2014 comes with a lot of long-awaited projects and artists finally fulfilling promises—Nipsey Hu$$le, ScHoolboy Q, 50 Cent and YG are a few whose albums are finally slated for this year—as well as a number of heavyweights—Rick Ross, Juicy J, Raekwon and T.I.—getting back on their grind. But what, exactly, can we expect from these LPs? That's the question on everybody's minds. And while some details have trickled out for each project, we don't even have a single tracklist to pore over and dream about.

But just because we have to wait for the actual music doesn't mean we can't go right to the source to find out as much information as we can about some of the hottest projects slated for the year. With respect to a couple major records that seem to be on the shelf—Wu-Tang's A Better Tomorrow, an OutKast reunion album, Detox—we dove into a couple of the albums that we're buzzing about the most over at XXL headquarters, asking some of the principal players involved for their take on what's to come.

We've seen the lists. We've felt the buzz. But we wanted to hear from the artists, managers and producers themselves. XXL presents an in-depth look at our 25 most anticipated albums for 2014. Can't stop, won't stop. Dan Rys, Eric Diep, Emmanuel C.M., Miranda Johnson and Sowmya Krishnamurthy

ScHoolboy Q - Common | Joey Bada$$ - Nipsey Hu$$le | Killer Mike - Asher Roth | YG - Action Bronson

Logic - Raekwon | Wiz Khalifa - Meek Mill | Lil Wayne - Nicki Minaj | 50 Cent - Kanye West

ARTIST: ScHoolboy Q
ALBUM TITLE: Oxymoron
LABEL: TDE/Interscope
ALBUM #: 1
DATE: February 25
BEGAN RECORDING: June 2012
BEATS: THC, Gwen Bunn, Nez & Rio, Sounwave, Tae Beast, J. Cole, Clams Casino, Alchemist, Boi-1da
FEATURES: Kendrick Lamar, Danny Brown, possibly Raekwon, 2 Chainz, Tyler, The Creator
FIRST SINGLE: "Collard Greens" featuring Kendrick Lamar
FYI: It's been a long wait for Q's debut album, but based on some of the singles that have dropped, it'll be well worth the wait when it comes near the end of February. His first official project since 2011's Habits And Contradictions, it's the first major hip-hop album to hit shelves in 2014.
MOVIN' ON UP: " This is a street hip-hop album, told from the perspective of a man trying to raise his daughter," says producer and TDE Co-President Dave Free. "Starting from Setbacks to Habits & Contradictions, previous installments of ScHoolboy Q's trilogy Oxymoron which goes in depth on how a young man goes from selling Oxycontins to support himself and his family touring all over the world with music. ScHoolboy Q will bring that feeling back, like the first time you heard a 50 Cent album. Go get your bucket hats, it's Q-Wop Season."
SALES PITCH: "This is a TDE album," Free says. "That's my sales pitch."

ARTIST: Rick Ross
ALBUM TITLE: Mastermind
LABEL: MMG/Def Jam
ALBUM #: 6
DATE: March 4
BEGAN RECORDING: 2013
BEATS: K.E. On Tha Track, Diddy, DJ Khaled, Scott Storch
FEATURES: Jay Z, Future, Jeezy
FIRST SINGLE: "The Devil Is A Lie" featuring Jay Z
FYI: Ross' last album, 2012's God Forgives, I Don't, earned the Bawse his second-ever Grammy nomination, and he's only gotten bigger from there. He released a series of singles this past summer—"Box Chevy," "Oil Money Gang" featuring Jadakiss and "No Games" featuring Future—but when he dropped "Devil Is A Lie" with Jay Z this December, it was clear that Rozay had returned to album form.
MOVIN' ON UP: Will Mastermind live up to the lofty standards of GFID? Ross' label certainly thinks so. "Rozay delivers every time he drops a album," says MMG Vice President Young Sav.
SALES PITCH: "Expect another masterpiece, an album that you can listen to from beginning to end," says Young Sav. "An album we all will be considering one of the best this year."

