Emergency Tsunami

Emergency Tsunami
Mixtape by Nav
Released	November 6, 2020
Recorded	2020
Length	32:56
Label	XO Republic
Producer	Wheezy Bak Bobby Raps Frankie Bash Frost Jasper Harris Pro Logic SinGrinch Turbo
Nav chronology
Brown Boy 2 (2020) Emergency Tsunami (2020) Perfect Timing II (2021)
Singles from Emergency Tsunami
"Young Wheezy" Released: January 12, 2021

Emergency Tsunami is the second commercial mixtape by Canadian rapper Nav. It was released through XO and Republic Records on November 6, 2020.^[1] It features guest appearances from Gunna, Young Thug, Lil Baby, Lil Keed, and SahBabii. It was produced by American record producer Wheezy, with help from other producers.^[2] The mixtape was Nav's third project of the year, following his third studio album, Good Intentions, and its deluxe reissue, Brown Boy 2. The bonus version of the mixtape, including two additional songs, was released five days later, on November 11, 2020. It features an additional guest appearance from Future.^[3] It was Wheezy's second time producing every song of a project, following Gunna's extended play, Drip or Drown, in 2017.^[4] The cover of the mixtape says "emergency tsunami" in red letters in Japanese. The mixtape was supported by one single, "Young Wheezy", with Gunna, which was sent to US rhythmic contemporary radio, on January 12, 2021.^[5]

Background[]

Wheezy had worked with Nav several times previously, contributing to production on songs from all three of the latter's studio albums, as of the release of Emergency Tsunami. The two first worked together in 2018 on the song "What I Need / Daheala Outro" from Reckless, followed in 2019 by "Habits" from Bad Habits. In early 2020, they reunited, with Wheezy landing three production credits on Good Intentions for the songs "Turks", "No Debate", and "Spend It". Shortly after, they also collaborated on the song "Bag", from the album's deluxe reissue, Brown Boy 2.

On November 6, 2020, Nav explained how he created Emergency Tsunami in an interview with GQ.^[7] About working with Wheezy to produce every song on the mixtape, he said:

"Basically after the momentum of the songs we've done together, especially, 'Turks', I noticed a lot of my fans wanted that kind of sound from me. So, Cash mentioned a couple of times that we should do a tape with Wheezy, then all of a sudden we finished one in almost like two, maybe three weeks."

About the time of release, he said:

"Yeah, we originally had an earlier target, so we were rushing a little bit more than we usually do. But after we pushed it, that gave me some breathing space to go fix some songs and tweak this and that."

Discussing the chemistry between him and the producer that makes a collaborative mixtape work, he explained:

"I've known Wheezy since like 2015, 2016. I knew him even before I met Cash, I met him through one of my close friends. I always loved his beats and I didn't even know he was producing for YSL or anything at the time. It's easy to work with Wheezy because I originally was just a fan. I'm pretty picky when it comes to beats because I'm a producer too. So it's hard for me just to rap on a beat, because if I hear any little nuances, I won't like the beat. I picked all the beats for the album out of a batch of maybe 40 or 50."

In an interview with Complex, on December 23, 2020, Wheezy explained how Emergency Tsunami came about, stating:

"It was the type of time that it was. The whole world stopped on everybody. So Emergency Tsunami was a perfect title to come with, and we already had songs done. All we had to do was maybe five or six more songs, and we just put it together. We did what we did in Canada and it was perfect. I'm a producer so the only thing I really miss is touring with my favorite artists and my friends. It affected me, not financially, but mentally."^[8]

Release and promotion[]

On September 19, 2020, "Young Wheezy", with American rapper Gunna, was teased in an Instagram story by American record producer Turbo. "Friends & Family" was then teased by both Nav and Wheezy on November 3 – Nav's 31st birthday.^[9] Finally, the following day, on November 4, Nav teased "Trains", with American rapper Lil Keed.^[10]

On October 11, 2020, in an Instagram story, Nav confirmed that he had a commercial mixtape in the works, which would be mainly produced by Wheezy.^[11][12] Three days later, on October 14, Nav and Wheezy both posted the same picture of them sitting in a room together, confirming the title of mixtape.^[13][14] On Wheezy's 28th birthday, Nav promoted it even more.^[15] Finally, on October 30, they both posted a trailer video on social media, heavily using footage from an unnamed tsunami disaster movie.^[16] The cover art and track listing were revealed on November 2 and November 5, respectively.^[17][18] The promotional material for Emergency Tsunami consisted of raw footage from real-life tsunamis and disasters, which is shown in the YouTube uploads of each of the mixtape's songs.^[19] Before the official release of the mixtape, the complete track listing was leaked, as it was for Good Intentions.^{[citation needed]} Emergency Tsunami was released on November 6, 2020.

Music videos[]

The official music video for "Friends & Family" premiered fourteen hours after the mixtape's release.^[20] Three days later, the video for "Don't Need Friends", featuring American rapper Lil Baby, was released on November 9.^[21] The video for "Young Wheezy" premiered on January 7, 2021.^[22]

Commercial performance[]

Emergency Tsunami debuted and peaked at single-digit spots on various Billboard charts such as the Billboard 200 chart, the Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart and the Canadian Albums Chart.

Track listing[]

Credits adapted from Tidal.^[23]

Notes

• "Breaking News Intro" and "Breaking News Outro" feature uncredited vocals from David C. Page.
• "Young Wheezy" features additional vocals from Travis Scott.

Personnel[]

Credits adapted from the track listing on Nav's social media.^[18]

Charts[]

References[]