''Chilombo'' is the third studio album by American singer

Jhené Aiko Jhené Aiko Efuru Chilombo (; born March 16, 1988) is an American Contemporary R&B, R&B singer and rapper. Aiko embarked on her musical career in 2002, as a backing vocalist and music video performer for the R&B group B2K. She was signed by the ...

. It was released on March 6, 2020, by ArtClub International,

ARTium Recordings Ernest Dion Wilson (born June 23, 1971), known professionally as No I.D. (formerly Immenslope), is an American record producer, DJ and songwriter from Chicago, Illinois. He is known for his early work with Chicago-based rapper Common, as well a ...

, and

Def Jam Recordings Def Jam Recordings (also simply known as Def Jam) is an American multinational record label owned by Universal Music Group. It is based in Manhattan, New York City, specializing predominantly in hip hop, contemporary R&B, soul and pop. The l ...

. Following the release of ''

Trip Trip may refer to: Arts and entertainment Books Fictional characters * Trip (''Pokémon''), a ''Pokémon'' character * Trip (Power Rangers), in the American television series ''Time Force Power Rangers'' * Trip, in the 2013 film '' Metallica T ...

'' and her split with rapper

Big Sean Sean Michael Leonard Anderson (born March 25, 1988), known professionally as Big Sean, is an American rapper. He met Kanye West as a teenager, and signed with his record label GOOD Music, an imprint of Def Jam Recordings in 2007. He gained popul ...

, with whom she formed the duo

Twenty88 ''Twenty88'' (stylized as ''TWENTY88'') is the debut studio album by American hip hop duo Twenty88, composed of rapper Big Sean and R&B singer-songwriter Jhené Aiko. It was released on April 1, 2016, by Def Jam Recordings, in a joint venture wi ...

, Aiko began work on ''Chilombo''. Recorded as a freestyle in

Hawaii Hawaii ( ; ) is an island U.S. state, state of the United States, in the Pacific Ocean about southwest of the U.S. mainland. One of the two Non-contiguous United States, non-contiguous U.S. states (along with Alaska), it is the only sta ...

, the album was inspired by the island's natural landscape and features traditional

singing bowls Singing is the art of creating music with the voice. It is the oldest form of musical expression, and the human voice can be considered the first musical instrument. The definition of singing varies across sources. Some sources define singi ...

to create a tranquil effect. In order to create her desired sound, Aiko served as the album's executive producer, enlisting the help of long time collaborators Fisticuffs and Lejkeys, who produced eighteen of the album's songs. The album featured a range of guests including rappers

Nas Nas (born 1973) is the stage name of American rapper Nasir Jones. Nas, NaS, or NAS may also refer to: Aviation * Nasair, a low-cost airline carrier and subsidiary based in Eritrea * National Air Services, an airline in Saudi Arabia ** Nas Air (S ...

Ab-Soul Herbert Anthony Stevens IV (born February 23, 1987), better known by his stage name Ab-Soul, is an American rapper. Raised in Carson, California, he signed to indie record label Top Dawg Entertainment (TDE) in 2007, where he eventually formed We ...

and

Future The future is the time after the past and present. Its arrival is considered inevitable due to the existence of time and the laws of physics. Due to the apparent nature of reality and the unavoidability of the future, everything that currently ex ...

, as well as R&B singers

Ty Dolla $ign Tyrone William Griffin Jr. (born April 13, 1982), known professionally as Ty Dolla Sign (stylized as Ty Dolla $ign or Ty$), is an American singer, songwriter, rapper, and record producer. Born and raised in Los Angeles, California, Griffin gai ...

John Legend John Roger Stephens (born December 28, 1978), known professionally as John Legend, is an American singer, songwriter, and pianist. He began his musical career working behind the scenes for other artists, playing piano on Lauryn Hill's " Every ...

Miguel --> Miguel is a given name and surname, the Portuguese and Spanish form of the Hebrew name Michael. It may refer to: Places * Pedro Miguel, a parish in the municipality of Horta and the island of Faial in the Azores Islands *São Miguel (disamb ...

, and

H.E.R. Gabriella Sarmiento Wilson (born June 27, 1997), known professionally as H.E.R. (pronounced "her" and standing for "Having Everything Revealed") is an American Contemporary R&B, R&B singer. She has won an Academy Awards, Academy Award, a Child ...