ARTIST: Common
ALBUM TITLE: Nobody Smiling
LABEL: Warner Bros.
ALBUM #: 10
QUARTER: N/A
BEGAN RECORDING: 2013
BEATS: No I.D.
FEATURES: Vince Staples, James Fauntleroy, Chicago MCs
FIRST SINGLE: "War"
FYI: Common's followup to his 2011 album The Dreamer/The Believer will see him re-focus on his hometown of the Chi after spending some more time as an actor on AMC's Hell On Wheels. It'll be an expanded version of what was initially supposed to be an EP out in 2013, and will be entirely produced by No I.D.
MOVIN' ON UP: “All of our conversations in the studio led to the conversation about Chicago. I was like, ‘You are an elder statesman. You have a lot to offer them. You could really help them,’ says producer No I.D on how he and Common came up with the idea for Nobody Smiling. "They [the kids] would love for you to help them. They probably just feel like you don’t like them. Let’s put the cause in the front of our mind.”
SALES PITCH: No I.D. promises that the album will relay Common’s experiences growing up in Chicago and the lessons he’s gleaned, without being preachy. "We were you. We were where you are. Look at us. Being where you are doesn’t mean you can’t go anywhere you want to go. Things have changed since when we were you—why are they getting like this? Just because you're seeing Common acting or clean-cut don’t think he wasn’t 87th Street corner gang banging,” he says. "At one point it was a concept album, but now it’s just turning into a really good, well-balanced album."

ARTIST: Joey Bada$$
ALBUM TITLE: B4.DA.$$
LABEL: Cinematic
ALBUM #: 1
QUARTER: 3rd (Fall)
BEGAN RECORDING: late 2013
BEATS: DJ Premier
FEATURES: Unknown, though manager Jonny Shipes promises "some nice surprises."
FIRST SINGLE: N/A
FYI: After two well-received mixtapes—1999 and Summer Knights—the Pro Era captain is finally hard at work on his official debut full-length, reportedly getting into the studio with DJ Premier, who helmed his song "Unorthodox," to knock out some tracks.
MOVIN' ON UP: "Joey has spent the past few years honing his skills to the point he felt he was ready to drop what he feels would be his debut album," Shipes says. "The mixtapes were the growth."
SALES PITCH: "Fans should look forward to the most uncompromising hip-hop album in a long time," Shipes says. "If you're a fan of Joey you will love this album for no other reason than he did exactly what he wanted to with no corny label people tryin' to change shit about his sound and creative process.... Straight PROgressive CinematiC music."

ARTIST: Big K.R.I.T.
ALBUM TITLE: Cadillactica
LABEL: Def Jam
ALBUM #: 2
QUARTER: N/A
BEGAN RECORDING: 2012
BEATS: DJ Dahi, Jim Johnson, Rico Love, DJ Toomp, Terius Martin, Big K.R.I.T., Organized Noize
FEATURES: Future
FIRST SINGLE: "Just Last Week" featuring Future (may not be official single)
FYI: Cadillactica, the followup to 2011's Live From The Underground, will find Big K.R.I.T taking listeners on a ride to another universe. He's described the album's setting as "the planet called Cadillactica where the soul and the funk comes from."
MOVIN' ON UP: Big K.R.I.T says that the album is "a monster in itself," and is certainly different from his past material. On the LP, the Cinematic rapper says that he's trying a lot of new things and he's experimenting a little bit more between singing and live instrumentation.
SALES PITCH: "People think that once you get to a certain point that you may not have to prove yourself anymore, but I still have a want to prove myself," K.R.I.T. says. "Prove myself as far as musically, as far as creatively, as far as being a musician and show growth. It’s very important to show growth at this point in my career, to show growth and really put down on wax those things that I’ve had to experience, those things that I’ve had the opportunity to see."

