Chicago’s newest face of hip-hop has dotted his I’s and crossed his T’s on the first chapter of his career. On Dec. 3, Polo G released the deluxe version of his third studio album Hall of Fame, released in June.
HoF 2.0 opens up with the TikTok viral promotional single ”Bad Man (Smooth Criminal),” and includes thirteen more tracks with marquee features from the genre’s hottest young acts like Lil Baby, NLE Choppa, Lil Tjay and more. Polo also shared the melancholic music video for the deluxe’s sixth song “Young N Dumb.”
Polo G entered hip-hop as a melody-centric phenom with a chip on his shoulder, and will transition into his next phase as a bonafide superstar with several smash-hits in his catalog — continuing his an upward trajectory that seemingly has no limits.
Stream Polo G’s ‘Hall of Fame 2.0’ deluxe below!
Polo G announces tracklist for ‘Hall of Fame 2.0’ deluxe
As 2021 winds down, Polo G is beginning to heat up towards his upcoming release. He announced the deluxe to his summer smash Hall of Fame on Nov. 8, and dropped the fan-favorite lead promotional single “Bad Man (Smooth Criminal)” the same week.
On Nov. 22, Polo revealed the rest of the deluxe’s tracklist, which will include 14 songs and more rap “Hall of Fame inductee” features like Lil Baby, frequent collaborator Lil Tjay, NLE Choppa and more.
Polo G explained that these additional tracks will serve as the closing for his first chapter of his budding career. He wants to go out with a bang, and looks to do so with songs like the ironically named thirteenth track “Piano G” — reclaiming an insult Twitter and TikTok trolls used to slander him.
We are now less than two weeks away from Hall of Fame 2.0, and it appears we will have another intriguing collection of Polo G songs on our hands.
Polo G drops long-awaited single “Bad Man (Smooth Criminal)”
The snippet for Polo G‘s remix of Michael Jackson’s “Smooth Criminal” took TikTok by storm last month.
Fans soon began to praise Polo’s versatility because of it, rivaling his prior label as “Piano G” because of his narrow beat selection. After the snippet continued to gain traction on the app, Polo G came through with its completed version, announcing “Bad Man (Smooth Criminal)” alongside the upcoming deluxe to his trilogy-ending album Hall of Fame.
Polo injects immediate energy with an iconic bar: “Smooth criminal, Mike Jack, And I still like to tote a .45 like Mike back.” All throughout the track, Polo exhibits a menacing flow, sounding more determined and aggressive than he ever has before. He gives himself a figurative breather on the hook, as it sounds like he is harmoniously screeching to a halt. The slower portion adds another attractive element to “Bad Man (Smooth Criminal),” incorporating his smooth singing into an upbeat atmosphere and quoting Michael Jackson’s original version.
It’s a whole lot of evil roamin’ ’round in the streets, uh
So you better look both ways, make your soul shake
Demons standin’ in the doorway
Tell me, Annie, are you okay? Screamin’ out, “No way”
Tell me, Annie, are you okay?
“Bad Man (Smooth Criminal)” — Polo G
The story of Polo G’s most recent TikTok viral hit has reached its climax, as he strives to retire more jerseys in the rafters following Hall Of Fame 2.0’s release.
Stream “Bad Man (Smooth Criminal)” by Polo G below!
Polo G to release deluxe version of ‘Hall Of Fame’ on Dec. 3
Polo G’s summer-smash album Hall of Fame was another stepping stone in the young, fruitful career of the Chicago native. Off the back of his chart-topping lead single “RAPSTAR” and a powerful feature roster that includes Nicki Minaj, Roddy Ricch, Pop Smoke and Lil Wayne, Polo’s career has elevated to a whole new level.
Now, nearly five months after Hall of Fame’s release, Polo took to Instagram to announce the album’s deluxe version with a trailer revisiting the three projects that got him to this point. At the end of the minute-long video, he poignantly says, “Before I just close out this chapter, I feel like we should turn up just one more time.”
The Hall of Fame 2.0 deluxe is set to drop on Dec. 3 and will contain 14 songs, including the highly-anticipated “Bad Man (Smooth Criminal),” which was previewed at the end of the trailer.
“Bad Man (Smooth Criminal)” has been weeks in the making, as snippets of the track have gone viral on Tiktok, causing fans to pressure Polo to release it. He announced today that he got the Michael Jackson sample cleared for the song, and will now release it as Hall of Fame 2.0’s lead single this Friday (Nov. 12).
Polo G’s ‘hungrier than ever,’ drops third album ‘Hall of Fame’
Young Thug, Nicki Minaj and Lil Wayne headline a loaded feature list on Polo G’s forthcoming album.
In May 2020, Polo G released his second studio album, The Goat, which helped bolster the young Chicago rapper into the ranks of the best up-and-coming acts in hip-hop.
With hits like “Flex” featuring Juice WRLD, which peaked at #30 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart, and TikTok famous “Go Stupid” featuring NLE Choppa, Mike WiLL Made-It and Stunna 4 Vegas, the album was certified platinum in December.
Coming off a successful 2020 campaign, Polo G looks to make his star shine even brighter in 2021. Since the start of this year, he has released three singles, featured on the track “Headshot” with long-time collaborator Lil Tjay and Fivio Foreign, appeared on Rod Wave‘s album SoulFly, Moneybagg Yo‘s album A Gangsta’s Pain and the soundtrack for the film “Boogie,” starring Pop Smoke.
Polo G released the tracklist for his forthcoming third studio album Hall of Fame June 3, which includes previously released singles in “RAPSTAR,” “Epidemic,” “GANG GANG” featuring Lil Wayne and “GNF (OKOKOK).”
“Epidemic” was released in September 2020 and includes somber lyricism about his harsh reality of gang relations, handling fame, heartbreak and loss. February’s release “GNF (OKOKOK)” saw Polo G dip into unfamiliar territory with drill-type production and him shouting on the track as opposed to his usual harmonious crooning. Most recently, his collaboratoo. with Lil Wayne on “GANG GANG” sees both Polo and Wayne masterfully ride the groovy beat effortlessly.
“RAPSTAR” was released in April and quickly took over both social media and Billboard charts. TikTok got a grasp on the song almost immediately — utilizing the comical bar “Lookin’ so deep into your eyes, I can read your thoughts, so / Shut the f*ck —, I mean, please don’t talk.”
After blowing up on TikTok, the song reached No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 (Polo G’s first No. 1 song) and achieved Platinum status in May.
In effort to promote the album, Polo G paid a visit to the LA Leakers radio show on Power 106 Los Angeles to drop a freestyle. LA Leakers has hosted notable freestyles in the past from hip-hop’s best including Joey Bada$$, Pop Smoke and most recently J. Cole during his Off-Season press run.
Polo G appropriately follows in the footsteps of these greats by tearing up the late great DMX‘s “Ruff Ryders’ Anthem” instrumental.
Polo G appears to be hungrier than ever in preparation for his newest project. With hit singles, ferocious freestyle bars and stellar features on the tracklist already, the world is on notice.
RELEASE: Hall of Fame — the third commercial studio album by Polo G — drops on June 11.
