Shiesty Season

The mixtape was announced on January 15, 2021, alongside the cover art and the release of the single "Guard Up".^[7] Following its release, Shiesty stated that it was "well overdue and well anticipated".^[8] It was released less than a year after he signed to Gucci Mane's 1017 Records, thanks to his viral track "Shiesty Summer".^[9] Prior to its release, Shiesty had released various singles through the label and appeared on the label compilation So Icy Summer.^[10]

According to Shiesty, the mixtape sees him "switching it up a lot. I got songs from every genre".^[9] In an interview with Zane Lowe, he said, "You getting Big Shiest on this mixtape — I'm touching on all categories. Expect me getting versatile. It's lit. You can expect some big features, shooting a video to every song on there. We're going all the way up".^[11] Stereogum's Tom Breihan said the mixtape contains "eerie beats, weirdly catchy death-threats, tons of atmosphere. Rather than shooting for crossover ubiquity, Pooh is doing one thing really well";^[1] as noted by The Fader's Jordan Darville, the mixtape mainly sees Pooh Shiesty "display a slouched flow hinting at an effortlessness to his skills",^[12] as he details his heavy weaponry and his love for guns in his signature Memphis drawl.^[13] Shiesty stated, "I got big features, big producers on here and I got my main producers I been rocking with".^[8]

On November 6, 2020, Pooh Shiesty released the mixtape's lead single "Back in Blood", featuring fellow American rapper Lil Durk, which became his first Billboard Hot 100 entry, peaking at number 13 on the chart.^[14] "Guard Up" was released as the second single along with the announcement of the project on January 15, 2021.^[15] "Neighbors", featuring fellow American rapper Big30, was released as the third single on February 3, 2021.^[16]

Pooh Shiesty released "Twerksum" as an official single on September 9, 2020, as a part of his label boss Gucci Mane's fifth compilation album, So Icy Gang, Vol. 1.^[17]

Shiesty Season debuted at number four on the US Billboard 200 with 62,000 album-equivalent units in its first week of release.^[18] The mixtape also spent three weeks atop Apple Music's pre-add chart.^[19][20][21] A month later, the mixtape peaked at three on the Billboard 200.^[22]

Performers

• Pooh Shiesty – primary artist (all tracks)
• Lil Durk – featured artist (track 2)
• Gucci Mane – featured artist (track 4)
• Big30 – featured artist (tracks 5, 9)
• 21 Savage – featured artist (track 8)
• Veeze – featured artist (track 9)
• Foogiano – featured artist (track 11)
• Lil Hank – featured artist (track 13)
• Choppa Wop – featured artist (track 13)
• Tay Keith – featured artist (track 16)

Technical and side musicians

• Skywalker OG – mixing, mastering (tracks 1, 2, 4–11, 13–16)
• Harry Chaplin – mixing, mastering, guitar (track 3)
• Eddie "eMIX" Hernandez – recording (track 4)
• Nick Seeley – bass (tracks 14, 15), guitar (tracks 14, 15), bass guitar (track 14), mellotron (track 14), percussion (track 14), strings (track 14), piano (track 15), additional drums (tracks 14, 15), additional vocals (track 15)
• Holly Seeley – additional vocals (track 15)