nostalgia/ultra

nostalgia,ULTRA. is Frank Ocean’s debut mixtape, which released on February 16, 2011, on Ocean’s Tumblr page with almost no promotion. He uploaded the mixtape to iTunes with the genre labeled as ‘bluegrass’ and ‘death metal.’ When asked why, he responded, saying:

I don’t want to seem like I have a cause against genres, or maybe I do… Bluegrass is swag. Bluegrass is all the way swag.

The mixtape’s inspiration came after Hurricane Katrina in New Orleans, which is where Frank himself used to live. The lyrics usually revolve around themes of relationships, personal reflection, and social commentary. In a 2011 Complex interview, Frank said:

Going through heartbreak was new for me. I wasn’t trying to make a record that people could relate to. I was just trying to make a record with the shit that I wanted to express. The shit that I wanted to get off my chest. Everybody has a unique experience, but it’s a feeling that’s so human that others can relate to it. A lot of this record is influenced by one relationship, but I don’t owe that whole project to one situation. It doesn’t matter what the details of it are.

In May 2011, his label announced the mixtape would be released as an EP on July 26th, 2011. It was later delayed to July 2011 and was eventually cancelled, although they still released “Novacane” as a single on May 31st, 2011, and then “Swim Good” as the second single on October 18th, 2011.

download link: https://mega.nz/#!1OgHhTrQ!mltB7qzfX1AlYxXc2JGrJ3C1zZ_BDSaJ3vbIVjeVung