No, you’re not hearing voices. Dave East did in fact announce a release date and tour for Paranoia 2. According to the artist’s Instagram, the album will drop on January 16th (you sure, Dave?) and tickets for the tour are available now.
The Harlem rapper has been taking his time with his first album. Almost a year after signing his first major record deal with Def Jam, he placated expectant fans with an EP entitled Paranoia: A True Story this summer. East previously described the 13-track EP as a “appetizer” to an upcoming full-fledged studio album. Since Paranoia, East released Karma, 16-track mixtape hosted by DJ Holiday, featuring Offset, Lil Durk, DonQ, and Chris Brown, with production by Mally Raw, 808 Mafia, and Black Metaphor.
As far as the long-awaited album is concerned, it’s all about timing, according to East. He previously told Billboard, “...I still want to run around a little more. I still ain’t tour yet, There’s a lot of things that I still want to do before I say, ‘Alright. Here’s my album.’” Well, it appears East is ready for both now. Paranoia 2 is said to include more stories about the rapper’s life from before he reached his celebrity status. The East Harlem native grew up with aspirations of becoming a basketball player, but things didn’t workout at the collegiate level, where his attitude alienated him from his coaches. East (David Brewster, Jr.) started selling drugs in Baltimore, earning him a 6-month prison-sentence where the former Catholic discovered Islam. He got into the rap game shortly after getting out, and as the story goes, Nas discovered the up-and-coming star on YouTube.
