Nightride is the second studio album by American singer Tinashe. It was released on November 4, 2016 through RCA Records. Serving as a digital release issued ahead of her long-delayed third album Joyride, the project includes previously released singles such as "Company", and "Ride of Your Life". The album's version of "Party Favors" omits rapper Young Thug's guest verse, and unlike her previous releases, Nightride features no other guest appearances.
Conceived alongside Joyride as two parts of the same project, Tinashe described Nightride as reflecting her interest in exploring multiple sides of her identity, emphasizing duality and variety in her music. She also released a short film of the same name to accompany the album.
Musically, Nightride continues Tinashe's atmospheric R&B style, with sparse production, layered vocals, and ambient textures. It received generally favorable reviews from music critics, who noted its moody and after-hours sound, and was described by Billboard as the darker counterpart to Joyride. The album peaked at number 89 on the US Billboard 200 and appeared on several year-end best-of lists, including Rolling Stone, Fuse, and Uproxx.
Background
In a video for Nylon, Tinashe discussed the delays surrounding Joyride, stating that "the creative process has its ebbs and flows" and that the album would be released once it was complete. Around the same period, she also confirmed via Instagram that she had collaborated with Britney Spears, following speculation about the partnership.[1] With Rolling Stone, Tinashe explained that Nightride and Joyride were conceived as two parts of the same project, noting that the majority of Joyride had already been completed.[2] She described both projects as equally representative of her artistic vision, emphasizing the duality and variety in her music.[3] In a note posted on Twitter, she further stated that the project reflected her interest in expressing multiple sides of herself, writing that "being human is about embracing the many different sides of you rather than trying to limit, label, or box yourself in... Nightride is an expression of that duality."[4]
In 2019, Tinashe confirmed that she considers Nightride as her second studio album. However, her former label, RCA Records, disagreed, and it was the reason why the album didn't receive proper promotion and a lead single. She also revealed that she couldn't hold the tour for the album.[5]
Release and promotion
Prior to the release, Tinashe teased fans with singles including "Superlove" and "Company", initially promoting a fall release under the title Joyride.[3] On November 3, 2016, she announced Nightride, revealing the cover art and tracklist which features 15 songs.[6] Ahead of the release of her long-delayed album Joyride, Tinashe issued Nightride as a digital album on November 4.[7] It includes several previously released tracks, such as "Ride of Your Life", produced by Metro Boomin, "Company", and "Party Favors", featuring Young Thug.[1][8] Tinashe also issued a short film of the same name, which served as a visual counterpart to the project.[9]
Singles
The album's lead single, "Company", was released on September 16, 2016. It was produced by The-Dream and Tricky Stewart.[10] On January 6, 2017, the music video for the song was released.[11]
Composition
According to The Fader, Nightride presents Tinashe in a fully solo capacity, with the album's version of "Party Favors" omitting Young Thug's original guest verse. The album continues her characteristic atmospheric R&B style, incorporating sparse production, layered vocals, and ambient textures.[12] Unlike her previous two releases, Aquarius and Amethyst, Nightride features no guest appearances.[7]
Nightride received generally favorable reviews from music critics. At Metacritic, which assigns a normalized rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream publications, the album received an average score of 75, based on 5 reviews.[14]
Randall Roberts of the Los Angeles Times commented that the album "mixes themes of both cruising and loving, and does so through tracks produced by notables including the-Dream, Boi 1da and Dev Hynes".[17] Rebecca Haithcoat of the Pitchfork stated "Nightride sounds fascinating and, while polished, less sleek and cold than the title suggests. It has more of an ominous, broken-down carnival vibe" and that "Tinashe has long preferred shadows and slinkiness to bright poppiness, and [Nightride] is strictly after-hours music. [...] the album is infinitely interesting, possibly more so than the artist singing it. But then again, you shouldn't count out anyone releasing an album like Nightride."[19]Kitty Empire of The Observer gave a more mixed but still positive review; describing the tracks from Nightride as a series of "hazy, gauzy tracks".[18] Richy Rosario from Billboard stated that if Tinashe's forthcoming album Joyride was intended to be "sunny", then Nightride served as its "darker polar opposite".[20]
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