ARTIST: Nipsey Hu$$le
ALBUM TITLE: Victory Lap
LABEL: Independent
ALBUM #: 1
QUARTER: 2nd
BEGAN RECORDING: 2012
BEATS: DJ Mustard, Don Cannon, DJ Khalil, Ralo, 1500 or Nothin', The Futuristiks
FEATURES: N/A
FIRST SINGLE: "Rap Niggas," on the way
FYI: Nipsey's debut solo album, Victory Lap, has been rumored for some time now, but Nipsey had to get himself out of an unhappy label situation with Epic, first. This past August, he switched the project from its initial status as a mixtape to be his debut album and, after dropping the well-received mixtape Crenshaw in October, it now appears to be on the way. He'll use the same Proud2Pay, $100 campaign he used so successfully on Crenshaw, as well.
MOVIN' ON UP: In preparation for the album, Nipsey has been dropping a series of singles, including "Alert" alongside Hit-Boy, though the first official single is still on the way. For Victory Lap, he's been taking his time and making sure it drops his way, on his own.
SALES PITCH: "It was always my vision to drop my album on my own label," Nipsey says. "It's important to be viewed as more than talent. Timing is everything."

ARTIST: Killer Mike and El-P
ALBUM TITLE: Run The Jewels 2
LABEL: Fool's Gold
ALBUM #: 2
QUARTER: N/A
BEGAN RECORDING: December 2013
BEATS: El-P
FEATURES: N/A
FIRST SINGLE: N/A
FYI: The duo's first project, Run The Jewels, was critically adored, and both Mike and El are entering in to a second career as elder statesmen who can still entertain the masses. And based off the success of that first project, they hopped straight back into the studio for a second, due out at some point later this year.
MOVIN' ON UP: Mike and El got back into the studio in December, and will be recording steadily through March, at least. According to Killer Mike, the Run The Jewels 2 project is top priority for 2014.
SALES PITCH: "Run The Jewels 2 is gonna be angrier, darker, harder, meaner, and funnier than Run The Jewels 1, which was angrier, darker, meaner and funnier than anything else that dropped last year," Killer Mike say, laughing. "There's our pitch."

ARTIST: Juicy J
ALBUM TITLE: The Hustle Continues (THC)
LABEL: Columbia
ALBUM #: 4 (solo)
MONTH: September
BEGAN RECORDING: Late 2013
BEATS: Mike WiLL Made It, Dr. Luke, 808 Mafia
FEATURES: Not many... But "one crazy feature," Juicy told Rolling Stone this month.
FIRST SINGLE: N/A, though Juicy just dropped "Blow Out" last week
FYI: Juicy has come roaring back with a solo career to rival his old Three 6 Mafia days (although his second Oscar hasn't yet come through). With 2012's "Bandz A Make Her Dance" and last summer's Stay Trippy, it's clear the Juice Man still has plenty to say.
MOVIN' ON UP: "It’s going to be still me, but it’s like me as a CEO. Me as a boss," Juicy says about the album. "I’ve been doing this for years. Now, I’m just going to express and show people and tell people about my life, what I’ve been going through from back in the day until now, to me getting a second go around in this music. Mixed with a little bit of my party life. I can’t forget about my party life. It’s going to be more serious about coming up in the game. You know, how a person can make it out here. It’s a lot of people hustling out here trying to figure out ways to make it. I come straight from nothing. I’m gonna talk about that. Just a lot of personal stuff. From an artist standpoint to a CEO standpoint."
SALES PITCH: "Just let a person know what it is," Juicy says. "I’m still gonna do my ratchet turn up cause that’s my life. Everything I’m talking about is my life. I kick it a little bit. But, at the end of the day on the business side, I handle business... The name of the album is called The Hustle Continues. THC. You know what THC is. The Hustle Continues. Pimp THC. Purp, you feel me? The hustle continues. I am going to keep on working. It ain’t over yet. I did that. I got more to talk about. I got more stuff in my life that people need to hear and situations that I have been through."

