Key Takeaways
- Metro Boomin’s catalog reflects his evolution from underground favorite to mainstream hitmaker.
- His collaborations with 21 Savage and Future helped define a new era of trap music.
- Soundtrack projects and concept albums show his ability to push creative boundaries.
There’s an entire generation of rap indebted to Metro Boomin’s influence. His fingerprints are all over the biggest artists’ discographies, whether they’re from Atlanta (Young Thug, Future, Migos) or farther out in Houston (Travis Scott), Detroit (Big Sean), and even Toronto (NAV).
Over the years, Metro has gradually stepped from behind the boards into the spotlight, releasing several ambitious solo albums. That said, he’s always kept his collaborators close, as evidenced by joint projects like Perfect Timing, Double or Nothing, and, perhaps most famously, Savage Mode. He has a lot of material, to say the least. With that in mind, we’ve ranked 11 of Metro Boomin’s albums below.
11. ‘Perfect Timing’
Perfect Timing more or less proved that Metro Boomin’s rapper-producer joint album formula could work again. Teaming up with NAV, the 15-track project delivered hits like “Call Me,” “Minute” featuring Offset and Playboi Carti, and “Held Me Down.” There’s also “A$AP Ferg” — which, despite the title, features Lil Uzi Vert rather than the Harlem rapper himself — along with appearances from 21 Savage, Gucci Mane, and Belly. It’s a star-studded effort, but even at its best, NAV doesn’t bring as much to the table as some of Metro’s other collaborators further down this list.
10. ‘WE STILL DON’T TRUST YOU’
As much as we’d love to rank WE STILL DON’T TRUST YOU higher, it shows you really can have too much of a good thing. The album dropped just a few weeks after its predecessor, WE DON’T TRUST YOU, and with 17 tracks already on the first, the second 25-song installment felt a little bloated at times. Even so, Metro Boomin and Future blessed us with records like “Red Leather” featuring J. Cole and A$AP Rocky taking aim at Drake on “Show of Hands.”
9. ‘METRO BOOMIN PRESENTS SPIDER-MAN: ACROSS THE SPIDER-VERSE’
In all fairness, this one is technically a movie soundtrack, but a great one at that. Even with rappers like Lil Wayne, A$AP Rocky, and Nas dishing out references to Miles Morales and your friendly neighborhood Spider-Man, METRO BOOMIN PRESENTS SPIDER-MAN: ACROSS THE SPIDER-VERSE packs a ton of replay value. Offset and JID muse about how “life’s so dangerous” on “Dangerous (Spider),” Coi Leray channels Gwen Stacy on “Self Love,” and Metro’s frequent collaborators fill the rest with plenty of energy.
8. ‘Double or Nothing’
If there’s any artist versatile enough to move in whatever direction Metro Boomin wants to take things production-wise, it’s Big Sean. On Double or Nothing, that became evident pretty quickly in both the beats and the bars. The opener, “Go Legend,” sampled the incomparable Diana Ross as Sean rightfully crowned himself a Detroit legend. Next up, he joined forces with 2 Chainz on “Big Bidness,” while the 21 Savage-assisted “Pull Up N Wreck” had Savage Mode-style production written all over it.
Arguably one of the best collabs came from Kash Doll, who broke up the boys’ club on “So Good.” And while a few tracks can sometimes sound like I Decided. leftovers, the project still shines when taken in as a whole.
7. ‘A Futuristic Summa’
A Futuristic Summa was never intended to be everyone’s cup of tea. “If yo' homeboy never had to hold you up in the teen party while [you were] getting twerked on, then you might wanna sit this one out,” Metro tweeted after the project dropped.
Everything about it transports listeners straight back to Atlanta’s mixtape golden era of the 2010s, from the features by Travis Porter, Young Dro, and others to DJ Spinz hosting the tape. “Take Me Thru Dere” became a massive hit, especially among the younger crowd, while “They Wanna Have Fun” and “Loose Screws” sound like true relics of that era’s sound.
6. ‘SAVAGE MODE II’
SAVAGE MODE II raised the bar for Metro Boomin and 21 Savage’s collaborative chemistry. Most notably, the project arrived with narration from Morgan Freeman, who voices the intro and pops up throughout the album, plus a relatively deeper roster of guests than before.
While Metro’s drums hit hard beneath the London-born rapper’s bars on tracks like “Runnin” and the 50 Cent-sampling “Many Men,” stars such as Drake, Young Thug, and Young Nudy also join in to complete the experience. Overall, the joint LP captures a larger-than-life feel reminiscent of another masterpiece by Metro, HEROES & VILLAINS (but more on that soon).
5. ‘Without Warning’
Two artists are definitely better than one, especially when they’re Offset and 21 Savage. The rappers complement each other flawlessly across Metro Boomin’s production on Without Warning. It spawned the smash hit "Ric Flair Drip," fan-favorite "Ghostface Killers,” and even tucked in one or two Star Wars references on the closer, "Darth Vader."
4. ‘NOT ALL HEROES WEAR CAPES’
The title NOT ALL HEROES WEAR CAPES is the perfect way to describe Metro Boomin's — or really, any producer’s — career. After all, a great song is nothing without a good foundation. The Atlanta hitmaker set out to prove that on his debut album, which features many of the same names we’ve seen him work with before: Travis Scott, 21 Savage, and Offset.
Interestingly enough, the less frequent collaborators make for some of the LP’s better moments. For instance, Drake lends Offset a hand on “No Complaints,” while J Balvin and Wizkid bring a Latin-Afrobeats fusion to “Only You.” Stepping outside his comfort zone is where Metro shines the most here.
3. ‘WE DON’T TRUST YOU’
While the release of WE DON’T TRUST YOU may have been slightly overshadowed by Kendrick Lamar’s powerhouse verse on "Like That," the album is strong enough to hold its own without it. Arguably, its second-highest peak arrives with “Type S**t,” featuring Playboi Carti and Travis Scott.
Across the LP, Metro’s production is flawless from front to back, and Future matches the energy on every single track. Among the highlights (which, there are many) are The Weeknd’s soulful crooning on “Young Metro,” the ambitious two-part track “Magic Don Juan (Princess Diana),” and even more sonic chemistry with Scott on “Cinderella.” Honestly, it doesn’t get much better than this from the “Mask Off” collaborators.
2. ‘HEROES & VILLAINS’
There’s a bit of everything for everyone on HEROES & VILLAINS. For those who love hearing Metro Boomin team up with Atlanta’s mainstays, there’s no shortage of Young Thug, Future, and 21 Savage throughout the project. For listeners hoping for something a little different, the producer takes a few risks that totally pay off.
There’s Chris Brown crooning at the end of “Superhero,” The Weeknd giving what could’ve been an otherwise standard 21 Savage collaboration some oomph on “Creepin’,” and “Trance,” minus Drake. Not to mention, John Legend, Takeoff, A$AP Rocky, and Don Toliver round out its already insane lineup of features.
1. ‘Savage Mode’
As mentioned before, Metro Boomin and 21 Savage are a match made in heaven. Savage Mode was their first collaborative project, with Future serving as the lone feature on “X.” The duo also delivered another one of Savage’s career-defining hits, “No Heart,” along with “Feel It” and “No Advance.” There’s definitely a layer of nostalgia to it, too. 2016 was a banner year for rap, giving us then-new stars like Lil Uzi Vert, Lil Yachty, and, of course, 21’s breakthrough moment.