It’s been five years since Joey Bada$$ released his sophomore LP ALL-AMERIKKKAN BADA$$, which saw 12 tracks and additional features from ScHoolboy Q, Kirk Knight, Nyck Caution, Meechy Darko, Styles P, Chronixx, and J. Cole. That project was a top five success for the Brooklyn rhymer thanks to 51,000 first-week album equivalent units sold.

Over the weekend, the NYC emcee embarked on a new chapter with his brand new single “Head High.” On the track, Bada$$ slides over some production courtesy of the legendary Statik Selektah:

Time waits for no man, life is but a two-step slow jam dancin’ with the devil, tryin’ not to lose my balance/ Look, God blessed the kid with many talents, he was chosen, it’s why you see him livin’ in the moment/ Every second, gotta own it ’cause you never know when could be your last/ Time breathin’, now you bleedin’ from the gun blast and you thinkin’ ’bout the past, see your whole life in a flash

A few weeks ago, Bada$$ took to an IG Live stream to assure the people that an official follow-up to ALL-AMERIKKKAN BADA$$ was on the way. “Shit, the album dropping this year for sure … I ain’t going to say exactly when, though, because there’s certain rappers who be on my heels, so Ima just … it’s coming though.”

Since the aforementioned sophomore LP, he fed his fans with 2020’s The Light Pack, a three-song EP that saw a single assist from Pusha T — he also scored himself an Academy Award via his contribution as lead actor to the short film Two Distant Strangers, of which Diddy served as one of its main producers. Most recently, he dropped off his new visual for “THE REV3NGE.”

Be sure to press play on “Head High” by Joey Bada$$ down below.