Shine (an abbreviation of Still Here Ignoring Negative Energy) is the fifth studio album by American rapper Wale. It was released on April 28, 2017, by his label, Every Blue Moon, distributed by Maybach Music Group and Atlantic Records. The production on the album was handled by multiple producers including Cool & Dre, Kane Beatz, Diplo, Lee Major, Nez & Rio and Christian Rich among others. The album also features guest appearances by Dua Lipa, Chris Brown, Travis Scott, Lil Wayne, Wizkid, J Balvin and G-Eazy among others.

Shine was supported by four singles: "My PYT", "Running Back", "Fashion Week" and "Fish N Grits". The album received generally mixed reviews from music critics and achieved small commercial success. It debuted at number 16 on the US Billboard 200 chart, earning 28,000 album equivalent units in its first week.

This album mark as Wale's third and final release under the Atlantic Records label.

Singles The first single from the album, "My PYT", was released on May 20, 2016. The music video for the track premiered on July 25, 2016. The song has peaked at number 54 on the US Billboard Hot 100 chart.

"One Reason (Flex)" featuring American singer Eric Bellinger, was released as a promotional single on September 9, 2016.

"Groundhog Day" was released as the second promotional single on December 13, 2016. The music video for the song premiered on February 2, 2017.

"Running Back" featuring American rapper Lil Wayne, was released as the second single on January 20, 2017. The song's music video premiered on February 6, 2017. It has peaked at number 100 on the Billboard Hot 100.

The third single from the album, "Fashion Week" featuring American rapper G-Eazy, was released on February 24, 2017. The music video for the track premiered on April 10, 2017.

The album's fourth single, "Fish N Grits", was released on April 6, 2017, and features American rapper Travis Scott.

Critical reception

Shine was met with generally mixed reviews from music critics. At Metacritic, which assigns a normalized rating out of 100 to reviews from professional publications, the album received an average score of 65, based on five reviews.

XXL writer Preezy said, "For the occasional missteps ("Mathematics," "Fish n Grits"), there are multiple bright spots throughout that make SHINE required listening and a solid addition to his discography. Five albums in, Wale remains one of the more mercurial talents in rap, with SHINE serving as further evidence of his abilities as an MC and a reminder of his lyrical radiance." AllMusic's Andy Kellman felt the album was "maximized for streaming with numerous cross-cultural stylistic switch-ups and a lengthy register of producers and guest artists" but highlighted "CC White" and "Smile" for showing Wale's lyrical talents, concluding that: "It should be enough to retain the listeners who strongly prefer the more lyrical, less hedonistic aspects of the Wale discography." Perry Simpson of HotNewHipHop called the record "Wale's weakest effort yet", highlighting the lack of his "trademark flair for poetry" and delving into "deeper messages and themes," and succumbing to "generic pop rap balladry and trap fusion" throughout the tracklist, concluding that: "This stark change in artistic direction is surprising. The overt and aggressive pandering to the lowest common denominator with these sounds here is frustrating. Wale can do better than SHiNE." Pitchfork contributor Jonah Bromwich critiqued that it was "a more buoyant album" than the "back-to-basics" on 2015's The Album About Nothing, noting the "varied set of production styles" and Wale's "usual acrobatic routine through hoops positioned by marketers and focus groups", but felt that Wale was putting more focus on "success, wealth, and the haters who are blocking his path to success and wealth", concluding that: "Listening to Shine, you can't help but think that Wale has finally dropped his rigorous standards for himself. He hadn't met them in several years, but before this, he was still trying." Michael G. Barilleaux, writing for No Ripcord, criticized the album for Wale's "very weak turnout" of lyrics and "a lack of uniqueness in the overall concepts and sonics" throughout the tracklist, saying "This project is not particularly awful, nor is it impressive. It is simply bland and tiresome to listen to."

Commercial performance Shine debuted at number 16 on the US Billboard 200 chart, earning 28,000 album equivalent units in its first week.

Track listing

Notes signifies a co-producer signifies an additional producer "Thank God" features additional vocals from singer Rotimi "Scarface Rozay Gotti" features background vocals from August Grant, and additional vocals from K-Doe Sleeze "My Love" features background vocals from Eric Bellinger "Fashion Week" features background vocals from August Grant, DJ Money, Edgar Machuca, Michika Skyy and Phil Adé "Colombia Heights (Te Llamo)" features additional vocals from Edgar Machuca "CC White" and "Heaven on Earth" features background vocals from Phil Adé "Fine Girl" features additional vocals from DJ Money "My PYT" features vocals from Sam Sneak

Sample credits "Thank God" contains a sample of "Wind Parade", written by Larry Mizell, as performed by Donald Byrd. "Fashion Week" contains a sample of "Kharma Is Coming", written by Kenna Zemedkun and Chad Hugo, as performed by Kenna. "CC White" contains a sample of "'Til the Cops Come Knockin'", written by Menard Maxwell and Hod David, as performed by Maxwell. "Fine Girl" contains a sample of "Can You Stand the Rain", written by James Harris and Terry Lewis, as performed by New Edition. "Heaven on Earth" contains a sample of "Lullabies", written by Yunalis Zara'ai and Christopher Braide, as performed by Yuna. "My PYT" contains an interpolation of "P.Y.T. (Pretty Young Thing)", written by James Ingram and Quincy Jones, as performed by Michael Jackson and a sample of "Sexual Healing", written by Marvin Gaye, Odell Brown and David Ritz, as performed by Marvin Gaye. "Smile" contains a sample of "I Wanna Be Where You Are", written by Arthur Ross and Leon Ware, as performed by Michael Jackson.

Personnel

Vocalists Wale – primary artist Lil Wayne – featured artist Major Lazer – featured artist Wizkid – featured artist Dua Lipa – featured artist G-Eazy – featured artist J Balvin – featured artist Travis Scott – featured artist Davido – featured artist Olamide – featured artist Chris Brown – featured artist Phil Adé – featured artist , background artist Zyla Moon – featured artist Rotimi – background artist August Grant – background artist K-Doe Sleeze – background artist Eric Bellinger – background artist DJ Money – background artist Edgar Machuca – background artist Michika Skyy – background artist Sam Sneak – background artist

Musicians Jeff Gitty – bass , guitar Crissy J – violin Cleva Keys – keyboard Daniel Groover – guitar

Technical Kevin Spencer – mixing engineer , recording engineer David Kutch – mastering engineer Blake Harden – mixing engineer Chris Athens – mastering engineer Chad "KM" Kitchens – mixing engineer , recording engineer

Production Cool & Dre – producer 808-Ray – producer Spinz Beats, Inc. – producer Go Grizzly – producer Dreamlife – producer Diplo – producer The Picard Brothers – producer Kuk Harrell – additional producer Simone Torres – additional producer Christian Rich – producer Don Cannon – producer CED – producer Big Ghost Ltd. – co-producer DJ Money – additional producer Kane Beatz – producer Vinay – producer Majestic Drama – producer Nez & Rio – producer Marcè Reazon – producer Super Miles – producer The Dope Boyz – producer Lee Major – producer Sean Momberger – producer Pro Reese – producer

Charts + Weekly chart performance for Shine Chart (2017) Peakposition

References