Today, Future officially releases his critically-acclaimed Beast Mode mixtape to all digital streaming platforms. The nine-track project, initially released as a free mixtape in January 2015, is produced entirely by the platinum Atlanta-based producer Zaytoven.
[Stream/download HERE – via Freebandz/Epic Records]
Beast Mode was the second of three mixtapes (following Monster, preceding 56 Nights) that Future would release for free between October 2014 and March 2015, a run of cathartic projects aimed at shedding the glitzy pop ambiance surrounding him due to his early-decade chart successes.
Where Monster excelled in reestablishing Future as the preeminent trap star of his time, Beast Mode swapped Metro Boomin and Southside’s rugged basslines for bouncier chords and viscous melodies across a much tighter tracklist. The approach was welcomed with open arms, as BM has since been streamed nearly 20 million times across free digital platforms, including Soundcloud and LiveMixtapes.
“There’s a deeply ingrained melodic force in the way Future uses his voice. Everything that comes out of his mouth sounds like a hook, even if what he’s saying is just an impenetrable gargle,” noted Stereogum shortly after BM’s release in 2015. Pitchfork, along with a 7.7 rating, added, “Beast Mode’s heavy-hearted sounds assist him in sorting through it just as Monster’s menace helped him turn spite to fuel.”
Future himself would have this to say about this key period in his career, when asked about it in his subsequent Like I Never Left mini-doc. “I can’t be out [in Los Angeles], I gotta go home [to Atlanta], I gotta record, I gotta get back comfortable…”
The original Beast Mode was appreciated so widely that it spawned the release of BEASTMODE 2, a sequel to Beast Mode released as a commercial mixtape in 2018. It would debut at No. 3 on the Billboard 200 albums chart, setting a record as the highest-charting stream-only album ever.
Stay at home, stay safe, and remain in beast mode, everyone…