In an exclusive interview with The FADER, Detroit singer/rapper DeJ Loaf revealed new details about her long-awaited debut album, now officially titled Liberated. While there’s been no release date or tracklist set, DeJ’s manager has said the record is “90 percent complete.” The FADER interview also confirms a handful of collaborators contributing to the album, including Detail, Ricky “Wallpaper” Reed, Marlon XXIII, and soul singer Leon Bridges.
Here’s DeJ on what to expect:
I’ve always wanted to make bigger music. But I never could go all the way ‘cause I didn’t have the resources, in terms of working with Grammy Award-winning producers, bigger studios, a bigger sound. I’ve always had it in me, but my voice is developed now. I’m myself. I’m who I always wanted to be.
On collaborating with new people:
You can tell the difference in the music. I trust those people. I’ve been in the studio with other producers, and they’re trying to figure me out. I’m like, “You’re not gonna be able to figure me out in this four-hour session. My mom hasn’t even figured me out. Save it, let’s just work.”
DeJ has been steadily releasing material since her debut mixtape in 2012, but Liberated will be her first official full-length effort. She just dropped her third tape, All Jokes Aside, on April 6 this year, preceded by the Columbia-released EP #AndSeeThatsTheThing in 2015.
As part of her #DeJember campaign, DeJ just dropped a new song called “Hold It Down,” produced by Buddah Bless This Beat. It’s unclear whether or not the song is off the new album. Listen to it here: