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MASS COUNTRY
Studio album by
AKA
Released24 February 2023 (2023-02-24)
Genre
Length54:30
Label
Producer
AKA chronology
Touch My Blood
(2018) 		MASS COUNTRY
(2023)
Singles from Mass Country
  1. "Lemons (Lemonade)"
    Released: 16 September 2022
  2. "Paradise"
    Released: 23 November 2022
  3. "Prada"
    Released: 20 January 2023
  4. "Company"
    Released: 17 February 2023

Mass Country (stylized MASS COUNTRY),[1] is the fourth studio album by South African rapper AKA. It was released posthumously by Sony Music Entertainment Africa and Vth A on 24 February 2023.[2][3] It was preceded by four singles "Lemons (Lemonade)",[4] "Prada",[5] "Paradise",[6] and "Company",[7] with guest appearances from Nasty C, KDDO, Thato Saul, Khuli Chana, Blxckie, Gyakie, Nadia Nakai, Sjava and others.[8]

Background and promotion

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It is the final album recorded by AKA shortly before he was murdered in February 2023. The album was promoted on the rapper's official Instagram account hours before his shooting. The album's lead single, "Lemons (Lemonade)", received positive reactions from the likes of American record producers Swizz Beatz and Diplo.[9] Spotify honored AKA by displaying a billboard of the album in Times Square, New York.[10]

Sony Music Africa manager, Caroline Morabe, stated that AKA left unreleased music behind and they plan on releasing a special edition of Mass Country.[11]

"You know Kiernan in studio, he brought a whole bunch of songs and we can't release everything at once, so he left us some serious magic and we're very excited later on in the year to have the 'Mass Country Deluxe' coming out"

–Caroline Morabe

Commercial performance

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The album surpassed 10 million streams on Spotify in less than 8 hours, becoming his most streamed album.[12] Mass Country was certified Gold by the Recording Industry of South Africa (RiSA) two weeks after its release,[13] and later Platinum. Sony Music Africa hosted a private brunch to celebrate the milestone and announced that the posthumous album surpassed 35,404 album-equivalent units, which is equivalent to 40,972,588 streams in South Africa alone.[14]

Artwork

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AKA revealed the album's artwork on 11 January 2023, on his Instagram account. The artwork was designed by South African illustrator Karabo Poppy.[15] It shows the face of AKA surrounded by objects which represent South African Culture, like a 10-cent coin, an old BMW, a skull, and a snake.[16]

Title

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In an interview with Slikour, AKA revealed that the album's title is inspired by a South African cultural music genre called Maskandi, citing that the title "MASS COUNTRY" sounds like "Maskandi", blending the genre with hip hop music and country music.[17][18]

Thus the link between the title of the album and its artwork are about South African Culture, as particular objects that represent the culture appear.[19]

Track listing

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Mass Country track listing adapted from Apple Music.[20]
No.TitleProducer(s)Length
1."Last Time"Zadok3:33
2."Mbuzi (Freestyle)" (featuring Thato Saul)
  • 031Choppa
  • Christer
  • FD
5:14
3."Crown" (with Emtee featuring Manana)
  • Christer
  • FD
3:47
4."Lemons (Lemonade)" (with Nasty C)
  • Christer
  • FD
  • Oriah
  • Zadok
4:20
5."Prada" (with Khuli Chana)Christer2:56
6."Sponono" (with Sjava featuring 031 Choppa, Baby S.O.N)
  • 031Choppa
  • FD
  • Zadok
4:14
7."Company" (with KDDO)KDDO4:05
8."Paradise" (with Musa Keys, Gyakie)
  • Christer
  • FD
  • Oriah
  • Zadok
3:25
9."Ease" (with Blxckie, Yanga Chief)Christer4:18
10."Amapiano" (featuring Weathrd, Laylizzy)Christer3:49
11."Dangerous" (with Blxckie featuring Nadia Nakai)
  • 031Choppa
  • Christer
  • FD
  • Zadok
3:44
12."Everest"Christer3:08
13."Diary (Anxiety)"Thabo4:41
14."Army (Bonus)"Thabo3:21
Total length:54:00

Awards and nominations

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AKA came out as the most nominated individual in 2023 leading the nomination list of the South African Music Awards (SAMAs) with seven nominations,[21] of which four categories namely Album of the Year, Male Artist of the Year, Best Hip Hop Album, and Best Engineered Album he scored amid the success of MASS COUNTRY.[22]

List of Accolades
Award / Music Festival Year Recipient Nomination Result Ref.
Metro FM Music Awards 2023
Mass Country
 Best Hip Hop Artist Won [23]
South African Music Awards 2023 Male Artist of the Year Won [24]
Album of the Year Nominated [25]
Best Engineered Album Won [26]
Best Hip Hop Album Nominated [25]

Certifications and sales

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Region Certification Certified units/sales
South Africa (RISA)[27] Gold 35,404[14]

Release history

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Release dates and formats for Mass Country
Region Date Format(s) Edition(s) Label Ref.
Worldwide 24 February 2023
Standard
  • Sony
  • Vth A
 [28]