The deluxe edition of the album was released on July 17, 2020, and includes appearances from

Kehlani Kehlani Ashley Parrish ( ; born April 24, 1995) is an American singer, songwriter and dancer. She is originally from Oakland, California, and achieved initial fame as a member of the teen pop group PopLyfe in 2011. Kehlani's debut mixtape, '' ...

Mila J Jamila Akiko Aba Chilombo (born November 18, 1982), known professionally as Mila J, is an American R&B singer and rapper. Born and raised in Los Angeles, she is the older sister of R&B singer Jhené Aiko and is known for being in Prince's vid ...

Chris Brown Christopher Maurice Brown (born May 5, 1989) is an American singer, songwriter, dancer, and actor. A Pop music, pop and hip-hop-influenced contemporary R&B, R&B musician who works in a variety of genres, he has been called the "Honorific nic ...

Snoop Dogg Calvin Cordozar Broadus Jr. ( ; born October 20, 1971), better known by his stage name Snoop Dogg (previously Snoop Doggy Dogg), is an American rapper, record producer, and actor. Rooted in West Coast hip-hop, he is widely regarded as one of t ...

and

Wiz Khalifa Cameron Jibril Thomaz (born September 8, 1987), better known by his stage name Wiz Khalifa, is an American rapper, singer-songwriter and actor. Raised in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, he signed with the local independent label Rostrum Records to re ...

. ''Chilombo'' received generally positive reviews from critics and was a commercial success. The album debuted at number two on the US ''Billboard'' 200 chart, earning 152,000

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 ...

s in its first week. It was also certified

platinum Platinum is a chemical element; it has Symbol (chemistry), symbol Pt and atomic number 78. It is a density, dense, malleable, ductility, ductile, highly unreactive, precious metal, precious, silverish-white transition metal. Its name origina ...

by the

Recording Industry Association of America The Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) is a trade organization that represents the music recording industry in the United States. Its members consist of record labels and distributors that the RIAA says "create, manufacture, and/o ...

(RIAA) in January 2021. At the

63rd Annual Grammy Awards The 63rd Annual Grammy Awards ceremony was held in and around the Los Angeles Convention Center in Los Angeles on March 14, 2021. It recognized the best recordings, compositions, and artists of the eligibility year, running from September 1, 201 ...

, the album received three nominations: Album of the Year and Best Progressive R&B Album, and

Best R&B Performance The Grammy Award for Best R&B Performance is an award presented at the Grammy Awards, a ceremony that was established in 1958 and originally called the Gramophone Awards. According to the 54th Grammy Awards description guide it is designed for s ...

for "Lightning & Thunder".

Background

Two years after the release of her second studio album ''Trip'' (2017), Aiko announced she had begun work on the follow-up album. She revealed that her third album would only consist of freestyles and focus on relationships, stating "my next album is all freestyles where i touch on many subjects and relationships... past, present and future." In 2019 Aiko had completed three songs for the album as well as releasing the taster "Wasted Love Freestyle". Speculation led the media to believe the album would focus on Aiko's breakup with rapper

Recording

Aiko recorded the album on the big island of

, and free-styled all the songs creating what she described as one "free-flowing jam session". Aiko was inspired by

volcanoes, which she likened herself to during the conception and recording of the album. She continued to describe the album as an "eruption", starting with "Triggered", creating a "flow" throughout the album. The album's writing process followed a structure, with all songs beginning as a

freestyle Freestyle may refer to: Brands * Reebok Freestyle, a women's athletic shoe * Ford Freestyle, an SUV automobile * Coca-Cola Freestyle, a vending machine * Abbott FreeStyle, a blood glucose monitor by Abbott Laboritories Media * '' FreeStyle'', ...

. Aiko would initially start the process with lyrics in her head, before meeting long time collaborators and producers Fisticuffs or her keyboard player. From there they would "build" the music around the freestyle. "Triggered (Freestyle)" was created from this process, as were all of the album's tracks. Aiko and producers Fisticuffs started the song with a few instruments before Aiko took the production home where she recorded it herself in her studio. Speaking about the whole album process, Aiko said: ”I'm still in transition, but I'm still me,” she said. “I still love to write all types of songs and listen to all types of music, but Chilombo definitely has a lot more acoustic instruments because I wanted it to be music that you can feel.” During the creative process for the album, Aiko was adamant on incorporating crystal alchemy sound bowls. Her hope was to open up different

chakras A chakra (; ; ) is one of the various focal points used in a variety of ancient meditation practices, collectively denominated as Tantra, part of the inner traditions of Hinduism and Buddhism. The concept of the chakra arose in Hinduism. B ...

within the human body. The

"produce a vibrational hum that resonates throughout the body, producing a calming and tranquil effect. .. Theyare a common practice in healing and

meditation Meditation is a practice in which an individual uses a technique to train attention and awareness and detach from reflexive, "discursive thinking", achieving a mentally clear and emotionally calm and stable state, while not judging the meditat ...

