Ahead of their upcoming international tour, ATL GRAMMY-nominated and Billboard chart-topping rap duo, EARTHGANG, have just shared their new album Perfect Fantasy online now via UnitedMasters. The LP arrives alongside an accompanying music video for the Pharrell Williams-produced record “U Gotta”. Shot in Tokyo, the Hideyuki Ishii-directed video finds EARTHGANG embracing Japanese culture by exploring the colorful city, mingling with fans, go-karting, and capping it all off with a dance party at an undisclosed location.
In addition to Pharrell, Perfect Fantasy includes features from Snoop Dogg, Little Dragon, Cochise, Damon Albarn, and T-Pain, who guested on lead single “Love You More”. Bucking industry trends alongside the likes of Tyler, The Creator, Perfect Fantasy is EARTHGANG’s first independently released album, allowing them to drop it on a Tuesday instead of Friday, which gives fans the chance to live with the music throughout the week.
A conceptual project that explores the effects of AI on society, Perfect Fantasy is the final chapter in their EARTHGANG VS. The Algorithm series and finds the duo questioning the ways advanced technologies are consuming our lives while dreaming of an alternate universe where humans could live more freely. Perfect Fantasy boasts a vast sonic landscape, transporting listeners from the dark backswamps of “Bobby Boucher” to the sunkissed cityscapes of “OSMOSIS” to the technicolor nightclubs of the T-Pain assisted “Love You More”. The project authentically brings to life the world of Tokyolanta — a “Perfect Fantasy,” Y2K-inspired version of the future where tech is fun again, rather than the present reality of a divisive, impersonal data algorithm. Perfect Fantasy’s sonic and creative narrative highlights EARTHGANG’s authentic voice, one that brings people together and animates the living and breathing soul of global humanity. In the age of AI, EARTHGANG fight back, as Perfect Fantasy represents the future we all thought would be here by now in 2024.
The EARTHGANG VS. The Algorithm trilogy began in 2023 with the first installment—RIP Human Art, which was the duo’s first release since 2020’s critically-acclaimed Ghetto Gods album. In an interview with VICE, EARTHGANG foreshadowed their second installment of the series, Robophobia, which was released in early 2024.
Towards the completion of Perfect Fantasy the ATL duo was inspired by a trip to Japan, which provided the finishing touches on the album with a stunning balance of EARTHGANG‘s roots and perspective of the future. The BET Award-winning group are a unique standout in the flourishing Atlanta music scene, serving as an ever-flowing oasis of musical experimentation and redefining what’s possible in Hip-Hop by blending sounds that challenge the status quo.
© 2024, Seth "Digital Crates" Barmash. All rights reserved.
