There have been setbacks and controversies, though. (The singles “RAF” and “Feels So Good” are already two of the Mob’s strongest collaborations.) The rest of the troops are following suit, set to show their combined strength with Cozy Tapes Vol. Ferg has the year’s most exciting posse cut with “East Coast (Remix),” which pairs legends like Snoop Dogg and Busta Rhymes with younger rhymers Dave East and French Montana. Rocky’s attention seems fixated on rap once again, as he’s been popping up on tracks with the likes of Frank Ocean, Lana Del Rey, and Tyler, The Creator. This year, ASAP Mob proved it was just getting started. Yet while the project was well-received, boasting top-notch crew cuts like “Yamborghini High” and “Telephone Calls,” it felt more like the conclusion of a years-long journey than a rebirth. 1: Friends, ASAP Mob solidified an orbit of on-the-verge affiliates like Lil Uzi Vert, Playboi Carti, and Lil Yachty-not unlike Wu-Tang and Killa Beez. Everybody had the same vision but he was the voice of reason. Inside, it got plans of what wanted to do for 2015 and who he wanted to fuck with, who he wanted us to fuck with, what artists he was interested in. It’s a composition notebook with Raekwon holding an Elmo doll, a Supreme sticker, and Biggie’s picture with the afro as a baby. Last year, Rocky told Genius that the project was influenced by a mythical notebook that Yams kept called the Black Book, complete with outlines for the Mob’s flourishment: 1: Friends, which united Rocky, Ferg, Twelvyy, Nast, Ant and the rest of the crew once it dropped in October.

The Mob spent most of that year working on its first studio album Cozy Tapes Vol. “New Level,” his high-energy single with Future, proved his early success was no fluke and gave the Mob another star to wave the flag along with Rocky. The year kicked off with ASAP Ferg’s Always Strive And Prosper, a solid, if schizophrenic, sophomore album that exhibits just how versatile and technically nice Ferg can be on the mic. In 2016, the Mob went from merely honoring ASAP Yams to resurrecting his vision. The group launched the annual ASAP Yams Day, a tribute concert, on the one-year anniversary of his death. Rocky’s sophomore album At Long Last ASAP nods to his fallen brother-from-another (who is listed as executive producer) on the cover and via the closing track tribute, “Back Home.” ASAP Ferg dedicated his Adidas sneaker collaboration to Yams. That first year or so following Yams’ passing saw members of the Mob preoccupied with paying homage both on and off wax. With so many talented artists bound by a solitary moniker, there was no way the Mob wouldn’t rise again. Fortunately, the dream didn’t die with the man. He’d spent much of the previous year trying to orchestrate ASAP Mob’s proper debut album. ASAP Yams-the young mastermind who glued the group together-died of an accidental drug overdose, at the age of 26, and it seemed as if the collective was instantly in disarray. And then, on January 18, 2015, ASAP Mob was forever changed. But despite ASAP Nast’s “Trillmatic” and the posse cut “Hella Hoes” becoming fan favorites, the oft-delayed project never quite gelled and was ultimately shelved. The group tried to release a unified LP titled L.O.R.D. While there was room for improvement in emphasizing the Mob’s strength in numbers, the release did yield some synergetic posse cuts (“Full Metal Jacket,” “Bath Salt”) and Ferg’s maiden smash, “Work,” a wave he rode for months. The plan was to break the whole crew a year later with the collaborative Lords Never Worry mixtape, yet when that project arrived, it was widely bashed for its unfocused composition. ASAP mixtape in 2011, as the self-proclaimed pretty motherfucker’s profile quickly ascended. We’d get a sampling of each member via Rocky’s Live. When ASAP Mob first entered the widespread hip-hop consciousness, the rappers and creatives were merely nameless background stars shooting dice outside of a Harlem bodega in Rocky’s breakout “Peso” video. The ASAP Rocky-led group appears to be running on all cylinders, but after some bumpy early years, can the pride of Uptown at long last manifest its destiny? It all culminates with ASAP Mob’s sophomore studio album, Cozy Tapes Vol. The crew that was birthed in Harlem more than a decade ago has taken captive the month of August-dubbed AWGEST, for the Mob’s esoteric AWGE tag-with an onslaught of videos ( “Feels So Good”), television appearances ( The Tonight Show) and music releases (ASAP Twelvyy, ASAP Ferg). ASAP Mob is this summer’s hottest hip-hop collective.

Asap ferg at long last asap