, as they promote chakra balancing as well as stress and anxiety reduction". Aiko first used the bowls during a recording session at her home and went on to use them on each of the album's songs. This inspired Aiko to incorporate more acoustic instruments and kept the process analogue, allowing the microphone to pick up sounds in the room.

Songs

''Chilombo'' consists of twenty songs and features a variety of guests including rappers

, and

, as well as R&B singers

, and

''Chilombo'' is an atmospheric R&B album, that takes influence from

quiet storm Quiet storm is a radio format and genre of R&B, performed in a smooth, romantic, jazz-influenced style. It was named after the title song on Smokey Robinson's 1975 album '' A Quiet Storm''. The radio format was pioneered in 1976 by Melvin Li ...

. The album production features soft and dulled percussion and drifting keys. The album's lyrics focus on the ups and downs of life after a break-up and vaguely tells the story of a woman who has suffered heartbreak before emerging stronger. "Triggered" is a

freestyle rap Freestyle rap, also simply known as Freestyle, is a style of hip hop music where an artist normally improvises an unwritten verse from the head, with or without instrumental beats, in which lyrics are recited with no particular subject or structure ...

song about Aiko's conflicted feelings following a breakup and was interpreted as a

diss track A diss track, diss record or diss song (an abbreviation of ''disrespect'' or ''disparage'') is a song whose primary purpose is to verbally attack someone else, usually another artist. Diss tracks are often the result of an existing, escalating feu ...

towards Aiko's ex-boyfriend

, with whom she formed the duo

. "Pussy Fairy (OTW)" is a trap-influenced

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 ...

song. The song's title was inspired by Aiko's relationship with Sean. "Happiness Over Everything (H.O.E.)" features guest vocals from Miguel and Future. The song is an ode to Aiko's 2011 song "Hoe" from her debut mixtape ''

Sailing Soul(s) ''Sailing Soul(s)'' is the debut mixtape by American singer-songwriter Jhené Aiko; it was released on March 16, 2011, her 23rd birthday, and re-released for streaming platforms on March 12, 2021. Aiko began working on the mixtape after she gave ...

'' and references " Where Are My Panties?" by

André 3000 André Lauren Benjamin (born May 27, 1975), known professionally as André 3000, is an American rapper. Born and raised in Atlanta, Georgia, he was one half of the hip-hop duo Outkast along with rapper Big Boi, which the two formed in 1992. Benj ...

Release and promotion

''Chilombo'' was released on March 6, 2020, to streaming platforms by ArtClub International,

, and

. Aiko followed the same release style as ''Trip'', which is an "off-cycle" streaming strategy. Her team released each song just outside of the window when streaming platforms typically update playlists, which Def Jam GM/executive vice president Rich Isaacson called "liberating from a pressurized playlisting strategy. It's important to her that each track release is its own ecosystem. Jhené and her team feed each one with unique content strategies to prolong the life cycle, and over the course of eight to 10 to 12 months of steady consumption, she racks up really impressive numbers." To further promote the album Aiko announced she would be embarking on "The Magic Hour" tour. The tour was set to start on May 1 and end on June 27, and would include special guests

Queen Naija Queen Naija Bulls (; born October 17, 1995) is an American singer and media personality. Born and raised in Ypsilanti, Michigan, Bulls began her career as a YouTube vlogger, and appeared on the thirteenth season of ''American Idol''. Her 2017 si ...

and Ann Marie. The North American tour would visit cities including New York, Philadelphia, Toronto, and Los Angeles. On May 8, 2020, Aiko announced a deluxe edition of the album that includes additional tracks and a full version of the intro to " Pussy Fairy (OTW)", that was scheduled for a May 2020 release. The deluxe edition was later released on July 17, 2020.

Singles

On May 8, 2019, Aiko released the album's lead single "Triggered (Freestyle)" which debuted at number fifty-one on the US ''Billboard''

Hot 100 The ''Billboard'' Hot 100, also known as simply the Hot 100, is the music industry standard record chart in the United States for songs, published weekly by ''Billboard'' magazine. Chart rankings are based on sales (physical and digital), o ...

and peaked at number 3 on the US

R&B Songs Hot R&B Songs is a chart released weekly by ''Billboard'' in the United States. It lists the 25 most popular R&B songs, calculated weekly by airplay on rhythmic and urban radio stations, digital download sales and streaming data. It was establis ...

