Madlib is without a doubt your favorite producer’s favorite producer. With production credits on some of the genre’s most appreciated works, including MF DOOM’s Madvilliany, Freddie Gibb’s Piñata, and Talib Kweli’s Liberation, Madlib has become an undeniable hip-hop tastemaker. 

On Saturday (November 13), Madlib played a set at the Day N Vegas music festival in Las Vegas, Nevada. On a video posted on social media, Madlib is heard previewing a couple of unreleased songs in the mix. The producer and DJ aficionado played an unreleased Black Star song and another unheard collaboration with Freddie Gibbs. 

The Black Star track was first heard by fans earlier this year on the intro of Dave Chappelle’s controversial Netflix special, The Closer. Black Star member, Talib Kweli, has confirmed the album is finished and is currently waiting for a release. 

“The project with Madlib is done. We just trying to figure out when and how to release it,” Kweli told Hot 97’s Ebro Darden in 2019. 

Yasiin Bey provided an update on the project earlier this year when he appeared on Kweli’s People’s Party podcast. 

“I get it. We want it too,” Bey said. “You think you want the album more than us? Knock it off. You did not spend the hours with that music or with those ideas. We did. And we’ve been doing this shit for the better part of our adult lives. So respectfully, mind your business.”

As we wait patiently for its release, what are your expectations for the upcoming Black Star album? Stay tuned for more news on this and other hip-hop news.