TDE's CEO Gives Update on 2016 Release Schedule and Hints at New Artist Signings

2016 is about to be lit.

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Things have been mostly quiet from Top Dawg Entertainment's camp ever since the release of Jay Rock's 90059 album in September of last year. Kendrick Lamar made a dynamite appearance at the Grammys and Isaiah Rashad has unleashed a few singles, but aside from that, there hasn't been too much music from one of hip-hop's most talented labels.

From the looks of it, that's about to change in a big way. TDE's CEO Top Dawg posted an Instagram tonight detailing the label's tentative release schedule for the year, and it's looking stacked. Listing the artists in what's presumably chronological order, it has everyone on the label down to release an album this year. Starting things off is ScHoolboy Q, whom Top Dawg recently hinted had new album was on the way soon. His entry is accompanied by the words "sample clearance," meaning the album is likely moving towards its final stages and making its way through the legal process. Up next are SZA and Rashad, who are labeled as "fourth stage creative" and "third stage creative" respectively. Ab-Soul follows them up, labeled "mixing." Below Soulo are Kendrick Lamar and Jay Rock, the most recent artists on the label to drop an album.

Perhaps most excitingly, the list also includes two releases from mysterious new artists, labeled only "John Doe 1" and "John Doe 2." It's not yet known who these artists are, but with their projects slated to drop this year, it's hopefully only a matter of time before we find out.

Finishing out the list is a hopeful note that the long-awaited Black Hippy album could finally be dropping in 2017. With lots of promises and few deliveries on that front, however, we won't hold our breath.

You can check out Top Dawg's layout of the release schedule below. Time to start wildly speculating about who the new artists could be and getting hyped for the year to come.

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