. It was the first official single from her 2020 album. The freestyle discussed various topics, including her past relationships. There were immediate rumors that the song might have been addressing Aiko's ex-boyfriend, Big Sean. However, Aiko went on

Twitter Twitter, officially known as X since 2023, is an American microblogging and social networking service. It is one of the world's largest social media platforms and one of the most-visited websites. Users can share short text messages, image ...

to dispel the rumors about "Triggered (Freestyle)" being a diss track. "None of Your Concern" featuring

, was released as the album's second single in November 2019. The song peaked at number 97 in the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Northwestern Europe, off the coast of European mainland, the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...

. "None of Your Concern" peaked at number fifty-five on the US Hot 100. "Pussy Fairy (OTW)" was released as the third single in January 2020 and peaked at number forty on the US Hot 100.

Critical reception

Stephen Kearse for ''

Pitchfork A pitchfork or hay fork is an agricultural tool used to pitch loose material, such as hay, straw, manure, or leaves. It has a long handle and usually two to five thin tines designed to efficiently move such materials. The term is also applie ...

'' felt that "Aiko's music too often lacks a pulse", citing that ''"Chilombo'' gestures at this larger skill set, but settles for good vibes. It's very chill, and nothing else." In a review for ''

The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in Manchester in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'' and changed its name in 1959, followed by a move to London. Along with its sister paper, ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardi ...

'', Laura Snapes stated that "''Chilombo'' is sexual, spiritual and wildly over-long", also writing that "Unfortunately, neither Aiko's narrative nor the fairly one-note production can sustain that focus across this wildly over-long record. It lacks the variety of ''

'', and could do with more moments like One Way Street, which sets Aiko's existential breakdown to a dubby gleam, or the raw Born Tired, where a simple acoustic guitar motif showcases her vocal range. And while you obviously wish Aiko happiness after her breakup, it's disappointing, after the enjoyably visceral put-downs of the first half, that the album seems to conclude with a reconciliation, rendered in never-ending, luscious rhapsodies that keep coming like a film that doesn't know how to end."

Accolades

Grammy Awards

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, rowspan="2", ''Chilombo'' , Album of the Year , , - , Best Progressive R&B Album , , - , "Lightning & Thunder" ,

Commercial performance

''Chilombo'' debuted at number two on the US ''Billboard'' 200 chart, earning 152,000

s, (including 38,000 copies as pure album sales) in its first week. This became Aiko's fifth US top-ten album, her highest-charting album in the US and her highest first-week sales in the region. In its second week, the album dropped to number five on the chart, earning an additional 56,000 units. In its third week, the album dropped to number eight on the chart, earning 37,000 more units. In its fifth week, the album returned to the top-ten, at number ten on the chart, earning 27,000 units. As of December 2020, the album has earned over 1,032,000 album-equivalent units and has sold 81,000 copies as pure album sales in the US. On January 11, 2021, the album was certified

(RIAA) for combined sales and album-equivalent units of over a million units in the United States. In the United Kingdom, the album debuted at number 13 on the

UK Albums Chart The Official Albums Chart is the United Kingdom's industry-recognised national record chart for album, albums. Entries are ranked by sales and audio streaming. It was published for the first time on 22 July 1956 and is compiled every week by the O ...

, becoming Aiko's highest-charting album and first top 20 in the region. In Canada, the album peaked at number seven on the

Canadian Albums Chart The ''Billboard'' Canadian Albums is the official record chart A record chart, in the music industry, also called a music chart, is a ranking of Sound recording and reproduction, recorded music according to certain criteria during a given ...

, becoming Aiko's first top-ten album there.

Track listing

Notes * Physical copies of the album include a shorter version of "Party for Me" which does not feature Ty Dolla Sign. * "Pussy Fairy (OTW)" is stylised as "P*$$Y Fairy (OTW)". * "Love" is stylised as "LOVE". * "On the Way" is an alternate version of "Pussy Fairy (OTW)" Sample credits * "Happiness Over Everything (H.O.E.)" contains interpolations of "Where Are My Panties? (Interlude)", written by Andre Benjamin, and performed by

; and interpolations of "Hoe", written by Jhené Aiko Chilombo, Miguel Pimentel and

Radric Davis Radric Delantic Davis (born February 12, 1980), known professionally as Gucci Mane, is an American rapper. He is credited, along with fellow Atlanta-based rappers T.I. and Jeezy, with pioneering the hip hop subgenre trap music for mainstream a ...

