Yo Gotti Gives Preview of Forthcoming ‘Trapped’ Album During 2018 Art Basel

Yo Gotti has big plans for the new year. The Memphis rapper took his talents to Miami Beach last Thursday (Dec. 6) as he brought the trap to Art Basel to preview his seventh solo album, Trapped.

“My main News Year’s resolution is to turn the fuck up harder than we did in 2018,” promised Yo Gotti, as he left an intimate listening session for his forthcoming album. “2019 is CMG’s year.”

Since he already schooled listeners on his 2016 effort, Art of the Hustle, Gotti returns to provide the streets with some more thug motivation. Trapped will serve as a how-to manual for surviving the trap. “This album is going to walk you through different variations of being trapped and getting untrapped and shit like that,” declared Gotti.

“When you live a certain way for so long, it’s the only way people could see you,” the “Rake It Up” rapper continued. “That don’t necessarily mean that that’s what you is or that you can’t change, but there’s a stigma they put on you when you from the place I’m from. That’s one of the ways of looking at Trapped.”

For the album, which is still in the works, Gotti couldn’t serve up too many details. However, he did play newly recorded records that could potentially make the project’s final cut. The selection of as-yet-untitled joints premiered included bangers with BlocBoy JB and Lil Baby, which Gotti said could drop any day now.

“We played 20 records,” he said. “We may use 14. It’s to see what people respond to. I don’t even know if this has been done before. We probably just created this shit. That was a sneak peek.”

The unique Trapped listening experience was made possible due in part to Yo Gotti’s partnership with Puma. Last year, when he was announced as a brand ambassador for the sportswear label it was expected that the collaborative chemistry would result in apparel and sneaker collections. During last week’s event, Gotti unveiled how joining forces with Puma will also benefit the trap.

“We’re talking about how we go back to my city, my neighborhood, my community and give kids shoes and sponsor different football teams and basketball teams with Puma clothes and shoes,” said the “Letter 2 the Trap” rapper, who also reflected on his humble beginnings. “It was once upon a time where me, myself as a kid—and I know plenty of people who grew up the same way—couldn’t even afford a pair of shoes.”

While Gotti has continued to boss up as a rap star, he’s witnessed his hometown garner more recognition as a hotspot for influence. 2018 alone has introduced XXL Freshman like BlocBoy JB and producer Tay Keith to the mainstream, as well as reintroduced classic sounds from Tennessee Titans like Three 6 Mafia and Project Pat via tracks from Drake, Cardi B, G Herbo and others. The newfound love, however, doesn’t come as a surprise to the Memphis native.

“We grateful that they finally started looking at the flame that we been creating,” said Gotti, before adding, “I just think the world is opening its eyes and looking at our city and giving it the recognition, which is cool, because we ain’t complainers either. We play with the cards that were dealt and just keep hustling.”

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