Can you believe it? After multiple delays, PARTYNEXTDOOR’s new album, PARTYMOBILE, is set to arrive on Friday. It’s been two and a half years since the OVO signee released his last project, Seven Days, and we’ve all been waiting to see what he has planned next. He’s dropped a few songs in the lead-up to the album—“The News,” “Loyal,” and “Split Decision”—but PND has otherwise stayed relatively quiet about the direction he’s heading in. We’ll find out at midnight.
Honestly, after all these false-starts, all we really want to hear is the album itself. But while we’re waiting around, eagerly anticipating this thing, the Complex Music team put together a list of six things we want to hear on the new PARTYNEXTDOOR album.
An unexpected A-list pop collaboration
He’s best known for his signature woozy take on Toronto R&B, but PND has also made solid mainstream pop tracks with people like Halsey (“Damage”), ZAYN (“Still Got Time”), and as a co-writer with Rihanna (“Work,” “Sex With Me”). The pre-album releaseshave largely been in his traditional wheelhouse—save for the Bad Bunny-assisted “LOYAL” remix—but it would be thrilling if one of his superstar collaborators popped up on the album and assisted on a potential crossover hit. PND has a gift for bringing artists into his sonic space, and hearing another usually pristine voice in his swirling textured world would be intriguing. —Grant Rindner
New wave-influenced production
Though they both came up through OVO, there’s actually not much shared history between PND and the Weeknd. Party has even expressed frustration at comparisons between the two in the past, and they’ve never worked together. But it would be fascinating to see PND follow Abel into the world of new wave, a genre he experimented with to great critical and commercial success on After Hours songs like “Blinding Lights” and “Save Your Tears.” Max Martin helped craft those tracks, and a superstar producer like that could certainly push Party’s sound into new territory. PND collaborators Wiz Khalifa and Ty Dolla $ign also played with this resurgent style on “Speed Me Up,” and it would provide some fun variety on PARTYMOBILE. —Grant Rindner
Party in his feelings
We’ll outline a couple instances below where we’d like to hear PND switch things up and incorporate more uptempo flavors into his music, but let’s be honest: We’re all anticipating this album because the world is crashing down around us and we need a melancholic soundtrack that fits the occasion. Who better than PND to deliver a dark, tortured R&B album when we need it most? If “Split Decision” is anything to go on, that’s exactly what we’re about to get here. We’re all staying home right now and we’re all a little sad—I honestly can’t think of a more appropriate time for this to arrive. Maybe all those delays were a blessing in disguise. —Eric Skelton
That Rihanna song
In 2019, Party shared a snippet of what many believed to be an upcoming collaboration with Rihanna on Snapchat. While the clip has since been deleted, it wouldn’t be out of the ordinary for a Rih and PND collab to exist. After all, the two previously collaborated on Rihanna’s 2016 single “Work.” A few months after that single was released, a demo version of the track featuring Party’s original vocals leaked. Since neither Rihanna nor PND have released solo music in four years, the least they could do is treat fans to collaboration of PARTYMOBILE. Now, the rumors are even louder, after he reportedly told a fan that Rihanna would be on the album during a PARTYMOBILE preview over the weekend. —Jessica McKinney
A few uptempo records
With the exception of “Loyal,” most of the records released prior to his album have been slow-burners. Both “The News” and “Split Decision” were mysterious and moody R&B tracks, which is pretty on-brand for PND. But it would be interesting to hear him switch up the flows and go for more upbeat, dance tracks. To be fair, we’re not expecting a Hot 100 pop song from PARTYNEXTDOOR. But something as dynamic as his past songs like 2014’s “Recognize,” “FWU” or “Thursy” could do the trick. PND previously tweeted that his next album would be “straight party and unapologetic.” Of course the “party” in his statement could be a reference to his stage name, but it would be cool to get some of those upbeat vibes on her as well. —Jessica McKinney
Some reggaeton sounds
Variations on the reggaeton’s signature dembow rhythm have appeared in PND’s music as far back as 2016’s “Only U.” They showed up again on the singer’s 2018 collab with Major Lazer and Nicki Minaj, “Run Up.” So it was no surprise when that feel returned on the Drake collab “Loyal,” nor was it a shocker when Bad Bunny popped up on the remix in early February. (Both versions will appear on PARTYMOBILE, according to PND’s official YouTube.) All of these are awesome, so why not more? Let’s get additional PND reggaeton-influenced tracks, so that we can all have something to dance to in the privacy of our own homes. —Shawn Setaro
