Royce 5’9″ delivers the Book of Ryan.
Less than a week after dropping PRhyme 2 with DJ Premier, Royce wasted no time in announcing his next solo album. And now, the rap world has been blessed with what the Detroit lyricist is calling his “greatest piece of work.”
“I put everything I had into this album (spiritually, mentally, physically, and financially) and I’m excited to finally share it with the world,” Royce told Complex.
“This is the perfect ME to share with people,” he later revealed to Rap-Up. “It’s not the negative me across the board. I still got a little bit of an edge, but I’m grown. I’m thinking right, I’m sharp, and I’m not stuck in a chamber where I’m just making dark music. I’m sober and able to be as introspective as possible. It’s the perfect time for me to open up.”
“I’m a master of storytelling now,” he adds. “I’m very, very good at being able to balance these different things that I’ve been able to learn to do over the years just as an artist and paint a picture for you.”
Locked in at 21 tracks, including “Boblo Boat” with J. Cole, “Dumb” with Boogie, “Stay Woke,” and the insanely dope “Caterpillar” with his Bad Meets Evil partner Eminem, the album also includes a posse cut with Pusha T, Jadakiss, and Fabolous, as well as contributions from T-Pain, Logic, Robert Glasper, Marsha Ambrosius, and more.
Peep the tracklist, press play below, and be sure to add Book of Ryan on your preferred streaming platform.
- “Intro”
- “Woke”
- “My Parallel (Skit)”
- “Caterpillar” f. Eminem & King Green
- “God Speed” f. Ashley Sorrell
- “Dumb” f. Boogie
- “Who Are You (Skit)”
- “Cocaine”
- “Life Is Fair”
- “Boblo Boat” f. J. Cole
- “Legendary”
- “Summer On Lock” f. Pusha T, Jadakiss & Fabolous
- “Amazing” f. Melanie Rutherford
- “Outside” f. Marsha Ambrosius & Robert Glasper
- “Power”
- “Protecting Ryan (Skit)”
- “Strong Friend”
- “Antyhing/Everything”
- “Stay Woke” f. Ashley Sorrell
- “First of the Month” f. T-Pain & Chavis Chandler
- “Caterpillar (Remix)” f. Logic & King Green
“I just want the fans to hear my evolution as an artist as well as me as a man and learn from my mistakes,” Royce shares via press statement. “I think they got a little bit of that with Layers, but Book of Ryan is me letting it all out.”