ARTIST: Asher Roth
ALBUM TITLE: Retro Hash
LABEL: Independent
ALBUM #: 2
QUARTER: 1st
BEGAN RECORDING: N/A
BEATS: Blended Babies, maybe Pete Rock
FEATURES: "I just want to make music with my friends," Asher says.
FIRST SINGLE: "Pot Of Gold"
FYI: This is Asher Roth’s second album, the follow-up to his debut album Asleep In The Bread Aisle, which came out a little under four years ago. The title Retro Hash is an anagram of his name. The sophomore album was initially announced back in 2011 as The Spaghetti Tree and, subsequently, Is This Too Orange. However, after two years of limbo under Def Jam, his album is finally ready for release independently in the first quarter of 2014.
MOVIN' ON UP: “I think it’s going to be rewarding for my core audience because they grew up with me," Roth says. "So they are able to experience and see that growth and from a sound standpoint, I think it’s going to bring in a whole new audience. Some people who are privy to Asher Roth or aren’t familiar with his early work I think this is a record that they might be into."
SALES PITCH: “They don’t need to buy the album," he says of his fans. "Obviously if people want to support monetary, more so I would love for people to come out to the shows and hangout. However you get the music in this day and age is cool with me. Anybody who supports and puts hard earn money towards music; it’s a beautiful thing because we have the opportunity to get it easily. When fans actually support you it goes a really long way. But come out to the shows and hangout with us, that’s the stuff that means the world."

ARTIST: YG
ALBUM TITLE: My Krazy Life
LABEL: Def Jam
ALBUM #: 1
DATE: March 18
BEGAN RECORDING: N/A
BEATS: DJ Mustard
FEATURES: Drake, Jeezy, Rich Homie Quan, Ty Dolla $ign
FIRST SINGLE: "My Nigga" featuring Jeezy and Rich Homie Quan
FYI: After inking a deal with Jeezy in early 2013, YG is gearing up to release his debut studio album, My Krazy Life, on Def Jam. Originally set to be released in 2010—following the buzz of his Ty Dolla $ign-assisted "Toot It and Boot It"—the LA rapper chose to hold off on his first major label project, even changing the former title I'm From Bompton.
MOVIN' ON UP: "It's not nothing that we haven't been doing—we're making the style of L.A. rap relevant, 'cause a lot of rappers wasn't doing it no more," says DJ Mustard about the YG album. "So a lot of shit you hear right now is a lot of shit that's been taken from us."
SALES PITCH: "Our pitch to everybody is just showing where it really comes from, how it really sounds," Mustard says. "Because at the end of the day we created our own lane, and it's made L.A. big and a lot of people in L.A. do the same shit. We're just showing everybody that we're the ones that started this shit, and this is how it should sound, and this is the sound of the West Coast for the next couple summers."

ARTIST: T.I.
ALBUM TITLE: Paperwork: The Motion Picture
LABEL: Columbia
ALBUM #: 9
QUARTER: N/A
BEGAN RECORDING: 2013
BEATS: Pharrell, DJ Toomp, Keno, Sham
FEATURES: Justin Timberlake, Jeezy, Busta Rhymes, B.o.B, maybe Doe B
FIRST SINGLE: N/A
FYI: Originally titled Troubleman II: He Who Wears The CrownTip renamed the album after an influx of new ideas took the direction away from making a followup to his 2012 Trouble Man: Heavy Is The Head album. With Pharrell signing on as executive producer, this new project will have a more cinematic feel, he says.
MOVIN' ON UP: "It’s really documenting a day in the life of someone living a lifestyle that everybody ain’t familiar with," Tip says about the album. "It’s giving people a safe way to venture out into a lifestyle that’s not very safe for them to do physically."
SALES PITCH: The Kang has emphasized that the album will have a movie-like quality, and is shaping up to be almost a concept album of sorts. "You get to live vicariously through myself and other characters as they present themselves and their dilemmas throughout the course of this album," he says.

ARTIST: Action Bronson
ALBUM TITLE: Unknown
LABEL: Atlantic
ALBUM #: 1
QUARTER: N/A
BEGAN RECORDING: 2013
BEATS: N/A
FEATURES: N/A
FIRST SINGLE: N/A
FYI: Bronson has been extremely successful on the mixtape circuit, linking up with Alchemist, Harry Fraud and Party Supplies for complete projects. Whether he continues that trend of having one producer helm his entire debut is up in the air, but one thing is certain—it's sure to contain some next-level imagery, as per usual for Bronson. And with his extensive history of collaborating with tons of artists on their projects—from Mac Miller to Chance The Rapper to Curren$y and more—it will be interesting to see what tack he takes on his own project.
MOVIN' ON UP: "If you are already a fan of me, you are gonna expect off the wall, next level to the maximum of what I’ve already done on steroids," Bronson says. "If you don’t know me, you are gonna laugh, you are gonna cry, you are gonna hate me, you are gonna think I am a piece of shit. You are gonna wanna be with me. You are gonna want to fight for me. Then you’ll slice a fucking bitch’s face for me."
SALES PITCH: "I’m on some next level shit," Bronson says. "No one is doing anything that I am doing. If you have a taste for the not basic structure like normal things should be, then I’m your guy."

