Mac Miller’s ‘Balloonerism’ receives official release date
Mac Miller‘s upcoming posthumous album has been officially announced with a release date. Balloonerism is set to arrive on January 17th, 2025, and will serve as the second project to be released following his death in 2018.
In a statement from Mac Miller’s estate, posted to the ”92 ’til Infinity’ Instagram account, they explained more about the album. Balloonerism was recorded when Mac was working on his fan-favourite Faces mixtape, which dropped in 2014. As a body of work that meant a lot to him, they feel it’s only right that fans get to hear the finished piece.
“It is a project that was of great importance to Malcolm—to the extent that he commissioned artwork for it and discussions concerning when it should be released were had regularly, though ultimately GO:OD AM and subsequent albums ended up taking precedence,” the post read.
It continued, “We believe the project showcases both the breadth of his musical talents and fearlessness as an artist. Given that unofficial versions of the album have circulated online for years and that releasing Balloonerism was something that Malcolm frequently expressed being important to him, we felt it most appropriate to present an official version of the project to the world.”
The news was first announced at the Camp Flog Gnaw festival in Los Angeles over the weekend before Tyler, The Creator’s headline set at the event. The trailer was played, followed by the words “soon” and the project’s artwork being revealed.
Mac Miller’s former manager, Quentin Cuff, said the rapper was working on “zany, otherworldly, weird creations” at the time Balloonerism was being made, as told in The Book of Mac: Remembering Mac Miller. The project was recorded at Mac Miller’s Los Angeles home and was one of “so many” albums that Mac was working on at the time.
Balloonerism consists of 14 tracks and will be released through Warner Records, like his last four albums, GO:OD AM, The Divine Feminine, Swimming, and Circles. The project can be pre-saved on his official website, and vinyl copies are also available for purchase.
The Pittsburgh-born rapper died on September 7th, 2018 at the age of 26 from an accidental overdose of cocaine, fentanyl and alcohol. His last posthumous album, Circles, was released in 2020 and debuted at number three on the Billboard 200 chart.