| Freebandz Entertainment | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Parent company | Sony Music Entertainment (SME) |
| Founded | 2011 |
| Founder | Future |
| Distributor | Epic |
| Genre | |
| Country of origin | United States |
| Location | Atlanta, Georgia |
| Official website | freebandz |
Freebandz (orFreebandz Entertainment, business name ofWilburn Holding Co.) is an Americanrecord label founded by Atlanta-based rapperFuture in 2011. The label's releases are distributed throughEpic Records. Freebandz has signed artists includingReal Boston Richey,Lil Double O,Doe Boy,Young Scooter andDJ Esco.[1]
Freebandz was founded by Future. Future signed a major label deal withEpic Records in September 2011, days before the release of his mixtape,Streetz Calling.[2] The mixtape was described byXXL magazine as ranging from "simple and soundly executed boasts" to "futuristic drinking and drugging jams" to "tales of the grind."[3] APitchfork review remarked that on the mixtape Future comes "as close as anyone to perfecting this thread of ringtone pop, where singing and rapping are practically the same thing, and conversing 100% throughAuto-Tune doesn't mean you still can't talk about how you used to sell drugs. It would almost feel antiquated if Future weren't amassing hits, or if he weren't bringing some subtle new dimensions to the micro-genre."[4]
Though Future had toldMTV thatStreetz Calling would be his final mixtape prior to the release of his debut studio album, another mixtape,Astronaut Status, was released in January 2012. In December 2011, Future was featured on the cover of Issue #77 ofThe FADER.[5] Before his album being released in April 2012.[6][7]XXL's Troy Mathews wrote, "WhileAstronaut Status is up and down and never really hits the highs like 'Racks', 'Tony Montana', and 'Magic' that fans have come to expect from Future, it’s apparent that he’s poised to continue the buzz of 2011 humming right along into 2012."[8] Future was selected to the annualXXLFreshmen list in early 2012.[9]
His debut albumPluto, originally planned for January, was eventually released on April 17.[10][11] It includedremixes of "Tony Montana" featuringDrake and "Magic" featuringT.I.[12] According to Future, "'Magic' was the first record T.I. jumped on when he came outta jail. Like, he was out of jail a day and he jumped straight on the 'Magic' record without me even knowing about it."[12] The track became Future's first single to enter theBillboard Hot 100 chart.[13] Other collaborators on the album includeTrae Tha Truth,R. Kelly andSnoop Dogg[14] On October 8, 2012,Pusha T released "Pain" featuring Future, the first single from his upcoming debut album.
It was announced that Future will be repackaging his debut albumPluto on November 27, 2012 under the namePluto 3D featuring 3 new songs and 2 remix songs including the remix for "Same Damn Time" featuringDiddy andLudacris, as well as his newest street single "Neva End (Remix)" featuringKelly Rowland.[15] In 2012, Future wrote, produced and was featured on "Loveeeeeee Song" taken from Barbadian singerRihanna's seventh studio albumUnapologetic.
On January 15, 2013, Future released the compilation mixtapeF.B.G.: The Movie which features the artists signed to his Freebandz label:Young Scooter, Casino, Maceo, Mexico Rann, and Slice 9. It was certified platinum for having over 250,000 downloads on popular mixtape siteDatPiff.[16]Future said of his second studio albumFuture Hendrix it will be a more substantive musical affair than his debut album and will featureR&B music along with his usual "street bangers". The album was to be released in 2013.[17] The album would featureKanye West,Rihanna,Ciara,Drake,Kelly Rowland,Jeremih,Diplo, andAndré 3000, among others.[18]
The album's lead single, "Karate Chop" featuring Casino, premiered on January 25, 2013 and was sent tourban radio on January 29, 2013.[19] The song is produced by Metro Boomin. The official remix, which features Lil Wayne, was sent radio and was released on iTunes on February 19, 2013. On August 7, 2013, Future changed the title of his second album fromFuture Hendrix toHonest and announced that it would be released on November 26, 2013.[20] It was later revealed that the album would be pushed back to April 22, 2014, as it was said that Future has tour dates withDrake onWould You Like A Tour?.[21][22] Future releasedDS2 on July 16, 2015.
On September 20, 2015, Future released a joint-mixtape with Canadian rapperDrake,What a Time to Be Alive.[23]
On January 17, 2016, Future released another mixtape, titledPurple Reign, with productions fromMetro Boomin,Southside,Zaytoven, and more.[24]
On February 5, 2016, Future premiered his fourth studio album onDJ Khaled's debut of hisWe The Best Radio show onBeats 1.[25]
Future usesAuto-Tune in his songs. SingerT-Pain, who also uses that audio processor, criticized Future, stating that the rapper doesn't know how to use it correctly.[26] After that announcement Future stated in an interview; "When I first used Auto-Tune, I never used it to sing. I wasn't using it the way T-Pain was. I used it to rap because it makes my voice sound grittier. Now everybody wants to rap in Auto-Tune. Future's not everybody."[27]
TheBET Awards were established in 2001 by theBlack Entertainment Television network to celebrate African Americans and other individuals in music, acting, sports, and other fields of entertainment over the past year.
| Year | Category | Nominated work | Result | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2012 | Best New Artist (Future) | N/a | Nominated | [31] |
| 2013 | Best Male Hip-Hop Artist (Future) | [32] | ||
| 2014 | Best Male Hip-Hop Artist (Future) | [33] |
TheBET Hip Hop Awards are an annual awards show, airing on BET, showcasinghip hop performers, producers andmusic video directors.
| Year | Category | Nominated work | Result | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2013 | Best Collabo, Duo or Group (Future) | "Bugatti" (withAce Hood andRick Ross) | Nominated | [34] |
| Best Featured Verse (Future) | ||||
| 2014 | MVP of the Year (Future) | — | [35] | |
| Album of the Year (Future) | Honest | |||
| Best Collabo, Duo or Group (Future) | "Move That Dope" (withPharrell,Pusha T and Casino) | |||
| Best Club Banger (Future) | Won | |||
| Best Hip Hop Video (Future) | Nominated | |||
| People's Champ Award (Future) |
TheMuch Music Video Awards are annual awards presented by the Canadian TV channel Much to honour the year's best music videos.
| Year | Category | Nominated work | Result | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2015 | Best Hip Hop Video (Future) | "DnF" (Future withP Reign andDrake) | Won | [36] |
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