It’s been six years since ‘Invasion of Privacy.’ Could this be the year of Cardi’s sophomore release?

In April 2018, Cardi B burst onto the rap scene with her debut album, Invasion of Privacy. The record-breaking, Grammy-winning project turned Cardi B into a household name. From the chart-topping “Bodak Yellow,” to the club anthem “I Like It,” the industry welcomed a fresh new femcee onto the scene. However, six years down the line, and Cardi is yet to make a second attempt to recreate, or surpass the magic of Invasion of Privacy. 

She hasn’t been idle though. Cardi B’s presence has continued to be felt in the years since her debut album. Guest appearances, hot summer singles, and million-dollar ads have kept her in the spotlight. However, the fans are aching for a new body of work. Especially since the rapper has teased a follow-up for some time now. She recently announced that the album will no longer arrive in 2024, but her label, Atlantic Records, thinks otherwise. In the meantime, all we can do is wait and reminisce about all the times we’ve come close to tasting a new project from Cardi.

2020: Cardi B Teases Album No. 2

In April 2020, on the anniversary of her debut album, Cardi B promised to release the sequel to Invasion of Privacy. “Happy Birthday Miss INVASION OF PRIVACY,” she wrote. “My first baby, “Im workin on her sister so I can birth her this year.” With this news, fans felt rest assured that new material was on the way.

On August 7 of the same year, Cardi released “WAP.” The chart-topping, controversial single featured Megan Thee Stallion, and gained massive airplay. “WAP” was expected to be the lead single off Cardi B’s upcoming second studio album. While discussing the success of the single with Angie Martinez, she discussed the likelihood of a sophomore album dropping. “I’m already plotting my next move,” she said. “I don’t have my album ready yet. But even when I feel I have my album ready, I’m still debating when I should put out an album too.”

2021: Cardi Goes Live

In April 2021, Cardi welcomed her second child with Offset. Although she still performed while heavily pregnant, fans understandably believed she would take some time off after giving birth.  By December, on an Instagram Live session, Cardi B announced that her sophomore album was set to drop in 2022. This sparked widespread excitement from her fans. She blamed the pandemic for slowing down her album plans. “I want to do real f**kin’ interviews. I want to see people and sit down,” she said. Cardi also shared that she wanted to tour, as well as “go to the club and shake my a** to my own music.”

2022: Minimal Noise

On June 21, 2022, Cardi B released a career-spanning video compilation of her hits and implicitly teased her upcoming album. She captioned the video: “Just a little reminder feeling like 2020 when I had to come out and STEP to remind them. P.S-IM GONNA STOMP THIS TIME AROUND.” On July 12, Cardi was on the cover of Vogue Singapore and hinted at a 2022 release for her sophomore album.

2023: Cardi B Promises An Album And Tour Soon

Throughout  2023, Cardi B released strategic singles. This included another collaboration with Megan Thee Stallion, “Bongos.” As with every drop, fans were on their toes, hoping that an album announcement was on the way.  In January, Cardi B stirred excitement among fans with an Instagram post that led to speculation about her new album. This came after fans noticed she followed a new Instagram account, @albumcb2, which reposted a picture of Cardi in the studio. Later in May, in an interview with Rolling Stone, she promised fans a lot to look forward to in the summer. Moreover, during an interview with The Breakfast Club, Cardi B revealed her plans to release her album in early 2024 and go into tour mode immediately after. She also mentioned that she had been hard at work in the studio, and making final touches to her music.

Q1 2024: This Could Be The Year

2024 has come around, and Cardi B is still setting the stage for her upcoming album. She posted a video on Instagram showing a folder of unreleased songs on a laptop. The latest of these videos was recorded in January 2023. She also shared that she’d been dealing with the pressure to release new music. However, she has promised fans that this will be the year. “I promise y’all this year, I’m not letting my anxiety, I’m not letting what haters say, I’m not letting what fans say [stop me]. If I do a song, I’m gonna just f—ing drop it.”

She subsequently dropped the singles: “Enough (Miami)” and “Like What (Freestyle).” This further fueled speculation about the album’s imminent release. “Enough(Miami)” would go on to chart on the Billboard Hot 100.  Additionally, the music video for “Like What,” directed by Offset, teased fans with the message: “this is just the beginning… stay tuned.”

Q2 2024: Cardi Vs. Atlantic Records

April 6, 2024 marked the sixth anniversary of Invasion Of Privacy. Much to the delight of her fans, Cardi B confirmed via Instagram Story that her sophomore album will be released in 2024. She also expressed her excitement for the project. Since the news dropped, she began to engage with her fans on social media platforms especially X (Twitter), sharing updates and snippets of her work. However, on May 14th, she announced her decision to make a change of plans in a series of exchanges with some fans online.

After getting called out for the buildup over the years, Cardi revealed that the album would not be released in 2024 as she stated earlier. Instead, she announced that she was opting to focus on her well-being and other commitments. “anyway NO album this year I don’t care I’m relaxing this year,” she tweeted. “Dropping these features I already committed to and traveling and enjoying my summer.” This decision to delay the album’s release was met with equal parts disappointment and understanding from her fans.

On May 16, just two days later, the narrative changed once again. Despite Cardi B’s previous statements, her label, Atlantic Records, jokingly teased that the album is still set to drop before the end of the year. “Cardi B’s upcoming album is one of the most anticipated this year. We can’t wait to put it out, even if we have to sneak into her studio and take it!” Now it’s just a matter of time before we know who to believe.