Maps of Music

Whole Lotta Red (2020)

Where the lyrics of Whole Lotta Red take you, and where it was really made.

An album released on Christmas Day 2020 topped the year-end lists of 2021 and was later credited with helping to define the rage subgenre of trap.

Key places

Main sessions in Atlanta (2020)

Recording site DARP Studios (Atlanta) — Most of the album was recorded at DJ Drama's Means Street Studios in Atlanta, alongside Carti's home. The point marks the city. Google Maps · Apple Maps

How to get there: See the map for directions.

Extra sessions at West's studios in Jackson Hole (2020)

Recording site West Lake Ranch — After West became executive producer, the two recorded an additional 16 songs at his studios in Jackson Hole, Wyoming. The point marks the city. Google Maps · Apple Maps

How to get there: See the map for directions.

Extra sessions at West's studios in Calabasas (2020)

Recording site Calabasas home studios — Part of the additional 16 songs were recorded at West's studios in Calabasas, California, after he agreed to executive-produce the album. Google Maps · Apple Maps

How to get there: See the map for directions.

Album story

Overview

• Second studio album by American rapper Playboi Carti
• Released December 25, 2020, through AWGE and Interscope Records
• Primarily produced by F1lthy and Art Dealer, with Kanye West and Matthew Williams as executive producers
• Experimental hip-hop, rage, and trap album with punk and electronic influences
• Lyrical themes include guns, wealth, and hedonism
• Dark, vampire-themed tone in which Carti adopts the persona of a vampire rock star
• Guest appearances by West, Kid Cudi, and Future

Background

• Follows the debut Die Lit (May 2018), executive-produced by Pi'erre Bourne
• Title first revealed in August 2018
• In late 2018 Carti moved from Los Angeles back to Atlanta with then-partner Iggy Azalea and settled in Buckhead
• Vampiric persona drawn from cult films The Lost Boys (1987) and Interview with the Vampire (1994)
• Named the Sex Pistols his favorite band and Sid Vicious a key influence
• March 2019 GQ interview: Virgil Abloh announced as creative director
• By late 2020 Carti had completed 16 tracks; after West agreed to executive-produce, the two recorded 16 more

Recording

• Sessions mainly at DJ Drama's Means Street Studios and at Carti's home
• Often recorded alone during late-night stretches
• Additional songs recorded at West's studios in Jackson Hole, Wyoming, and Calabasas, California
• Songs designed for live performance and mosh pits

Cover

• Designed by Art Dealer
• Pays homage to the late 1970s punk fanzine Slash
• Left side text refers to a fictional magazine from Carti's Opium imprint

Sources: en.wikipedia.org

Tracklist

Sources: musicbrainz.org

Artist

Formation

• Jordan Terrell Carter, known as Playboi Carti, is an American rapper born in Atlanta, Georgia.
• He began his career in 2011 as Sir Cartier, self-releasing tracks on SoundCloud, and rebranded as Playboi Carti by 2013.
• He signed with Awful Records in 2014 and with ASAP Rocky's AWGE imprint, a joint venture with Interscope Records, in 2016.

Career

• His self-titled mixtape (2017) debuted at number 12 on the Billboard 200.
• His debut album Die Lit (2018) debuted at number three on the Billboard 200.
• Whole Lotta Red (2020) became his first number-one album on the Billboard 200.
• Carter's "Carnival" with Kanye West and Ty Dolla Sign (2024) became his first number-one Billboard Hot 100 single.
• His third album Music (2025) became his second consecutive Billboard 200 number-one.
• He founded the label and collective Opium in 2019.

Sources: en.wikipedia.org

Reception

At release

• Generally positive reviews; critics praised the production and Carti's vocals but criticized the guest appearances and lack of depth
• AllMusic (Fred Thomas): lauded the blown-out instrumentals and demonic vocal performances
• Pitchfork (Paul A. Thompson): described the album as both wildly innovative and strikingly consistent
• Rolling Stone (Danny Schwartz): praised the eccentric performance style and Carti's theatrical emotion
• PopMatters (Semassa Boko): felt the album would have benefited from more guest appearances
• Beats Per Minute (Mimi Kenny): gave a negative review, calling it lacking in substance and consistency
• HipHopDX (Vivian Medithi): compared its bold, polarizing vision to Yeezus
• Metacritic: 75 out of 100 from 7 critics, generally favorable

Reappraisal

• Polarized response from listeners upon release
• Later credited with helping to define the rage subgenre of trap
• Rolling Stone ranked it number 129 on its 200 Greatest Hip-Hop Albums of All Time list (2022)
• Complex named it the fifteenth-best album of the 21st century (2025)
• Pitchfork ranked it number two on its 100 Best Albums of the 2020s So Far list (2024)

Records

• Debuted at number one on the US Billboard 200 with 100,000 album-equivalent units
• First US number-one album for Carti
• RIAA Gold certification on January 11, 2022

Sources: en.wikipedia.org

Trivia

• The single Pissy Pamper, a collaboration with Young Nudy, leaked in May 2019 and reached number one on Spotify's US Viral 50 chart before being removed.
• Musician Mario Judah announced on Instagram on November 30 that he would release his own version of Whole Lotta Red due to Carti's delays, which he did on December 11.
• The announced deluxe edition was never released: Despite the announcement, no deluxe edition was ever released.
• On January 20, 2021, Carti performed Slay3r on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon.
• The closing track, F33l Lik3 Dyin, samples Bon Iver.

Sources: en.wikipedia.org

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