JackBoys

Jackboys is a collaborative compilation album by American record label Cactus Jack Records, under the name Jackboys, led by American rapper and singer Travis Scott. It was released through Cactus Jack Records alongside Epic Records on December 27, 2019. The album features guest appearances from Rosalía, Lil Baby, Sheck Wes, Don Toliver, Quavo, Offset, Young Thug, and Pop Smoke. Jackboys is a hip hop collective of rappers signed to Scott's Cactus Jack imprint, including Scott himself, Sheck Wes, Don Toliver, SoFaygo, and Scott's DJ Chase B. Upon debut, Jackboys opened atop the US Billboard 200 on January 11, 2020, becoming the first number one album of the 2020s. It was Scott's third album to debut atop the chart after his third studio album, Astroworld (2018).

Jackboys
Compilation album by
ReleasedDecember 27, 2019
Recorded2019
Genre
Length21:22
Label
Producer
Travis Scott chronology
Astroworld
(2018)
Jackboys
(2019)
Utopia
(2023)
Singles from JackBoys
  1. "Had Enough"
    Released: December 27, 2019
  2. "Highest in the Room (Remix)"
    Released: January 7, 2020
  3. "Out West"
    Released: February 18, 2020
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[1]
Exclaim!6/10[2]
HipHopDX3.3/5[3]
Mic Cheque7/10[4]
Pitchfork5.9/10[5]
RapReviews5.5/10[6]
Sputnikmusic3/5[7]

Background and release

In March 2017, Scott announced he would be launching his own imprint, under the name of Cactus Jack Records.[8][9] During an interview, Scott said, "I'm not doing it to have financial control over my music. I want first and foremost to help other artists, launch new names, to provide opportunities. I want to do for them what happened to me, but better."[10] In September 2017, fellow American rapper Smokepurpp signed to the label, but he left sometime later in 2019.[11] In February 2018, the label signed Sheck Wes in a joint deal with Interscope Records and GOOD Music.[12]In August, Don Toliver was signed to the label.[13] After the release of Scott's third studio album, Astroworld (2018), artists Wes and Toliver began to rise to popularity after they appeared on the album. Wes's June 2017 single, "Mo Bamba", went viral in 2018 and Toliver's May 2019 single, "No Idea", went viral on the app TikTok in the same year. Wes and Toliver both helped Scott on Astroworld, with Wes being featured alongside fellow American rapper Juice Wrld on "No Bystanders" and Toliver being featured on "Can't Say".[14] On November 29, 2019, Scott released JackBoys merchandise on his website, including a digital album preorder for $10.[15] On December 24, Scott revealed on Twitter that the album would be released within the week.[16] On December 26, a day before the album was released, the cover art and release date were revealed and the song titles were leaked on Shazam.[17]

Singles

The lead single of the album, "Had Enough", performed by American rapper and singer Don Toliver that features American rappers Quavo and Offset from the hip hop trio Migos, was released along with the album on December 27, 2019. The remix of Scott's 2019 single, "Highest in the Room", features Spanish singer Rosalía and American rapper Lil Baby was sent to Italian contemporary hit radio as the second single on January 7, 2020.[18] The third and final single, "Out West", performed by JackBoys and Scott that features American rapper Young Thug, was sent to rhythmic contemporary radio on February 18, 2020.[19]

Commercial performance

JackBoys debuted at number one on the US Billboard 200 with 154,000 album-equivalent units, of which 79,000 were pure album sales.[20] In its second week, the album dropped to number four on the chart, earning 47,000 album-equivalent units.[21] In its third week, the album dropped to number seven on the chart, earning 38,000 more units that week.[22] All the songs on the album debuted on the Billboard Hot 100 with the exception of the titular track.[23]

Track listing

No.TitleWriter(s)Producer(s)Length
1."Highest in the Room (Remix)" (Travis Scott featuring Rosalía and Lil Baby)
  • Mike Dean
  • Oz
  • Nik D
4:04
2."JackBoys" (JackBoys)
0:46
3."Gang Gang" (JackBoys and Sheck Wes)
  • WondaGurl
  • Vou
4:04
4."Had Enough" (Don Toliver featuring Quavo and Offset)
2:37
5."Out West" (featuring Young Thug)2:37
6."What to Do?" (featuring Don Toliver)
  • Webster
  • Toliver
  • Fall
  • Dean
  • James Cyr
  • Julius-Alexander Brown
  • Niv Kalisky
  • Sarah Schachner
  • Dean
  • London Cyr
  • Jenius
  • Earlyyellow[b]
  • Schachner[b]
4:10
7."Gatti" (with Pop Smoke)
3:01
Total length:21:19

Notes

  • ^[a] signifies a co-producer
  • ^[b] signifies a miscellaneous producer
  • ^[c] signifies an uncredited additional producer[24]
  • All tracks are stylized in all caps.
  • "JackBoys" was titled as "Intro" when the album released and changed a day later
  • "Gang Gang" features uncredited vocals by Don Toliver, Travis Scott and Luxury Tax.

Sample credits

Personnel

  • David Rodriguez – recording (track 1)
  • Travis Scott – recording (tracks 3, 5, 6)
  • Rob Bisel – recording (tracks 3, 6)
  • Flo – recording (track 5)
  • Derek Anderson – recording (track 6)
  • Nate Alford – recording (track 7)
  • Colton Eatmon – engineering (track 4)
  • Trevor Coulter – engineering (track 4)
  • Jon Sher – engineering assistant (tracks 1, 3)
  • Josh Harris – engineering assistant (track 1)
  • Sean Solymar – engineering assistant (tracks 1, 7)
  • Jimmy Cash – engineering assistant (tracks 1, 7), recording (track 3)
  • Shawn Morenberg – engineering assistant (track 4)
  • Harmony Korine – artwork (all tracks)[25]
  • Mike Dean – mixing (all tracks), mastering (all tracks)

Charts

Year-end charts

Chart (2020)Position
Belgian Albums (Ultratop Flanders)[42]98
Belgian Albums (Ultratop Wallonia)[43]162
Canadian Albums (Billboard)[44]31
French Albums (SNEP)[45]149
US Billboard 200[46]39
US Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums (Billboard)[47]26

Certifications

RegionCertificationCertified units/sales
Canada (Music Canada)[48]Gold40,000
Denmark (IFPI Danmark)[49]Gold10,000
France (SNEP)[50]Gold100,000
Italy (FIMI)[51]Gold25,000
Poland (ZPAV)[52]Gold10,000
United Kingdom (BPI)[53]Silver60,000

Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone.

References