More details are emerging around Childish Gambino’s mysterious project with Rihanna.
In August 2018, the rapper-actor and pop superstar were seen shooting a secret film project in Cuba. Later in the year, Donald Glover previewed a teaser of their cinematic collaboration during his PHAROS Festival in New Zealand.
Now it looks like the project, tentatively titled Guava Island, will see the light of day as soon as next weekend. Fans have recently noticed that Spotify has been teasing the Guava Island release with ads on the streaming service. As Complex points out, the RapCaviar playlist is being “presented by Guava Island.” One ad features audio of a guitar before Gambino says, “I’ll see you at the show, everyone.”
The ads have been promoting an April 13 release date, the day after Gambino is scheduled to headline the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival in Indio, Calif.
There are reports that the project could be a visual album including a film co-starring Rihanna. It’s unclear if she is also involved with the music. Last month, Crack magazine reported that cinematographer Christian Sprenger (“Atlanta”) had listed a project called Guava as a “visual album” on his résumé.
The film, directed by Hiro Murai (“This Is America,” “3005”), was shot in Havana and also stars Nonso Anozie and Black Panther‘s Letitia Wright. Glover and Rihanna reportedly play lovers and partners in crime in the action/crime thriller.
In early 2018, Glover announced that he would retire the Childish Gambino moniker upon the release of his upcoming fourth studio album. He also revealed that his “This Is America” tour would be his last.
During an interview at the Grammys in February, Glover collaborator Ludwig Göransson (“This Is America”) told “Extra” that he had been “working closely with Donald for a little while.”
Mastering engineer Mike Bozzi also hinted at more music to come. “We’ve been in the studio working on new songs, and [Glover’s] got another vision that he’s working out,” he said. “I can’t tell you when it’s coming out but something big is coming.”