, and performed by

. * "Summer 2020" contains a sample of " Summer Madness", written by Ronald Bell, Robert Bell,

George Brown George Brown may refer to: Arts and entertainment * George Loring Brown (1814–1889), American landscape painter * George Douglas Brown (1869–1902), Scottish novelist * George Williams Brown (1894–1963), Canadian historian and editor * Ge ...

Robert Mickens The name Robert is an ancient Germanic given name, from Proto-Germanic "fame" and "bright" (''Hrōþiberhtaz''). Compare Old Dutch ''Robrecht'' and Old High German ''Hrodebert'' (a compound of '' Hruod'' () "fame, glory, honour, praise, reno ...

Claydes Smith Claydes "Charles" Smith (born Claydes Eugene Smith; September 6, 1948 – June 20, 2006) was an American musician best known as co-founder and lead guitarist of the group Kool & the Gang. Biography Early life Born in Jersey City, New Jer ...

, Alton Taylor,

Dennis Thomas Dennis or Denis is a first or last name from the Greco-Roman name Dionysius, via one of the Christian saints named Dionysius. The name came from Dionysus, the Greek god of ecstatic states, particularly those produced by wine, which is sometime ...

and Ricky West, and performed by

Kool & the Gang Kool & the Gang is an American Rhythm and blues, R&B, soul music, soul, and funk band formed in Jersey City, New Jersey, in 1964. Its founding members include brothers Robert "Kool" Bell and Ronald Bell (musician), Ronald Bell (also known as " ...

Personnel

Credits adapted from

Tidal Tidal is the adjectival form of tide. Tidal may also refer to: * ''Tidal'' (album), a 1996 album by Fiona Apple * Tidal (king), a king involved in the Battle of the Vale of Siddim * TidalCycles, a live coding environment for music * Tidal (servic ...

. Performers * Monro – additional keyboards * Julian-Quán Việt Lê – additional keyboards ,

programming Program (American English; also Commonwealth English in terms of computer programming and related activities) or programme (Commonwealth English in all other meanings), programmer, or programming may refer to: Business and management * Program m ...

flute The flute is a member of a family of musical instruments in the woodwind group. Like all woodwinds, flutes are aerophones, producing sound with a vibrating column of air. Flutes produce sound when the player's air flows across an opening. In th ...

, horn arrangement , string arrangement *

– background vocals *

Ty Dolla Sign Tyrone William Griffin Jr. (born April 13, 1982), known professionally as Ty Dolla Sign (stylized as Ty Dolla $ign or Ty$), is an American singer, songwriter, rapper, and record producer. Born and raised in Los Angeles, California, Griffin gai ...

– background vocals * Steve Wyreman – guitar * Jonah Levine – guitar , trombone * Victor San Pedro – guitar * Gracie Sprout – harp * Dr. Chill – drums * Heavy Mellow – guitar * Robert "Bubby" Lewis – electric bass * Orbel Babayan – guitar * Brian Warfield – trumpet , additional keyboards * Fisticuffs – programming * Megan Shung – viola, violin * Asa Watkins – drums * Gregg Rominiecki – drums Technical * Dave Kutch –

mastering engineer Mastering is a form of audio post production which is the process of preparing and transferring recorded audio from a source containing the Audio mixing (recorded music), final mix to a data storage device called a master recording, the source ...

* Gregg Rominiecki – mixer ,

recording engineer An audio engineer (also known as a sound engineer or recording engineer) helps to produce a recording or a live performance, balancing and adjusting sound sources using equalization, dynamics processing and audio effects, mixing, reproducti ...

* Zeke Mishanec – recording engineer , mixer * Julian-Quán Việt Lê – recording engineer * Christian Plata – recording engineer * Fisticuffs – recording engineer * Miki Tsutsumi – recording engineer * Andy Guerrero – assistant recording engineer * Trey Pearce – assistant recording engineer * Alex Pyle – assistant recording engineer * Brian Cruz – assistant recording engineer * Johnny Morgan – assistant recording engineer

Background

Recording

Songs

Release and promotion

Singles

Critical reception

Accolades

Grammy Awards

Commercial performance

Track listing

Personnel

Charts

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

Certifications

Release history

References