Mastermind (Album by Rick Ross)

Mastermind
Studio album by Rick Ross
Released	March 3, 2014 (2014-03-03)
Recorded	2012–14
Genre	Hip hop
Length	61:58
Label	Maybach Slip-n-Slide Def Jam
Producer	DJ Khaled (exec.) Rick Ross (exec.) Sean Combs (also exec.) A+ Bink Ben Billions Boi-1da Beats Black Metaphor DaHeala D. Rich DJ Mustard J. Manifest Jerome "J-Roc" Harmon J.U.S.T.I.C.E. League K.E. on the Track Kanye West Major Seven Mike Dean Mike Will Made It Messy Reefa Scott Storch Streetrunner Timbaland Vinylz Vinny Venditto The Weeknd
Rick Ross chronology
God Forgives, I Don't (2012) Mastermind (2014) Hood Billionaire (2014)
Deluxe edition cover
Singles from Mastermind
"The Devil Is a Lie" Released: December 19, 2013 "War Ready" Released: February 17, 2014 "Thug Cry" Released: March 13, 2014

Professional ratings
Aggregate scores
Source	Rating
AnyDecentMusic?	6.3/10
Metacritic	68/100
Review scores
Source	Rating
AllMusic
The A.V. Club	B–
Entertainment Weekly	A–
Exclaim!	7/10
HipHopDX	3/5
Los Angeles Times
NME	8/10
Pitchfork	5.8/10
Spin	5/10
XXL	4/5 (XL)

Mastermind is the sixth studio album by American rapper Rick Ross. It was released on March 3, 2014, by Maybach Music Group, Slip-n-Slide Records and Def Jam Recordings. The album features guest appearances from Jay Z, Jeezy, The Weeknd, Kanye West, Big Sean, Meek Mill, Lil Wayne, French Montana, Diddy, Sizzla, Mavado, Z-Ro and Scarface. The album was supported with the official singles "The Devil Is a Lie", "War Ready" and "Thug Cry", in addition to the promotional singles "Box Chevy", "No Games" and "Nobody".

Mastermind received generally positive reviews from critics. The album debuted at number one on the Billboard 200 chart, with first-week sales of 179,000 copies in the United States.

In December 2012, it was reported that Ross had begun working on his sixth studio album. On January 1, 2013, he announced he would release the title of his sixth studio album on January 7, 2013. On January 7, 2013, in a promotional video he revealed the title of sixth album would be Mastermind. On June 10, 2013, during an interview with MTV News, he explained that Mastermind will have a soulful vibe, saying: "That's most definitely the feel and that's why I made sure I wanted to open at the top of the new year. I wanted to make that clear for the ones that paid attention that that's most definitely my vibe. I love making those kind of records, those 'Cigar Music' records, those 'Amsterdam' records, and that was most definitely the energy, but I record so much material — we gotta wait and see."

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Wikipedia