Nightmare Vacation (album)

Nightmare Vacation is the debut studio album by American rapper Rico Nasty, released on December 4, 2020, through Artist Partner Group (APG), Atlantic Records and her own Sugar Trap label. The album features guest appearances from rappers Trippie Redd, Aminé, Gucci Mane and Don Toliver, among others. Frequent producers on the record also include 100 gecs, Take a Daytrip and Avedon, with additional work from producers such as Tay Keith, Buddah Bless and CashMoneyAP.

The album earned positive reviews, with many of the music critics complimenting its ferocity, fun and genre integration, including trap metal as well as Rico Nasty's delivery and empowering lyrics. It was supported by the singles "iPhone", "Own It", "Don't Like Me", "OHFR?" and "STFU" and also features her breakout 2018 single "Smack a Bitch" which had been certified gold by the Recording Industry Association of America earlier that year.

Background and recording
Rico Nasty first revealed the title Nightmare Vacation to Coveteur in September 2019, without distinguishing whether it would be a mixtape or an album. In October 2019, she told Complex that the album was supposed to be released in that year but she held it off "because of factors that she doesn't explicitly divulge." Instead, she released the collaborative mixtape Anger Management (2019) with Kenny Beats, as well as a string of several non-album singles to "hold fans over". Talking to NME about the time spent during her creative process and the self-doubt it causes, Rico Nasty said, "I made Anger Management in a week. I made Nasty (2018) and Sugar Trap (2017) in around three months. I made Tales of Tacobella (2017) in a month [...] I made this album [Nightmare Vacation] in a year. I hope that I'm not one of the people that overperfected it and took away what [the fans] enjoyed." Rico Nasty formally announced the album on August 13, 2020, alongside the release of its lead single, "iPhone". She subsequently released a makeup palette as a collaboration with Il Makiage, and later confirmed that names of the shades will be titles of the tracks in the album. In a letter directed to her fans, Rico Nasty explained that the project's title is a metaphorical oxymoron: "[...] understand that anything you want you can achieve! But know that there will be good and bad with everything. That's why this album is called Nightmare Vacation. Sometimes the things you want aren't the things you need." In September 2020, Rico Nasty revealed that the album was prepared for imminent release. She told Complex that it would be released in the Halloween season, which Los Angeles Times later confirmed as October 30, 2020, in a write-up. However, in early November 2020, Rico Nasty only formally announced the official release date of December 4, 2020. The album cover was also revealed with this announcement. Rico Nasty would also later release a visual cinematic trailer to build hype for the album, before revealing the album's tracklist in early December.

Composition
Nightmare Vacation is a hip hop album influenced by a variety of musical elements such as trap, nu-metal,  punk and punk rap,  emo, bubblegum pop, hyperpop, R&B,  and electronic. Musically, Kyann-Sian Williams of NME described the album simply as "sugar trap [genre] on steroids".

Rico Nasty herself described the album as "a more evolved version of Sugar Trap [2016 mixtape], because it's good and bad", and noted that unlike most of her existing repertoire, "there are no rock cadences on it. It's a vibe. It makes you feel good, makes you feel happy." On the concept behind the album and its musical presence, she said: "Nightmare Vacation is your best and worst experience. In my case, it's music. [...] Nightmare Vacation is playing on those super aggressive sounds, along with these super melodic shapes." Rico Nasty told Dazed that the album "is not based on one aesthetic" and that the album features "another voice" she has developed which is neither rap or rock. She continued: "it sounds natural. It's really fire. I'm happy that I locked myself in the studio and didn't give up on life."

Singles
On August 13, 2020, Rico Nasty released "iPhone" as the album's lead single, alongside its own music video. The second single "Own It" was also paired with a music video, released September 17, 2020. The third single "Don't Like Me" was released October 22, 2020. The fourth single "OHFR?" was released November 11, 2020, alongside a music video. The release of the music video for the fifth single "STFU" coincided with the release of the album on December 4, 2020.

Other songs
The song "Smack a Bitch" was released on January 13, 2018, and became Rico Nasty's "breakout single", before featuring as a bonus track on Nightmare Vacation two years later. A remix of the song featuring American rappers ppcocaine, Rubi Rose and Sukihana serves as the last track on the album.

Live performances
Rico Nasty made her television debut when she performed "OHFR?" on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon in January 2021.

Critical reception
Nightmare Vacation received acclaim from music critics upon release. At Metacritic, which assigns a normalized rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream critics, the album has an average score of 80 based on 12 reviews, indicating "generally favourable reviews". Aggregator AnyDecentMusic? gave it 7.4 out of 10, based on their assessment of the critical consensus.

Dominic Haley of Loud and Quiet described Nightmare Vacation as "short, aggressive and about as in-your-face as a Slipknot record" which "leaves you with the feeling that it could be the record that will finally cement Nasty as one of the most essential, vital voices in rap's current pantheon." Candace McDuffie of Paste wrote that Rico Nasty "juggles ferocity and fun" on the record, and wrote that her "inaugural efforts are cathartic, ballsy and just plain fun. Nightmare Vacation solidifies the emcee as quite the furious force to be reckoned with." Writing for Clash, Robert Kazandjian also described the album as "combative, empowering and unashamedly fun". Critics from both The Guardian and The Line of Best Fit agreed that the album was her "most raging" and "nastiest" release yet. Kyann-Sian Williams of NME wrote that as Rico Nasty channels "nostalgic noughties culture and sound while exuding turbulent modern production", her debut studio album "solidifies her status as a singular talent". Elly Watson of DIY concluded with the statement: "Biting and abrasive in the best kind of ways, Nightmare Vacation finds an artist stepping up into the hype that's been surrounding her for years, and delivering on it tenfold. It will chew you up and spit you out, and you'll love every minute of it."

Critics from The Observer and The Guardian wrote slightly less positive reviews, both expressing how Rico Nasty's music, despite its uniqueness and freshness, had not stylistically experienced any progression from her existing repertoire but rather "stagnation".

Commercial performance
On Spotify in the first two days after its release, Nightmare Vacation was the second most streamed album debut in the United States, and the tenth most streamed album debut worldwide. Due to its moderate success, it topped the Heatseekers Albums chart.

Personnel
Musicians
 * Rico Nasty – vocals
 * B. Lewis – programming (1)
 * Buddah Bless – programming (2)
 * Dylan Brady – programming (4, 12)
 * Take a Daytrip – programming (5, 7)
 * Aminé – vocals (6)
 * Nick Seeley – electric guitar, synthesizer (9)
 * 100 gecs – programming (11)
 * Alter Ego – programming (14)
 * Avedon – programming (14)
 * Camden – programming (14)

Technical
 * Chris Athens – mastering
 * Joe Fitz – mixing (1, 3–5, 7–11, 13–16)
 * Jaycen Joshua – mixing (2)
 * David Nakaji – mixing (6)
 * Joshua "Jay Que" Queen – engineering (1, 10)
 * Dylan Brady – engineering (4)
 * Take a Daytrip – engineering (5)
 * Paul Bailey – engineering (8, 11–13)
 * Juan Fleischer – engineering (9), engineering assistance (4, 15, 16)
 * Alex Toval – engineering (15, 16)
 * Samantha Kossoff – mixing assistance (1, 3–5, 7–11, 13, 14)
 * DJ Riggins – mixing assistance (2)
 * Jacob Richards – mixing assistance (2)
 * Mike Seaberg – mixing assistance (2)