What a Time to Be Alive caught two rappers at the peak of their powers: Future, on the heels of his 2015 three-peat (Monster, 56 Nights, DS2), and Drake, fresh off winning a high-profile rap beef. The success of WATTBA, then, was hardly surprising, as it birthed multiple hits (โJumpan,โ โBig Ringsโ), gave rise to a co-headlining concert tour, and, even helped transform the tapeโs executive producer, Metro Boomin, into a mainstream star.
Four years removed from its release, the anticipation for a WATTBA sequel couldnโt be higher. And now, after months of rumors, itย looks like Drake and Future might be ready to deliver new music of sime kind. The latest details emerged on Sunday, when Drizzy teased a new collaboration with Future titled โLife Is Goodโ on Instagram. Only time will tell whether this title pertains to a song or full-length project, but until an official announcement arrives, hereโs everything we know about a possible Drake and Future collaboration.ย
Something called โLife Is Goodโ is coming โsoon soonโ
Drake took to his Instagram on Sunday night, Januaryย 5,ย to tease a potential collaboration with Future titled "Life Is Good." On his Instagram Story, Drake posted the words "Life is Good. Future + Drake,โ below a photo of his computer screen and hookah pipe. Tagged in the photo, of course, is Future, who then reposted the story shortly after the original went live. Drake also left some choice words in the comments, which seem to point to theย imminent arrival of โLife Is Goodโ: โsoon. soon.โ
The project is rumored to be titled โWhat a Time toย Be Alive 2โ
Rumors of a WATTBA follow-up began to swirl last April, after Future popped up as a special guest performer at a few of Drake's Assassination Vacation Tour dates in Europe. Following one such performance, the pair took to Future's Instagram Story to tease new music on the way. In the video, both rappers hint that โWhat a Time To Be Alive 2โ is in the works.
โWhat's that? We gotta cook that up. That two,โย Drake says in the video, while holding up two fingers.ย While this mere gesture convinced fans that any potential Drake-Future joint project would indeed be titled What a Time to Be Alive 2, their belief was justified several months later when, in December, a video emerged of the rappersโ matching FBO/OVO chainsโone in silver and one in gold.
Drake says theyโre โalways workingโ
During a two-hour Rap Radar interview released on Christmas, Drake briefly hinted at the collaborative relationship he shares with Future at 2:08:40 mark. When asked if he and his WATTBA collaborator were โcooking up again,โ Drake responded, โWeโre always working. Weโre always working. We got some stuff.โ Given the way in which he quickly moved to the next topic, some fansย interpret Drakeโs response as further proof that he and Future are working on something bigger than a single song.
Future and Drake have already shot a music video for an unreleased song
The week before Christmas, Drake and Future joined forces for a music video shoot in Atlanta. Outlets likeย Hypebeast reported that there was a casting call for an upcoming music video. Filming location: Atlanta, of course. Days later, the rappers were spotted inside a McDonaldโs, and they were wearing what appeared to be fast food uniforms withย โHโย logos.
Several potential tracks have surfaced online
Over the past year, a handful of new Drake-Future collaborations have leaked onlineโboth in the form of snippets and full songs. In July, an unreleased collaboration titled โBig Moodโ hit the internet. The track sees Future and Drake boasting about their exotic possessions and flexing their exorbitant wealth. No one in either camp has yet to even acknowledge the songโs existence.ย
On Instagram in August 2019, Future teased a snippet of another track titled โI Knowโโfeaturing vocals from both him and Drakeโbefore a second snippet leaked in late December. Hours before Drake would tease โLife Is Good,โ the full cut of โI Knowโ hit SoundCloud and was taken down.
On December 18, 2019, Future took to his Instagram Live to preview โDoing Too Much,โ along with a caption that read: โOVO/FBG.โ A week later, a second snippet of the track was played at a club, and subsequently posted to Instagram.ย
Rumored collaborators include Mike Will Made It, 21 Savage and ATL Jacob
2015โs What a Time to Be Alive featured a short list of collaborators. There were no guest rappers or singers, and executive producer Metro Boomin handled the bulk of the production, crafting the beats for every song except three: โPlastic Bagโ (Neenyo), โChange Locationsโ (Noel), and โ30 For 30 Freestyleโ (Noah โ40โ Shehib). For the sequel, however, donโt be surprised if Drake and Future bring in multiple acts to assist.ย
In May, Freebandz producer ATL Jacob added fuel to the fire with an Instagram post. The story showed a photo of Jacobโs hard drive with over 20 audio files, several of which were labeled โFUT X DRA,โ and dated from May 23. There were also files labeled โFBGโ aka โFreeBand Gang.โ
During last monthโs video shoot in Atlanta, 21 Savage and Mike WiLL Made-It were also spotted on set in one photo, which Future posted on Instagram before deleting. Of course, only time will tell if this means we should expect such a song, produced by Mike Will and featuring a guest verse from 21, to make WATTBA2โs final tracklist. Stay tuned.