Diddy’s first solo album in 17 years, “The Love Album: Off the Grid,” is here and is loaded with features from across the R&B spectrum: from fresh faces like Jazmine Sullivan and Coco Jones to superstars like Justin Bieber and the Weeknd, along with R&B veterans like Mary J. Blige, K-Ci and Babyface.
The 23-song record arrives under Diddy’s Love Records imprint and is his first solo studio LP since 2006’s “Press Play” (not counting Diddy Dirty Money, which was more of a group effort). Still, no Diddy album has ever truly been a “solo” mission. This one boasts a long list of stars, also including features from H.E.R, Summer Walker, John Legend, Teyana Taylor, French Montana, Fabolous The-Dream, Busta Rhymes, Dawn Richard, Kalenna, Ty Dolla $ign, Jacquees, Kehlani, 21 Savage, Swae Lee, Jeremih, Jozzy, Nova Wav, Kalan Fr.Fr and Nija.
Diddy’s duality as both artist and producer shines on “The Love Album,” which comes just as he won the 2023 Global Icon award at the MTV VMAs earlier this week. It also follows his decision to return the publishing rights that he owns on songs from his 1990s powerhouse label Bad Boy, which celebrates 30 years this year.
“Music is my first love and music has given me a second chance at life, so stepping back into the studio to make this album has been a soulful experience that brought me closer to myself and my purpose,” said Diddy in a press release. ”This album wasn’t created to feed an algorithm or be relevant with the trends of the times, it was created to touch souls and freely express my story with the best artists, writers and producers shaping the future of R&B.”
Below, Variety breaks down all of the performing artists on the tracklist that makes up Diddy’s return: “The Love Album.”
1."Brought My Love"
“Brought My Love” is track one on Diddy’s new record and features Grammy award-winning producer and singer-songwriter The-Dream, who lends his signature falsetto over an interpolation of Herb Alpert’s “Rise.”
Diddy previously sampled the track, but not on his own single. He co-produced Biggie’s “Hypnotize” — alongside Deric “D-Dot” Angelettie and Ron Lawrence — which used the 1979 funk instrumental as its foundation.
2."What's Love"
Diddy recruits the songwriting and production duo of Nova Wav — made up of Brittany “Chi” Coney and Denisia “Blu June” Andrews — for “What’s Love.” They had a hand in Beyoncé’s danceable “Renaissance” album and have even won a Grammy for their work with her. They’ve also produced and written for Jay-Z, Rihanna, Ariana Grande, Kehlani, DJ Khaled, H.E.R., Jazmine Sullivan and more.
3."Deliver Me"
“Deliver Me” features Busta Rhymes and Dirty Money — the musical duo consisting of singer-songwriters and dancers Dawn Richard and Kalenna Harper, which enjoyed its height of activity in 2009 when both artists were signed to Bad Boy Entertainment.
4."Stay Awhile"
Diddy taps Nija Charles, the American singer-songwriter and record producer who marked her presence writing songs for the Carters (aka Jay-Z and Beyonce), along with popstars like Lady Gaga and Ariana Grande. Her vocals glide over a twinkling R&B bassline.
5."Homecoming"
Jozzy shines on “Homecoming.” The songwriter is best known for co-writing “Old Town Road” and Beyoncé’s “Lemonade” and “Virgo’s Groove,” among other hits but has rapidly built a career of her own since May 2022, when Jozzy was announced as the first signee of Diddy’s Love Records label imprint.
6."Pick Up"
“We off the grid,” Diddy proclaims at the beginning of “Pick Up,” one of the more standout, modernized R&B tracks off the record. It sees an assist from Jacquees, best known for his 2016 single, “B.E.D.”, and the ’00s favorite silky-voiced rapper, Fabolous.
7."Tough Love"
Swae Lee ushers listeners into “Tough Love,” which sees him singing solo atop slowed-down and sultry production.
8."Stay Long"
Another song with no vocals from Diddy, “Stay Long” poses Summer Walker’s delicately layered melodies to complement a pulsating, hip-hop bassline that seamlessly transitions into the next song on the tracklist.
9."It Belongs to You"
Jozzy makes a re-appearance on “It Belongs to You,” once again sans-Diddy vocals.
10."Another One of Me"
The Weeknd, French Montana, Diddy and 21 Savage join forces on this honeyed single that has been unofficially billed as the Weeknd’s “final feature” since he famously stated he wouldn’t pursue any collaborations, “… unless daft punk ever get back together.”
11."Intermission"
Naturally, the “Intermission” sits at the heart of “The Love Album,” and includes some dialogue between Diddy and an uncredited female speaker. It closes with a sample of David Porter’s 1971 song “(I’m Afraid) The Masquerade Is Over” from his album “Victim Of The Joke?…An Opera.” Diddy also cut the Porter sample alongside co-producers Nashiem Myrick and Jean-Claude Olivier for Biggie’s 1995 single “Who Shot Ya?”
12."Moments"
Justin Bieber shows off his R&B chops on “Moments,” which is backed by a texturized entourage of instrumentalists as Bieber sings: “I don’t wanna waste time / I don’t wanna take your love for granted.”
13. "Need Somebody"
“Heaux Tales” singer Jazmine Sullivan is featured as the main vocalist on “Need Somebody,” which ends with Diddy making the declaration to build an “incredible amusement park ride of love” for the woman he’s with.
14."Mind Ya Business (Bosses in Love)"
Ty Dolla $ign and Kehlani reunite on “Mind Ya Business (Bosses in Love),” which was co-written by both artists alongside Diddy, Slim Wav (who worked across Summer Walker’s 2021 record “Still Over It”) and Roark Bailey.
15."Nasty (Interlude)"
Jozzy makes her third entrance on the album for this X-rated, nearly two-minute interlude that lives up to Diddy’s claim to bringing back his signature “baby-making music.”
16."Reachin'"
Ty Dolla $ign and Coco Jones share verses on “Reachin’,” a single written by a long list of R&B mavericks like PartyNextDoor and songwriter Lydia Asrat (also known as Doja Cat’s former manager and CEO of boutique management company 10Q Management).
17."Stay Part 1"
“Stay Part 1” features American singer-songwriter and former Jodeci member K-Ci, along with Roc Nation signee Kalan.FrFr.
18."I Like"
Mary J. Blige sails over this beat that feels plucked straight out of the 90s. Diddy joins her in the third chorus as they jointly sing: “Girl, I wanna love you like my first love / Can you be down like my first was?”
19."Closer To God"
Teyana Taylor makes a rare return to the recording booth for “Closer,” the acclaimed singer-songwriter’s first release since 2021. She also appears in the song’s writing credits.
20."Boohoo"
Jeremih is featured on the rock-tinged “Boohoo,” which only has three credited writers (as opposed to the long list of names found on other tracks): Diddy, Jeremih and Mick Abram Schult, who produced Jeremih’s debut and second albums.
21."Burna Boy Interlude"
Afrobeat pioneer Burna Boy fluctuates between his deep baritone and higher falsetto for a short, violin-assisted interlude that lulls listeners to the end of the record.
22."Kim Porter"
Diddy pays homage to the mother of his children and his late ex-girlfriend Kim Porter in this tribute track performed by Diddy, Babyface and John Legend.
23."Space"
H.E.R. rounds out the final track of “The Love Album.” The single was co-written between Diddy, H.E.R., Roark Bailey and Marco Rodriguez-Diaz, better known by his stage name Infamous (perhaps best known for his work with Lil Wayne).
