Extending far beyond the confines of Hollywood's revered "triple-threat" classification, Donald Glover A.K.A. Childish Gambino has proven his diverse set of talents multiple times over both on and off screen. Glover has successfully exercised his creativity as an actor, writer, director, comedian, producer, singer-songwriter, rapper and DJ, earning both commercial and critical acclaim for his efforts. First making a name for himself while a student at New York University's prestigious Tisch School of the Arts, Glover first burst onto the scene with Internet sketch group Derrick Comedy. Alongside fellow co-founders, Dominic Dierkes and DC Pierson, Glover's irreverent brand of humour led to the creation of viral videos like "Bro Rape," "Blowjob Girl" and "Don't Jerk Off To This" along with a full-length feature film released in 2009.
Glover's obvious comedic talent led to SNL alum and Mean Girls creator Tina Fey reaching out to the rising star while he was still an undergraduate student for a spot on the writing team of her NBC Sitcom 30 Rock. Quitting just two years after landing his coveted writing gig, Glover announced his desire to pursue a career in acting. "He wanted to pursue performing,” said Fey. “Normally you’re in the position of telling people, ‘Maybe pursue it on the side. Don’t give up your income,’ because you don’t feel like they’ll make it. But with Donald the answer was clearly, ‘Yep. You’re wasting valuable time here. Go get famous.’ ”
True to form, Glover did just that. While starring on the hit NBC sitcom Community, Glover cultivated a burgeoning rap career before creating, starring and directing in the FX series Atlanta. Under the stage moniker Childish Gambino, (which Glover created with the help of a Wu-Tang Clan name generator) the "Heartbeat" rapper went on to drop three studio albums, seven mixtapes and two EPs. With the first five mixtapes and EP released independently, the 34-year-old signed to Glassnote Records in 2011 before dropping his first album on a major record label, Camp produced by Swedish composer Ludwig Goransson. After scoring two Grammy Award nominations in 2015 for his album Because the Internet and single "3005," Glover went on to snag the gilded gramophone in 2018 for Best Traditional R&B Performance.
In lieu of Glover promising to retire Childish Gambino after just one more album, let's take a look back at the very best in the discography of such a prolific off-kilter comedy star-turned-chart-topping hitmaker.
25. Eat Your Vegetables
Spinning lyrical acrobatics over a surprising sample from Donkey Kong Country, (more specifically, the underwater levels) "Eat Your Vegetables" is a standout track that mixes witty social and cultural references with tidbits from Gambino's own upbringing (shoutout Stone Mountain, Georgia). Adopting a flow similar to that of A$AP Rocky, Gambino spins over a drum-heavy beat with a delivery far removed from 2011's Camp.
24. Me And Your Mama
Dropping the space-tinged samples from his early recording days, the first track off of Gambino's latest album Awaken, My Love! trades modernity for the seething, soulful drip of gospel-rock. Featuring the gritty rawness of Gambino's singing voice, "Me And Your Mama" is a return to a motif easily recognizable throughout the artist's discography: the oppressive fear of being alone. "They wanna see us fallin' apart/You know that I love you/So let me into your heart/Let me into your heart," sings Gambino, sandwiched between a memorable hook and hypnotizing instrumentals.
23. The Last
"The Last" off of Childish Gambino's fifth mixtape Culdesac released in 2010 is an emotional testament to the rapper's troubled upbringing. "I ain't get down with them other kids/Probably cause I talk too white and I got a dad who's there/Momma couldn't take it, sold the place and got us out of there/Guest room, now the six of us splitting one with a restroom," raps Gambino before dropping a slick Tina Fey reference and serving up the meme-friendly "I'm here for a good, not a long time" line. With lyrics wrapped over a stripped down, boom-bap beat, "The Last" is an obvious standout from Gambino's early work.
22. Backpackers
"Backpackers" is a fire cut from Gambino's first studio album Camp that serves as a clever, self-referential nod to the rapper struggling to find footing in an industry that didn't know whether to laugh at him or take him seriously. "Alright, it's Childish baby/Mr. Talk-about-his-dick-again/Nerdy ass black kid/Yeah whatever man I'm sick of him/That well spoken token/Who ain't been heard/The only white rapper who's allowed to say the n-word," raps Gambino, struck by his grind to find respect as a rapper while also sorting through his initial "hipster" appeal.
