Anderson .Paak and Cordae have announced their first collaborative album, ‘Heavy Is The Crown’. Find all the details below.
The record will be released on October 23 through APESHIT, Mass Appeal and EMPIRE. A tracklist or lead single has not yet been shared, but the album is available to pre-save and pre-order here.
The two artists first worked together on ‘RNP’, the track from Cordae’s Grammy-nominated 2019 debut album ‘The Lost Boy’. They later reunited on ‘Two Tens’ in 2023 and ‘Summer Drop’ in 2024, both of which taken from Cordae’s third record ‘The Crossroads’.
‘Heavy Is The Crown’ includes artwork modelled on the poster for Adam McKay’s 2008 comedy Step Brothers. The album will be available across multiple physical formats, including an animated zoetrope pressing and a lenticular-cover CD.
Cordae’s ‘From A Birds Eye View’ received a glowing five-star review from NME in 2022. “This is an album to give you goosebumps, as Cordae sets glorious tales to nostalgic hip-hop sounds, crafting three-minute bursts of quality,” the review stated.
“The older generation may wish to cast doubt on younger artists, but he breathes hope into the continuation of hip-hop with his imaginative, playful flows. ‘From A Birds Eye View’ is a true delight, revealing greater depth with each listen, and Cordae truly seems to be having fun while proving he’s here to stay.”
As for .Paak, earlier this year he marked the 10th anniversary of his breakthrough album ‘Malibu’ with special vinyl and cassette editions. He also made his feature-film directorial debut with K-Pops! in February, before releasing its accompanying soundtrack in May.
His last full-length album was ‘Why Lawd?‘, his second album with Knxwledge as NxWorries. It won Best Progressive R&B Album at the 2025 Grammys, bringing .Paak’s career total to nine awards.
Speaking to NME in 2024 about his affinity for working with other artists, he said: “I get a deep joy out of collaboration. I feel like there’s things I can do when I collaborate that I can’t do, which is solo. It’s a mind state that I put myself in when I’m working with other people. That helps me be even more creative.”