References

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  1. ^ "AKA reveals release date for upcoming album, 'Mass Country'". gq.co.za. Archived from the original on 13 February 2023. Retrieved 13 February 2023.
  2. ^ Martin, Celeste. "AKA plugs February for release of new album 'Mass Country'". ewn.co.za. Archived from the original on 11 February 2023. Retrieved 11 February 2023.
  3. ^ "'Back from the death': AKA's 'Mass Country' is Supa Mega supreme". thesouthafrican.com. 24 February 2023. Archived from the original on 24 February 2023. Retrieved 24 February 2023.
  4. ^ "AKA and Nasty C Team Up in "Lemons (Lemonade)" Music Video - OkayAfrica". okayafrica.com. Archived from the original on 1 April 2023. Retrieved 11 February 2023.
  5. ^ Darangwa, Shangai (20 January 2023). "AKA and Khuli Chana join forces as 'Mass Country' pre-order goes live". www.iol.co.za. Archived from the original on 16 February 2023. Retrieved 12 December 2023.
  6. ^ Banda, Clive (29 November 2022). "AKA Gets Candid As To Why He Is Not Worried About The Balenciaga Scandal". SA Hip Hop Mag. Archived from the original on 11 February 2023. Retrieved 11 February 2023.
  7. ^ "LISTEN: AKA and KDDO's new single "Company" DROPS". www.thesouthafrican.com. 17 February 2023. Archived from the original on 3 March 2023. Retrieved 25 November 2023.
  8. ^ Wee, Naledi de (16 September 2022). "'A whole vibe': Fans praise AKA's new hip-hop banger with Nasty C". The South African. Archived from the original on 5 December 2022. Retrieved 11 February 2023.
  9. ^ Peters, Mitchell (11 February 2023). "Kiernan 'AKA' Forbes, South African Rapper, Shot and Killed at 35". Billboard. Archived from the original on 12 February 2023. Retrieved 12 February 2023.
  10. ^ Heever, Megan van den (24 February 2023). "'Mass Country' to the world! AKA gets Times Square billboard". The South African. Archived from the original on 31 May 2023. Retrieved 10 November 2023.
  11. ^ "Sony Music Africa Confirms the Upcoming Release of AKA's "Mass Country Deluxe" Edition". 28 July 2023. Archived from the original on 29 July 2023. Retrieved 30 July 2023.
  12. ^ Banda, Clive (24 February 2023). "AKA's Posthumous Mass Country Album Clocks Six Million Spotify Streams". SA Hip Hop Mag. Archived from the original on 24 February 2023. Retrieved 24 February 2023.
  13. ^ Darangwa, Shangai (10 March 2023). "AKA's new album 'Mass Country' goes gold in under two weeks". Independent Online. Archived from the original on 18 April 2023. Retrieved 10 November 2023.
  14. ^ a b Darangwa, Shangai (28 July 2023). "AKA's 'Mass Country' certified platinum after just 4 months". Independent Online. South Africa. Archived from the original on 1 August 2023. Retrieved 10 November 2023.
  15. ^ "AKA's last tweet was about going 'blonde or platinum' if his new album 'Mass Country' is a hit". TimesLIVE. Archived from the original on 4 August 2023. Retrieved 12 December 2023.
  16. ^ Heever, Megan van den (22 February 2023). "'Mass Country': Tweeps claim album cover 'predicted' AKA's death". The South African. Archived from the original on 8 May 2023. Retrieved 10 November 2023.
  17. ^ "AKA's team tells the story behind making of his magnum opus album 'Mass Country'". TimesLIVE. Archived from the original on 7 November 2023. Retrieved 10 November 2023.
  18. ^ Mabena, Amogelang (10 January 2023). "AKA Hints A Collaboration With A-Reece For His Upcoming Album "Mass Country"". Zkhiphani. Archived from the original on 10 January 2023. Retrieved 10 November 2023.
  19. ^ a b Gumede, Bongeka; Chepape, Lesego (27 March 2023). "One Album Two Takes: Mass Country AKA". The Mail & Guardian. Archived from the original on 25 May 2023. Retrieved 10 November 2023.
  20. ^ MASS COUNTRY by AKA, 24 February 2023, archived from the original on 28 October 2023, retrieved 10 November 2023
  21. ^ "K.O and Supermega lead #Sama29 nominations with six and seven nods". TimesLIVE. Archived from the original on 8 November 2023. Retrieved 10 November 2023.
  22. ^ Maako, Compiled by Keitumetse. "AKA, K.O lead Sama 2023 nominees as show heads to KZN". Life. Archived from the original on 6 October 2023. Retrieved 10 November 2023.
  23. ^ "He's smiling down on us: AKA wins big at the Metro FM Music Awards". TimesLIVE. Archived from the original on 31 October 2023. Retrieved 10 November 2023.
  24. ^ Nkonki, Anita (19 November 2023). "AKA bags multiple awards at the SAMA#29". Independent Online. South Africa. Archived from the original on 23 November 2023. Retrieved 23 November 2023.
  25. ^ a b Darangwa, Shangai (3 October 2023). "AKA and K.O continue to lead hip hop resurgence with most SAMA29 nominations". Independent Online. South Africa. Archived from the original on 6 November 2023. Retrieved 10 November 2023.
  26. ^ "Kabza De Small reigns supreme at #SAMA29". TimesLIVE. Archived from the original on 24 November 2023. Retrieved 23 November 2023.
  27. ^ "South Africa certifications". Recording Industry of South Africa. Retrieved 9 March 2023.
  28. ^ "AKA's posthumous album Mass Country released". Music in Africa. 24 February 2023. Archived from the original on 25 February 2023. Retrieved 25 February 2023.
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