21. Do Ya Like
One of the standout tracks from Gambino's 2010 mixtape Culdesac, the deep cut of Adele's "Melt My Heart To Stone" helped bolster the track's popularity and turn the rapper into an Internet sweetheart at the turn of the decade. With hashtag-ready references and a dip into the world of chart-topping pop, "Do Ya Like" cemented Gambino's versatility alongside a #DonaldForSpiderman push.
20. Toxic feat. Danny Brown
Sampling none other than the princess of pop Britney Spears' In The Zone hit "Toxic," Gambino brought in Detroit rapper Danny Brown for the track's rapid-fire opening verse. Consistently quick to anticipate his own criticisms, the rapper even dropped a tongue-in-cheek reference to his dip into the early-aughts golden era of bubblegum pop. "Ill pandemic, man that shit be everywhere/Midas is your highness and you horrible like Gummi bears/Why I'm fly like a cockpit, you don't fly like a ostrich/Stupid shit like a mosh pit, can't believe this is "Toxic," raps Gambino.
19. II. Earth: The Oldest Computer
Off of Gambino's sophomore effort Because The Internet, "II. Earth: The Oldest Computer" proves its power on a concept album rich with thematic shifts and existential discovery. Grappling with insecurity, loneliness and the confusion of fame, Gambino uses his own art to battle the creeping promise of mortality with the help of a smooth hook sung by Azealia Banks.
18. New Prince (Crown On The Ground)
In line with the remix-an-indie-rock-song-and-drop-bars-over-it vibe of Gambino's I Am Just A Rapper mixtape, Gambino sampled Sleigh Bells' "Crown On The Ground" for his track "New Prince (Crown On The Ground)." At a time when the rapper's discography and pop culture references were indistinguishable, Gambino can't help but throw a nod to both Sports Night and Friends in the same verse: "Sicker than your grandma/Pass the mix-tape to a friend like Chandler/This track is gettin' over written:/'Sports Night' banter/Tell 'em that you know."
17. R.I.P feat. Bun B
With a sneaky Kavinsky feat. Lovefoxxx sample, Gambino teamed up with Bun B for a chilled-out track full of snap synths and that punctuate both emcees' verses alongside a hypnotizing hook. Mixing a veteran of "old school" rap with a distinct electropop vibe, Gambino proved his staying power with "R.I.P" and his Royalty rebound from the less-than-stellar critical reception of Camp
16. That Power
Speaking to Consequence, Gambino revealed that "That Power" was born out of a freestyle jam session with Questlove. "One of the songs, the last song, "That Power," on the album was from a freestyle that we did with Questlove in New York and he plays the drums on that song too," he said. "It was just like let's do something and I ended up telling this story and was like, That songs great. I like to freestyle." With a distinct spoken-word-meets-freestyle-vibe, this track stands on its own despite the track's minimalist production style.
15. Be Alone
Dropping the bravado prevalent on much of his early work, Gambino puts his insecurities at the front-and-centre for "Be Alone" off The Great Gambino mixtape. Singing the hook himself, Gambino's heart-wrenching "I don't wanna be alone" cries meld perfectly with his tinged falsetto--offset only by the emotional vulnerability of his bars: "Laughed at my rise like my motion was funny/Yes, ashy to classy, my lotion is money/The ride is easy when the dollar’s there to grease the wheels/Now everybody tell me what to do and how to feel/It seems the more I try to connect with the world/I am feeling more alone than I ever have felt before."
14. Lights Turned On
Eager to prove his technical style, "Lights Turned On" was Gambino's foray into the endurance battle of fast-rap lyricism on the 2011 EP that preceded Camp. A drippy-synth ode to sex, drugs and alcohol, Gambino playfully calls out how his change in status led to a sudden surge of dating prospects and bed mates: "I got a house with a dope view/See the ocean, dope shit, you an ’06, I’m an ’02/But enough about high school/I’m gettin’ laid, or I’m gettin’ lied to."
13. Unnecessary feat. Schoolboy Q and Ab-Soul
Fresh off of what is arguably the best mixtape in Gambino's discography, Royalty features a surefire gem with Schoolboy Q and Ab-Soul lending their talents to the track "Unnecessary." Proving he has the talent behind the mic to stand alongside two celebrated emcees on a self-produced track, Gambino thankfully relaxed enough to spin memorable lines like: "Used to sport them Filas cause my cousin pack them heaters/We don't wife 'em like Khalifa, we just party then we leave 'em."
