What It Means to Be King

What It Means to Be King
Studio album by King Von
Released	March 4, 2022 (2022-03-04)
Genre	Hip hop drill[1] gangsta rap
Length	48:51
Label	Empire Only the Family
Producer	ATL Jacob Bankroll Got It CGM Beats Chopsquad DJ Diego Ave DJ Bandz DJ FMCT Geraldo Liive Glaazer Hitmaka John Lam Kid Hazel MP808 Raw Equity Tee Romano TM88 Too Dope Touch of Trent
King Von chronology
Welcome to O'Block (2020) What It Means to Be King (2022) Grandson (2023)
Singles from What It Means to Be King
"Grandson for President" Released: April 29, 2020 "Don't Play That" Released: February 4, 2022 "War" Released: March 2, 2022

Professional ratings

Review scores
Source	Rating
AllMusic	[2]
HipHopDX	[3]
HotNewHipHop	75%[4]

What It Means to Be King is the second studio album by American rapper King Von. It was posthumously released through Empire Distribution and Only the Family on March 4, 2022. The album features guest appearances from G Herbo, 21 Savage, Fivio Foreign, Moneybagg Yo, Lil Durk, Tee Grizzley, A Boogie wit da Hoodie, Dreezy, Boss Top, DqFrmDaO, and OMB Peezy. Production was handled by Chopsquad DJ, Hitmaka, Tee Romano, Kid Hazel, Touch of Trent, DJ Bandz, DJ FMCT, Glaazer, Diego Ave, Bankroll Got It, TM88, ATL Jacob, Geraldo Liive, CGM Beats, John Lam, and Raw Equity. The album marks Von's first posthumous project and serves as the follow-up to his previous album, Welcome to O'Block (2020).

Background

On November 6, 2020, King Von died from being shot outside a hookah lounge in Atlanta, Georgia, exactly one week after the release of his previous album, Welcome to O'Block (2020).^[5] The same day of his death, American rapper Pooh Shiesty released his single, "Back in Blood", which features Von's Only the Family label boss, fellow rapper Lil Durk. Von made his first posthumous cameo appearance in the music video for the song, which was released on January 2, 2021, in which the title of his album was revealed.^[6]

Release and promotion

"Grandson for President", was released on April 29, 2020, in the period between the releasing of Levon James mixtape and Welcome to O'Block studio album, but remaining a standalone single; the song was later merged with What It Means to Be King album, effectively representing the lead single of the posthumous project.^[7]

In fact, the second and third singles primarily functioned as promotional means for the album's commercial success. The single "Don't Play That", which King Von had anticipated in October 2020 with an Instagram post,^[8][9] was revealed to be a collaboration with Atlanta-based rapper 21 Savage, produced by Kid Hazel, it was released on February 4, 2022. That same day Von's estate shared the title and release date of the album, exactly one month before its release.^[10] An official music video for the song was released later on February 9.^[11][12] On February 28, 2022, they shared the album cover art and made the album available for pre-order on Apple Music, with the tracklist also revealed on Apple Music the following day. ^[13] Finally the third single, "War", produced by Chopsquad DJ, was released on March 2, 2022, two days before the album's release, and it was accompanied by an official visualizer video.^[14][15] Both singles entered the Billboard Hot 100 chart, achieving positions 40 and 71, respectively.^[16]

Following the release of the album, two music videos were released for two tracks from the project. The first music video was for "Too Real" that was released shortly thereafter the album release, on March 7, 2022. The second music video was for "Get It Done" song with OMB Peezy and was released on August 9, 2022, in honor of what would have been King Von's 28th birthday.^{[17][18][19][20][21]}

Commercial performance

What It Means to Be King debuted at number 2 on the US Billboard 200 chart, earning 59,000 album-equivalent units, 55,000 came from 79 million in streams, and 4,000 from pure album sales.^[22] The album represents the second top 10 on the Billboard 200 for King Von, and marks his highest position on the charts to date. He first reached the top 10 with his 2020 debut studio album, Welcome to O’Block which peaked at number 5.^[22][23] The album also claimed the top spot on the Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart, and secured the number 2 position on the Top Independent Albums chart. It also peaked at number 3 on the Billboard Canadian Albums chart.^[24]

