NBA YoungBoy released his latest album MASA(Make America Slime Again) on July 25th, 2025, making it his 34th album added to his extensive discography. This is his first album since being released from prison, after being booked on medical fraud and federal gun charges. This album also came after his five years of house arrest. His fans were waiting for something big for his grand return, and he delivered an album that shows his fans that he is ready to return to the prime he was in before his legal trouble.
This album has an “American” aesthetic” with an american flag on the album cover and patriotic symbolism throughout the project since the album was supposed to be released on the Fourth of July, but was unexpectedly delayed. The album follows the theme of his tour, which was announced upon his release. Sharing the name of the tour with the album, the album’s theme of Make America Slime Again can be heard through the use of ”American football-esque” trumpets that make themselves known on tracks such as “Games of War” and “Kickboxer.”
Even though the fans are still getting classic YoungBoy throughout the album on tracks such as “Shot Callin” and “Diesel,” he lets himself experiment with different sounds, which is something he has not done for years. This experimentation shines best on songs like “XXX,” where the beginning samples the famous rendition of “The Star-Spangled Banner,” played by Jimi Hendrix.
There are only two features on the 30-song tracklist, the first of which is the acclaimed artist Playboi Carti, who offers a laid-back, hazy performance that breaks up the loudness of the songs prior to it. The only other artist featured on the album is Mellow Racks on the track “Cold World.”This song is really unique in the sense that Racks and YoungBoy go back and forth on the song, talking about their love for each other, which is something that YoungBoy has never really done before on his other albums, making this track one that stands out in a good way.
NBA YoungBoy talks about his experience on being released from prison on the song “Where I Been,” where he delves deep into his emotions and talks about the mental turmoil he felt being stuck in the legal system for almost seven years, from being on house arrest to being in actual prison. This ‘first day out song’ showed fans that he has grown from his experiences in prison and how he wants to be better moving forward.
One issue fans have had with the album is that it is a 30-song album. It seems that NBA YoungBoy has not learned from his past albums and still prioritizes quantity over quality, bloating the album with filler tracks that add nothing of substance to the experience. This really hurts the album because he put all the singles that were released prior to the album’s release at the very end. Since these tracks are stuck at the end, even though fans regard these songs as some of the best tracks on the album, more casual fans will not listen to them because of the bloated tracklist.
This album has shown the world, but most importantly his fans, that he still has the drive left in him to make quality music, records, and continue touring. Prior to his release from house arrest, things were looking bleak for NBA YoungBoy and his fans. With every interview he did in his house, you could see his mind deteriorating and he even stated that he had no plans for the future and just thought he would end up in jail. This was especially reflected in his music, so when fans listened to his newest album they were overjoyed to hear the jump in quality of his music. His music from when he was on house arrest pales in comparison to this album, where the vocals and audio are thoroughly completed, and it sounds like it was made in an actual studio instead of being recorded in his bedroom.
Overall, this album was a return to form for YoungBoy and will probably be his only release for a long time with his tour on the way. This album proved that he is still the artist he once was when he was in his prime.
