For many people, Donald Glover will always loom largest as a TV star, thanks to fan-favorite performances in shows like Community, Atlanta and most recently Mr. & Mrs. Smith, whose title was mentioned quite often during the 76th Emmy Awards nominations. For others, however, Glover is most celebrated for his contributions to the world of rap and hip-hop as Childish Gambino. Unfortunately for the latter group, the artist is gearing up for a final album and tour before retiring that persona, which he addressed as Sean Evans’ latest Hot Ones guest.
The Emmy-winning entertainer already gave his fanbase a revised and finished version of the previously released album 3.15.20 (this time under the name Atavista), and will be unleashing his final album Bando Stone & The New World later this year, with a short film and a world tour attached. It’s a huge build-up for an even bigger farewell, and when asked about why he’s choosing now to hang up his headphones, Glover referenced both Superman and The Office early in his Hot Ones ep, saying:
A collaborator of mine, Fam [Udeorji] and I, we talked about The Death of Superman a lot. He always brought up The Death of Superman; he’s always kinda loved that. I always knew Childish Gambino was a character. On some level, I wanted it to end. I feel like the Childish Gambino character is almost like the boss from The Office. ‘Yeah that works,” ten years ago. [Laughs.] You know? All that stuff worked, but now it’s like a different thing. It’s like, ‘Oh, it’s a little sad,’ but it’s also like, ‘Wow, the cycle kind of continues,’ which is great.
I think many who adore Childish Gambino albums would agree that the rap persona is distinct from “Donald Glover the regular funny dude” and “Donald Glover the actor.” (And probably “Donald Glover the plumber,” too, but that’s a persona we haven’t seen yet.) So it makes sense why he and his creative collaborators would think about other large-scale pop culture swan songs as a comparative foundation for Gambino’s last act.
Even though it’s been more than 30 years since DC’s massive crossover event The Death of Superman went down, and its impact hasn’t really ever faded in the decades since, with various animated adaptations and myriad reprintings. So for that to be one of Donald Glover’s comparison points is perhaps indicative that both the album and world tour will make the rapper face a Doomsday-sized threat, possibly with a full-on “death” scene. After four seasons of Atlanta, I fully believe he could pull off anything.
But the reasoning behind retiring Childish Gambino isn’t just tied to wanting to set up a big and meaningful exit. In bringing up The Office, Glover makes it clear he gets that not everything that was cool 10+ years ago remains that way. Just as the world of television has changed immensely since The Office was an NBC hit, so has the ever-evolving world of rap music. And even if Gambino won’t ever be as obliviously toxic and awful as Steve Carell’s MIchael Scott, he gets that patterns and tastes change with the times.
Of course, for all that some things change, the more other things stay the same. And Donald Glover fans are hoping he returns to the role of Troy Barnes for Peacock's Community movie, even though creator Dan Harmon wants everyone to leave him alone about it in the meantime. It's unclear whether his upcoming music plans will legitimately get in the way of him making a cameo or more.
And in the middle of that tour will be the 76th Emmy Awards, where Glover is nominated for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama for Mr. & Mrs. Smith, which is also nominated for Outstanding Drama. Co-star Maya Erskine is nominated as well, along with multiple guest stars and a variety of crew members. Unfortunately, the already renewed Season 2 will follow new characters, so both John and Childish Gambino will share space in the vault of Glover's former characters.