Track listing

What It Means to Be King track listing

No.	Title	Writer(s)	Producer(s)	Length
1.	"Where I'm From"	Dayvon Bennett Darrell Jackson	Chopsquad DJ	1:38
2.	"War"	Bennett Jackson	Chopsquad DJ	2:40
3.	"Facetime" (featuring G Herbo)	Bennett Herbert Wright III Christian Ward Terrence Williams	Hitmaka Tee Romano	2:36
4.	"Don't Play That" (with 21 Savage)	Bennett Shayaa Abraham-Joseph Ahmar Bailey	Kid Hazel	2:13
5.	"Straight to It" (featuring Fivio Foreign)	Bennett Maxie Ryles III Jackson	Chopsquad DJ	2:58
6.	"Trust Nothing" (featuring Moneybagg Yo)	Bennett Demario White, Jr. Jackson	Chopsquad DJ	3:05
7.	"Evil Twins" (with Lil Durk)	Bennett Durk Banks Trenton Turner	Touch of Trent	1:55
8.	"Too Real"	Bennett Devonte Richmond Maliki Decampos Gunnlaugur Sumarlidason	DJ Bandz DJ FMCT Glaazer	1:45
9.	"Rich Gangsta" (featuring Tee Grizzley)	Bennett Terry Wallace, Jr. Ward Diego Avendano Joel Banks Taylor Banks	Hitmaka Diego Ave Bankroll Got It	2:45
10.	"Mad"	Bennett Jackson	Chopsquad DJ	2:04
11.	"My Fault" (with A Boogie wit da Hoodie)	Bennett Artist Dubose Jackson	Chopsquad DJ	3:11
12.	"Change My Life"	Bennett Jackson	Chopsquad DJ	2:40
13.	"Hard to Trust" (featuring Dreezy)	Bennett Seandrea Sledge Bryan Simmons Jacob Canady Lesidney Ragland Terrell McNeal	TM88 ATL Jacob Too Dope^[a] MP808^[a]	3:26
14.	"Get Back" (featuring Boss Top and DqFrmDaO)	Bennett Tyree Davis DqFrmDaO Jackson	Chopsquad DJ	2:40
15.	"Get It Done" (with OMB Peezy)	Bennett LeParis Dade Jackson	Chopsquad DJ	2:44
16.	"Chase the Bag"	Bennett Geraldo Mejia CGM Beats	Geraldo Liive CGM Beats	2:24
17.	"Go n Get Em" (featuring Boss Top)	Bennett Davis John Lam	Lam	2:46
18.	"Grandson for President"	Bennett Jackson	Chopsquad DJ	2:17
19.	"Family Dedication Outro"	Bennett Raw Equity	Raw Equity	2:56
Total length:				48:51

Note:

• ^{^[a]} signifies a co-producer.

Samples

• "Grandson for President" contains a sample of "Knuck If You Buck" as performed by Crime Mob featuring Lil Scrappy, written by Jarques Usher, Chris Henderson, Jonathan Lewis, Venetia Lewis and Brittany Carpentero.

Charts

Weekly charts Weekly chart performance for What It Means to Be King Chart (2022) Peak position Belgian Albums (Ultratop Flanders)[25] 141 Canadian Albums (Billboard)[26] 3 UK Albums (OCC)[27] 63 UK R&B Albums (OCC)[28] 35 US Billboard 200[29] 2 US Independent Albums (Billboard)[30] 2 US Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums (Billboard)[31] 1

Year-end charts Year-end chart performance for What It Means to Be King Chart (2022) Position US Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums (Billboard)[32] 85

