Joey Bada$$ hasn’t released a standalone solo project since 2017’s ALL AMERIKKKAN BADA$$, but on Wednesday (March 9) he told Ebro Darden that’s all about to change.

“We back – the album’s coming soon,” Joey said. “Listen, once we drop, we going to continue, you know what I’m saying? In this era, what I’m focused on is consistency. Consistency and the quality of my product, so you could definitely expect a lot more Joey Bada$$ in this new time right here.”

The New York-bred lyricist dropped off a new single on Friday (March 4) titled “Head High,” which he revealed to Ebro was three years in the making, and was inspired by the late Nipsey Hussle.

“This is one of the best records I’ve ever made,” Joey said. “This is an important, special record near and dear to my heart. I started writing it the day after Nipsey passed. And I didn’t have an actual friendship or relationship with Nipsey. I met him a couple times and everything and it was always good vibes, but I was definitely moved by just who he was in this world and in this game. And when he passed, it was extremely unfortunate. And like I usually do with channeling pain, I put it into the music, you know what I’m saying? So this joint is definitely inspired by him.”

Nas had previously referred to “Head High” as the “perfect” single, and Joey even gave a live performance of the track on COLORS.

Check out the entire interview with Ebro Darden on Apple Music below.