. It is defined by its fast-paced, energetic tempos, and emphasis on classic pop s ...

song with scuzzy, strummed guitars reminiscent of

The Strokes The Strokes are an American Rock music, rock band formed in New York City in 1998. The band is composed of lead singer and primary songwriter Julian Casablancas, guitarists Nick Valensi and Albert Hammond, Jr., Albert Hammond Jr., bassist Nikola ...

. The third track, "No Good Reason", is a song that "bursts into life" features a funky, bubbly synth production noted to be experimental for Apollo. The fourth track, " Invincible", is a collaboration with

. It is described as a "emotionally climatic" that grapples with mortality and the impact people leave on each other. ''

Clash Music ''Clash'' is a Music magazine, music and fashion magazine and website based in the United Kingdom. It is published four times a year by Music Republic Ltd, whose predecessor Clash Music Ltd went into liquidation. The magazine won awards includin ...

'' noted that the collaboration was "beautifully arranged" with the symphonic harmonies throughout the song giving it a "hypnotic" sound. The fifth track, "Endlessly Interlude" is an upbeat '90s R&B song.'''' A full version was later released as a track on the deluxe edition of ''Ivory.'' " Killing Me" is a bilingual R&B track about longing someone that you can't get out of your head. It is one of the two songs on the album where Apollo is singing in Spanish. "Go Away" is a

synth-pop Synth-pop (short for synthesizer pop; also called techno-pop; ) is a music genre that first became prominent in the late 1970s and features the synthesizer as the dominant musical instrument. It was prefigured in the 1960s and early 1970s b ...

song with confessional lyrics about wanting someone and running out of time with them. Apollo's falsetto and the slick groove of the production were commended. "En El Olvido", the eleventh track, is a stripped-down

corrido The corrido (Spanish pronunciation: Help:IPA/Spanish, oˈriðo is a famous narrative metrical tale and poetry that forms a Ballad (music), ballad. The songs often feature topics such as oppression, history, daily life for criminals, the vaqu ...

sung completely in Spanish. Apollo said he was inspired by performances by

Juan Gabriel Alberto Aguilera Valadez (; 7 January 1950 – 28 August 2016), known professionally as Juan Gabriel (), was a Mexican singer-songwriter and actor. Colloquially Honorific nicknames in popular music, nicknamed Juanga () and El Divo de Juárez, ...

in creating the song. The twelfth track, "

", is a

and R&B song featuring production by

The Neptunes The Neptunes were an American record production duo composed of Pharrell Williams and Chad Hugo, formed in Virginia Beach, Virginia, in 1992. Williams often provided backing vocals and music video appearances on the duo's productions, while H ...

. The song is described as bass-heavy and flirty with Apollo rap-singing in Spanish and English over a plucked

Samba Samba () is a broad term for many of the rhythms that compose the better known Brazilian music genres that originated in the Afro-Brazilians, Afro Brazilian communities of Bahia in the late 19th century and early 20th century, It is a name or ...

cadence and a bouncy melody. "

" is an R&B song with an old school

Motown Motown is an American record label owned by the Universal Music Group. Founded by Berry Gordy, Berry Gordy Jr. as Tamla Records on January 12, 1959, it was incorporated as Motown Record Corporation on April 14, 1960. Its name, a portmanteau ...

feel. ''

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'' praised the song as it showcased Apollo's range, going from "wizened soul belter to '90s boy band innocence". According to Apollo, "Evergreen" was the last song finished and turned in for the album.

Critical reception

Metacritic Metacritic is an American website that aggregates reviews of films, television shows, music albums, video games, and formerly books. For each product, the scores from each review are averaged (a weighted average). Metacritic was created ...

, which assigns a normalised rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream critics, the album has an

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score of 79, based on seven reviews, indicating "generally favorable reviews". Reviewing for '' DIY'', Alisdair Grice said "Omar Apollo inspires, and his competence as a vocalist is unmistakable on ''Ivory''. Conflating his electro-pop tendencies with the occasional stride of a campfire guitar, he turns everything he touches to glistening radio gold." ''

Rolling Stone ''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. The magazine was first known fo ...

'''s writer Julyssa Lopez praised Apollo's ability to " etthe music speak for is identity and sexuality and that hedoesn’t hold back in his lyrics. Cora Jordon from ''Clash'' praised the album and said, "Apollo creates a new sound within his alternative style. Bouncing from indie to alternative R&B to hip-hop, ‘Ivory’ is a culmination of his interests, all mushed together to create his own sense of authenticity."'' '' ''Pitchfork'''s Cameron Cook praised Apollo's vocals, saying that "while the musicianship on Ivory remains lush and intricate throughout, Apollo's voice has always been his ace in the hole. He can shift from wizened soul belter to '90s boy band innocence in a heartbeat", and then commended the variety of genres by summing up the review with "Apollo’s sheer talent has strained against the limits of the micro-genre he came up in. With its amalgam of genres, tones, and tastes, Ivory goes beyond thinking outside the box: It's as if the box were never even there to begin with." Neive McCarthy of '' Dork'' called the album "unpredictable and deeply transformative". Domenic Strazzabosco of ''Riff Magazine'' wrote: "''Ivory'' gives Omar Apollo the fullest platform to display his songwriting, vocal dexterity and the converging musical styles that influence him". Meanwhile, in a mixed review, Ammar Kalia of ''

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'' labelled the album as "overstuffed", while praising Apollo's vocals and "aptitude for unexpected genres".

Accolades

Promotion and tours

Desvelado tour

''Ivory'' was supported by the ''Desvelado'' tour. The tour was originally scheduled to be held in 2021, starting from July. However, Apollo later rescheduled the tour to 2022 to give him time to complete production of the album. The tour officially began on April 5, 2022, in

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at the Crystal Ballroom and concluded on June 16, 2022, in

London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...

at KOKO. The tour also included two performances at the 2022

Coachella festival Coachella (officially called the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival and sometimes known as Coachella Festival) is an annual music and arts festival held at the Empire Polo Club in Indio, California, in the Coachella Valley in the Colorad ...

on April 15 and 22.

Prototype tour

To support the album's deluxe edition, Apollo announced the ''Prototype'' tour, in collaboration with Ravyn Lenae. The tour began on October 21, 2022, in

San Diego, California San Diego ( , ) is a city on the Pacific coast of Southern California, adjacent to the Mexico–United States border. With a population of over 1.4 million, it is the List of United States cities by population, eighth-most populous city in t ...

at the Cal Coast Credit Union Open Air Theatre and concluded on November 29, 2022, in

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at the

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venue.

NPR Tiny Desk

In September 2022, Apollo made an appearance on

NPR National Public Radio (NPR) is an American public broadcasting organization headquartered in Washington, D.C., with its NPR West headquarters in Culver City, California. It serves as a national Radio syndication, syndicator to a network of more ...

Tiny Desk Concerts ''Tiny Desk Concerts'' is a video series of live concerts hosted by NPR Music at the desk of former ''All Songs Considered'' host Bob Boilen in Washington, D.C. The first ''Tiny Desk Concert'' came about in 2008 after Boilen and NPR Music edit ...

, performing "En El Olvido", "Endlessly", "Petrified", and "

". The latter performance helping boost the track's streams.

Track listing

Charts

Release history

References

{{Omar Apollo 2022 debut albums Warner Records albums Albums produced by Tobias Jesso Jr. Omar Apollo albums