ARTIST: Logic
ALBUM TITLE: Unknown
LABEL: Def Jam
ALBUM #: 1
QUARTER: N/A
BEGAN RECORDING: 2013
BEATS: Logic, No I.D., Hit-Boy, Tae Beast, Guy Hutch, Terrace Martin, C-Sick, 6ix
FEATURES: Jon Bellion
FIRST SINGLE: N/A
FYI: Logic has spent most of the past year on the road, and has finally linked up with Hit-Boy and No I.D. to put together his proper debut on Def Jam. This one, he tells XXL, will be introspective and vivid, and he'll be "painting pictures where he grew up," stepping back from the rappity-rap of his mixtapes and crafting a more coherent sound. "It’s literally the sound of Logic, which is really great," he says.
MOVIN' ON UP: "I have recorded over 17,000 songs in 9 years," Logic says, which is an insane number. "I have released for free over 150 songs. I have invested half a million dollars of my own personal money that I made in this game in my own album and all that for the fans."
SALES PITCH: "The album is not only going to be incredible as far as the music goes, but it’s only going to cost you the amount of two number ones at McDonalds," Logic says. "So, with all the time and effort I put into it, maybe you could support a brother, you know what I am saying?" Good point.

ARTIST: Freddie Gibbs and Madlib
ALBUM TITLE: Piñata
LABEL: Madlib Invazion
ALBUM #: 1 (their first project, Deeper, was an EP)
DATE: March 18
BEGAN RECORDING: 2013
BEATS: Madlib
FEATURES: Earl Sweatshirt, Domo Genesis, Danny Brown, Raekwon, Scarface, Mac Miller, Ab-Soul, BJ The Chicago Kid
FIRST SINGLE: "Robes" featuring Earl Sweatshirt and Domo Genesis
FYI: After Deeper, the acclaimed duo got back in the lab and have been cooking up a longer project ever since. Hearing Gangsta Gibbs spit some of the realest street rhymes in the game over Madlib's cultured production is not something to miss, and the features they've announced only make this project's potential even higher.
MOVIN' ON UP: "If they don’t respect it now, they can suck a dick," Gibbs says, laughing. "When I am done, I wanna be in the upper echelons of MCs. Songwriting MCs, I want to be one of those. I want to be known as the best rapper. Not just some nigga that has a couple of dope songs."
SALES PITCH: "I’m definitely one of the best rappers in the rap game right now," Gibbs says. "I am not taking nothing away from nobody. There’s guys who make good songs and it's dope. I love their songs, I love their records. You can’t really name five niggas that flat-out rap better. You really can’t. Not now."

ARTIST: Raekwon
ALBUM TITLE: F.I.L.A. (Fly International Luxurious Art)
LABEL: EMI/Ice H2O
ALBUM #: 6 (solo)
QUARTER: 2nd
BEGAN RECORDING: Late 2012
BEATS: Jerry Wonda, Roadsart
FEATURES: Estelle, Melanie Fiona, Akon
FIRST SINGLE: "All About You" featuring Estelle
FYI: Shaolin's finest chef comes back with his first album since 2011's Shaolin Vs. Wu-Tang, setting aside his Wu-Tang responsibilities to focus on making an album bigger than any of his other projects to date. With the Wu-Tang 20th Anniversary album, A Better Tomorrow, seemingly on the shelf, Rae has cleared the way for his sixth solo project to drop in late Spring.
MOVIN' ON UP: "F.I.L.A. is a more grown and more stadium-wide music album," Raekwon says. "This is me being able to walk into arenas that I could have walked into a long time ago but I didn't do it. I wanted to make an album that would represent the world and would open up doors in my life as far as being an artist."
SALES PITCH: "It's a comfortable-feeling album; it's me at my finest," Rae says. "It's me giving you luxurious art. Everybody says their art is art, but this one is luxurious for me, because it has me walking in many different paths of perfection. It's a good thing."

