Crop Circle 3
2023 studio album by Nines
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Crop Circle 3 is the fifth studio album by British rapper Nines, released on 6 October 2023, through Nines' own independent record label, Zino Records.[1] It features guest appearances from Bad Boy Chiller Crew, Big Narstie, Blade Brown, Fatz, George the Poet, Little Torment, Mark Morrison, Max Valentine, M Dot R, Miraa May, Mugzz, Ouraa, ShockTown, Skrapz, Streetz, Tiggs Da Author, Trapstar Toxic, and Tunde, while the album's production was primarily handled by Jacob Manson, Karlos, and Show N Prove with assistance from Handz Beatz, Jackson Romain, RJ Cherry, and several other producers.[2] The album serves as a follow-up to Nines' third, Crop Circle 2 (2023) and will serve as the final part of an album trilogy that began with Crop Circle (2018) and continued with Crop Circle 2 (2023).[3] Upon the release of the album, Nines released a short film of the same name.[4]
- Zino
- 1st Born Music
- Babycashy1
- Daniel Miles
- Handz Beatz
- Harrijay
- I Don't Rap I Dress
- Jackson Romain
- Jacob Manson
- Jojo Mukeza
- Karlos
- LuqMakesBeats
- ProdByDizzy
- RJ Cherry
- Show N Prove
| Crop Circle 3 | ||||
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| Studio album by | ||||
| Released | 6 October 2023 | |||
| Length | 42:38 | |||
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| Producer |
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| Nines chronology | ||||
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| Singles from Quit While You're Ahead | ||||
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Release and promotion
Months after the release of the second instalment of his Crop Circle album trilogy, on 15 September 2023, Nines took to his Instagram to announce the release of Crop Circle 3 while sharing the album's cover art and release date for 6 October.[5][6] On 24 September, Nines released his highly anticipated "Daily Duppy" which premiered on GRM Daily.[7] The song served as the album's lead single.[8] On 30 September, Nines shared the album's official tracklist to his Instagram.[9] On 5 October, just a day prior to the release of the album, Nines released the album's second single, "Toxic" featuring Bad Boy Chiller Crew.[1] Upon the release of the album, Nines released a short film of the same name, co-starring Alhan Gencay, Talliah Storm, and Nines himself.[10]
Critical reception
| Review scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| AllMusic |    [11] |
| The Guardian | [12] |
| The Observer | [13] |
Crop Circle 3 received positive reviews from music critics. Writing for GRM Daily, Niall Smith wrote that "overall, Crop Circle 3 is a solid body of work" and that it's difficult to compare the album to Nines' past work. He stated that on the album, "there's a medley of cohesion, chaos and crystalline penmanship".[2] AllMusic's David Crone wrote that the project is a "smooth, blunt-voiced trap & hip-hop" album and that he "[weaves] struggle and success together in the [his] signature narratives".[11] In a positive review, Tara Joshi for The Guardian hinted towards Nines' retirement from music in her review, writing that "Nines is dreaming of a new, unconfined chapter: perhaps that’s why Crop Circle 3 sounds so enticingly free".[12] The Observer's Damien Morris wrote that "we find Nines in a comfortable holding pattern" and that on the album, "he rehearses familiar topics" ranging from "his irresistibility to women" to "unfeasibly large bags of weed, and displays little desire to traverse deeper hinterlands".[13]
Year-end lists
| Publication | List | Rank | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Complex UK | Complex UK's Best Albums of 2023 | 12 | [14] |
Track listing
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Producer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Intro" | Courtney Freckleton |
| 1:57 |
| 2. | "Only One" (featuring Skrapz and Ouraa) |
|
| 3:04 |
| 3. | "So High" (featuring Max Valentine and ShockTown) |
|
| 3:59 |
| 4. | "Toxic" (featuring Bad Boy Chiller Crew) |
|
| 2:58 |
| 5. | "Daily Duppy" (with GRM Daily) | Freckleton | Karlos | 3:12 |
| 6. | "Never Be Me" (featuring Blade Brown) |
|
| 2:24 |
| 7. | "Not Guilty" (featuring Mark Morrison and Tiggs Da Author) |
|
| 2:34 |
| 8. | "I Do" (featuring Mugzz and Tunde) |
|
| 2:15 |
| 9. | "Good Morning" | Freckleton |
| 2:58 |
| 10. | "Max Elliot" (featuring Big Narstie and M Dot R) |
|
| 2:41 |
| 11. | "My Turn" | Freckleton | Karlos | 2:28 |
| 12. | "Could of Been" (featuring Miraa May) |
|
| 2:26 |
| 13. | "Line of Fire Pt. 7" (featuring Fatz, Little Torment, Streetz, and Trapstar Toxic) |
| Karlos | 3:19 |
| 14. | "Devils Rejects" (featuring Skrapz and George the Poet) |
|
| 3:22 |
| 15. | "Outro" (featuring Debbie) |
|
| 3:01 |
| Total length: | 42:38 | |||
Charts
| Chart (2023) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| Irish Albums (OCC)[15] | 12 |
| Scottish Albums (OCC)[16] | 13 |
| UK Albums (OCC)[17] | 2 |
| UK Independent Albums Chart (OCC)[18] | 3 |
| UK R&B Albums (OCC)[19] | 1 |
Certifications
| Region | Certification | Certified units/sales |
|---|---|---|
| United Kingdom (BPI)[20] | Silver | 60,000‡ |
|
‡ Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone. | ||