Future, real name Nayvadius DeMun Wilburn, signed to major record label Epic Records in 2011 days before the release of his early mixtape Streetz Calling. With the collection of songs receiving rave reviews from music magazines and critics alike, this gave way to the release of debut album Pluto in 2012. The album featured fellow rappers Drake, Snoop Dogg and T.I. - the latter featuring on the first single to be taken from the album Magic. This became Future’s first track to enter the US Billboard Top 100 Chart and led to the rapper re-releasing the widely acclaimed album in late 2012.
The re-release was titled Pluto 3D and featured five new songs. Along with a variety of star-studded names, the remastered album featured Kelly Rowland on the new single Neva End (Remix). The same year saw the rapper write, produce and feature on the track Loveeeeeee Song for Rihanna, which made it onto her seventh studio album Unapologetic. 2013 also became a year of successful collaborations for the rapper, as he teamed up with Lil’Wayne and Drake for Love Me. The track stormed the US iTunes Chart.
Future’s third studio album, originally titled Future Hendrix then later altered to Honest, was released in 2013 and plays host to an array of musical talent ranging from rappers Drake and Kanye West to vocalists Kelly Rowland and Rihanna. The album’s lead single, Karate Chop, peaked at number 100 on the US Billboard 100 Chart, later peaking at number 82. The poor performance of the track has been highlighted by controversy surrounding the official remix, with Lil’ Wayne providing a rap which refers to a 14-year-old boy who was murdered in the 1950s for allegedly flirting with a white woman.