References

1. "Review - King Von 'What It Means To Be King' Doesn't Advance Or Hurt His Legacy – It Just Extends His Catalog". hiphopdx. Apr 5, 2022. Retrieved July 3, 2023.
2. "What It Means to Be King Review by David Crone". AllMusic. March 2, 2022. Retrieved March 2, 2022.
3. "Review - King Von 'What It Means To Be King' Doesn't Advance Or Hurt His Legacy – It Just Extends His Catalog". HipHopDX. Apr 5, 2022. Retrieved July 3, 2022.
4. "King Von "What It Means To Be King" Review". HotNewHipHop. Mar 9, 2022. Archived from the original on March 3, 2023. Retrieved August 6, 2022.
5. "Rapper King Von Shot and Killed in Atlanta, Video Shows Chaos". TMZ. November 6, 2020. Retrieved November 6, 2020.
6. Aniftos, Rania (January 4, 2021). "Pooh Shiesty & Lil Durk Honor King Von in 'Back in Blood' Music Video". Billboard. Retrieved March 1, 2022.
7. A., Aron (April 29, 2020). "King Von Drops Off "Grandson For President (Remix)"". HotNewHipHop.
8. "King Von's Posthumous Single "Don't Play That" Features 21 Savage". HotNewHipHop. 2022-02-04. Retrieved 2024-09-25.
9. "kingvonfrmdao". Instagram. August 19, 2020. Retrieved September 21, 2024.
10. Brown, Preezy (February 4, 2022). "King Von's Estate Announces New 'What It Means To Be King' Album". Vibe. Retrieved March 1, 2022.
11. Espinoza, Joshua (February 4, 2022). "Stream King Von's Posthumous Track "Don't Play That" f/ 21 Savage Off Upcoming Album 'What It Means to Be King'". Complex. Retrieved March 1, 2022.
12. "King Von And 21 Savage's Colorful 'Don't Play That' Video Pairs Cuddly Animation With Vicious Lyrics". Uproxx. February 9, 2022. Retrieved September 21, 2024.
13. Cummings-Grady, Mackenzie (February 28, 2022). "King Von's Team Reveals Cover Art For Posthumous 'What It Means To Be King' Album". HipHopDX. Retrieved March 1, 2022.
14. Cummings-Grady, Mackenzie (March 2, 2022). "Listen to King Von's New Posthumous Single "War"". Complex. Retrieved March 2, 2022.
15. "King Von's Estate Shares "War", A Breathlessly Intense Single From What It Means To Be King". audibletreats.com. March 4, 2022. Retrieved June 21, 2023.
16. "Chart History - King Von". Billboard. February 19, 2024. Retrieved September 21, 2024.
17. "Watch the video for King Von's "Too Real"". The Fader. Retrieved September 21, 2024.
18. "Check out King Von's visual for "Too Real"". Revolt Tv. Retrieved September 21, 2024.
19. "King Von's Estate Releases "Get It Done" Music Video". Hypebeast. Retrieved September 21, 2024.
20. "King Von's Estate Shares "Get It Done" Video to Celebrate Late Rapper's 28th Birthday". Complex. Retrieved September 21, 2024.
21. "King Von's Estate Drops "Get It Done" Video For His 28th Birthday". Vibe. Retrieved September 21, 2024.
22. "'Encanto' Makes It Nine Weeks Atop Billboard 200 Albums Chart". Billboard. March 13, 2022. Retrieved March 15, 2022.
23. "The Final First Week Numbers for King Von and DaBaby x YoungBoy Never Broke Again Projects Are In". Complex. March 14, 2022. Retrieved March 15, 2022.
24. "Chart History King Von". Billboard. March 19, 2022. Retrieved September 22, 2024.
25. "Ultratop.be – King Von – What It Means to Be King" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved March 13, 2022.
26. "King Von Chart History (Canadian Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved March 15, 2022.
27. "Official Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved March 11, 2022.
28. "Official R&B Albums Chart Top 40". Official Charts Company. Retrieved March 11, 2022.
29. "King Von Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard. Retrieved March 13, 2022.
30. "King Von Chart History (Independent Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved March 15, 2022.
31. "King Von Chart History (Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved March 15, 2022.
32. "Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums – Year-End 2021". Billboard. Retrieved December 2, 2022.