ARTIST: Wiz Khalifa
ALBUM TITLE: Blacc Hollywood
LABEL: Rostrum/Atlantic
ALBUM #: 5
QUARTER: 2nd
BEGAN RECORDING: 2013
DETAILS: Wiz's O.N.I.F.C. followup has been a while in the making, but details remain very scarce. With a Taylor Gang compilation on the way and Wiz guesting on seemingly everyone's projects, it may not be imminent, but the timing is still unclear. One thing we do know—longtime collaborator Cardo, dropped from Taylor Gang late last year, will probably not be involved, while Taylor Gang cohorts Juicy J and Ty Dolla $ign probably will. He's also alluded to potential collaborations with Adele and Miley Cyrus, and dropped his latest track, "Got Me Some More," produced by Young Chop, in December.

ARTIST: Future
ALBUM TITLE: Honest
LABEL: Epic
ALBUM #: 2
QUARTER: 1st
BEGAN RECORDING: 2013
BEATS: Diplo, Pharrell, Mike WiLL Made It, Sonny Digital, Metro Boomin, DJ Spinz
FEATURES: Kanye West, Rihanna, Nicki Minaj, Drake, Kelly Rowland, Jeremih, Ciara, André 3000, Casino
FIRST SINGLE: "Karate Chop"
DETAILS: Future's album has been pushed back plenty from its original release date Nov. 17, but the hook-master keeps pumping out new tracks and features while putting the finishing touches on his sophomore effort. While the final product keeps getting pushed around, he let a number of details loose about it when promoting its first release date, including a number of production and features details. While we're sure the album is important, he's also got a baby on the way with Ciara, and no official announcement on when Honest will be coming. Stay tuned on this one.

ARTIST: Meek Mill
ALBUM TITLE: Unknown
LABEL: MMG
ALBUM #: 2
QUARTER: N/A
BEGAN RECORDING: 2013
DETAILS: Details with this one are scarce, but we know he had plenty of new music around the time Dream Chasers 3 dropped last September. In early January, he announced that the second album was "all that matters" in 2014, with the hashtag #specialdelivery, which could hint at a potential album title. Either way, the Maybach lieutenant mentioned in November that he was halfway done with the project, yet we haven't heard anything more than a snippet of new music from him. Expect Ross to be heavily involved.

ARTIST: Lil Wayne
ALBUM TITLE: Tha Carter V
LABEL: Cash Money
ALBUM #: 11 (s0lo)
QUARTER: N/A
BEGAN RECORDING: 2013
DETAILS: Wayne has long said that the fifth installment in his Carter series would not only be his last in the line, but also his last in the game. But then again, we've heard this before from Weezy, who also has a tendency to drop new music out of nowhere—just think back to the seven-day countdown we got when he dropped Dedication 5 in early September. If we can expect anything from the Carter series, it's great production, a bunch of high-profile features, and at least a solid effort from Wayne. But either way, don't expect it to be his final say in the rap game.

ARTIST: Pusha T
ALBUM TITLE: King Push
LABEL: Def Jam
ALBUM #: 2
QUARTER: N/A
BEGAN RECORDING: Late 2013
BEATS: Pharrell, The Neptunes, Scott Storch
DETAILS: If there's one thing we know from the upcoming Pusha T project, it's that it won't actually actually be a Clipse reunion, despite the fact that Push is back working with Pharrell and The Neptunes. As he teased on Twitter, he went into the studio with Pharrell recently to get started on his next project, to be titled King Push, a session that was supposed to last 20 days. You never know with Push—after all, his solo debut was pushed back for more than a year—but if he hops on some more Pharrell tracks, expect fire to erupt from the G.O.O.D. Music man's words.

ARTIST: Nicki Minaj
ALBUM TITLE: Unknown
LABEL: Cash Money
ALBUM #: 3
QUARTER: N/A
BEGAN RECORDING: 2013
DETAILS: Nicki has been talking about returning to the booth since her foray into American Idol, new perfumes and a moscato company last year, but music had been scarce—until the last few weeks. The first indication that she was getting back to her roots was her "Boss Ass Bitch" freestyle, which immediately set Twitter aflame, followed by appearances on the "My Nigga" remix alongside Lil Wayne and Meek Mill and her latest one, a ridiculous verse over Young Thug's "Danny Glover." She's getting back to that tongue-twisting, fire-spitting mixtape Nicki, then we're all for it, and she's previously said she's gunning for 2014. We'll see.

ARTIST: 50 Cent
ALBUM TITLE: Street King Immortal
LABEL: G-Unit/Interscope/Aftermath/Shady
ALBUM #: 5
QUARTER: N/A
BEGAN RECORDING: 2010
BEATS: Hit-Boy, Boi 1da, Chase N. Cashe, Alex Da Kid, Cardiak, Just Blaze, Dr. Dre, Jake One, Bangladesh, Frank Dukes, J.U.S.T.I.C.E. League, DJ Felli Fel, Drumma Boy, Soulja Boy
FEATURES: Eminem, Dr. Dre, Kendrick Lamar, Snoop Dogg, Ne-Yo, Jeezy, Adam Levine, Alicia Keys, Chris Brown, Too Short, Trey Songz, Kidd Kidd, John Legend
FIRST SINGLE: "New Day" featuring Alicia Keys and Dr. Dre
DETAILS: 50's been working on this followup album for a couple years now, ever since 2009's Before I Self-Destruct hit shelves. The tracklist has been rumored, names of features and producers have been flying, and the album title has changed from Black Magic, so it's impossible to say much except that his purported rift with Interscope was responsible for at least part of the delay. "New Day," the first official single, came out all the way back in 2012, but he seems to be committed to dropping the album this year, announcing his Animal Ambition mixtape for first quarter 2014 to build into his viral marketing campaign for the album. Then again, Street King Immortal also made our most anticipated list for 2013. Tough to say.

ARTIST: Nas
ALBUM TITLE: Unknown
LABEL: Def Jam
ALBUM #: 12
QUARTER: N/A
BEGAN RECORDING: 2013
DETAILS: There is almost nothing to report about this album except that Nas has been thinking about putting out another. It's been a year and a half since his excellent, XXL-rated Life Is Good, and Nasty Nas is due for a followup. It's also the 20th anniversary of his seminal debut Illmatic this April, so there's another reason to commemorate the anniversary. It's tough to say when—or if—a new album will come, but if it does, he's still got plenty of fire left to share.

ARTIST: Kendrick Lamar
ALBUM TITLE: Unknown
LABEL: TDE/Aftermath/Interscope
ALBUM #: 2
QUARTER: 4th
BEGAN RECORDING: January 2014
DETAILS: TDE is poised to have a big year, starting with the release of Isaiah Rashad's EP Cilvia earlier this week and building with ScHoolboy Q's debut on Feb. 25. And while K. Dot has said he'd be back in the studio in January to work on a followup to his Grammy-nominated good kid, m.A.A.d city, there aren't serious plans as of yet—but that could change. ”I got to get back into the studio and vibe out," he told XXL last night, saying he "wouldn't know" if his album was coming this year. "But once I get in there, for sure, I’ll let y’all know.”

ARTIST: Kanye West
ALBUM TITLE: Unknown
LABEL: Def Jam/Roc-A-Fella
ALBUM #: 7 (solo)
QUARTER: N/A
BEGAN RECORDING: Late 2013
DETAILS: Kanye got the love that he always wanted for Yeezus, as it topped or nabbed Top 5 status on almost every year-end ranked list (including ours). So when he mentioned at Art Basel late last year that he'd be going even starker for his next project, it was a little bit of a shock, but not totally unexpected. He's been spotted in the studio with Tyga, Miley and a handful of others, but he mentioned he'd be paring down his next project from the 10 tracks that graced Yeezus to just eight this next time around. "It's just reducing down the amount of information that you need," he said at Art Basel. "People say a design is the point where you can't take anything else away. [Yeezus] was very, very designed. I took a departure from radio and popular music in order to get this seat here. If I hadn't made Yeezus, I wouldn't be sitting here with this cool font at Basel right here." Bring on the next one.

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