12. Kids (Keep Up)
Without submerging his lyricism too far into melancholy, Gambino gets deep into his feels on "Kids" off of 2011's Camp. Highlighting the dichotomy of love--the fleeting joy of childhood crushes offset by the complications of adult romance, Gambino goes off on what it means to truly connect with another person. "The Girls I tried to hit last year, I still might/Karmas a bitch who doesn't suck, but I still like/If we were kids I had the black K-swiss and Reebok/If we were kids I wouldn’t act like this but we not" raps Gambino, muted by a soft string accompaniment.
11. You Know Me
On "You Know Me," Gambino skillfully tempers his bravado with realism with lines like "I'm not tryna do Drake numbers, I'm just tryna do my best" softening claims like "Cause I will never stop, like I am cruising in a Prius/You talk from far away because my money in between us." Rapping over bass lines and synth strums, Gambino's bars are well-delivered and self-actualizing.
10. Freaks And Geeks
Cementing what many have continued to call Gambino, a "mastermind," this single off Camp goes down as one of the most memorable tracks from his discography. The video alone shows Bino's talent of spitting bars without interruption. "Told all you niggas I'm in it to win it 'cause havin' an Emmy just wasn't enough," he raps.
9. Heartbeat
Merging a club-friendly beat with a distinct R&B vibe that Gambino would later prove to master on his later albums, "Heartbeat" is catchy if not sombre testament to both failed love and self-reflection. Giving off a serious "Heartless" Kanye vibe, the use of echoed hooks and piano refrains compliment the witticism and irony of Gambino's bars.
8. Redbone
Peaking at No.12 on the Billboard Hot 100, "Redbone" successfully brought Childish Gambino out from the reverential protection of his cult-like fanbase and into the mainstream of radio play on Top 40 channels. Dropping all pretence, "Redbone" never aims to be something that it is not-- the track never shies away from its status as a full-blown, slow-grit funk anthem. With Gambino's high-pitched vocals comfortably saddled with the weight of muzzled bass licks--Gambino-as-tortured-artist tears through the steady piano accents with a cry so achingly poignant--"stay woke!"
7. V. 3005
On the surface, the lead single off of Because The Internet is a love song made for the playlist of anyone and everyone looking to turn up on a Friday night. With an upbeat, mid-to-up tempo production by Goransson and Stefan Ponce, the listener is artfully steered away from Gambino revisiting an old and constant theme in existential despair: "I used to care what people thought/But now I care more/Man nobody out here's got it figured out/So therefore, I've lost all hope of a happy ending."
6. I. The Worst Guys feat. Chance the Rapper
While we never find out exactly what it was that she needed (thanks to the lack of conclusion of "all she needed was some" hook) Chance the Rapper and Childish Gambino prove that their collab was no accident with "The Worst Guys" off Because the Internet. Bright and playful, the track lightens up the dark tonality present throughout much of the rest of the full-length album.
5. Sober
“Sober” was the first track shared from Gambino’s EP version his STN MTN/Kauai project. The song is a catchy easy listening number while the music video pumped the single up even more with Gambino seen trying to woo a certain woman in a diner. He’s seemingly anything but sober.
IV. Sweatpants
With a memorable beat delivered once more by Gambino's long-time collaborator Ludwig Göransson, the minimalist production on "Sweatpants" sets the stage for the rapper to completely slaughter the backing drums. All confidence and no apologies, Gambino asserts his spot at the top: "Don't be mad cause I'm doing me better than you doing you/Better than you doing you, fuck it, what you gon' do?"
3. Bonfire
Serving as the lead single off of Gambino's 2011 effort Camp, the fright-night accompanying visual for "Bonfire" rises to meet the track's high-tempo, crazed feel. With gritty lyrics atop a dark and distorted beat, Gambino succeeds in overlaying punch lines with echoed vocals that makes the listener's fists clench in anticipation--will those haunted "woahs" ever be cut by a deep bass drop?
2. We Ain't Them
Bolstered by a clean sample of Kanye Wests "I Wonder," "We Ain't Them" offers the listener an insight into Gambino's multi-hyphenate career that has saddled the rapper with criticism and praise alike. "I think a lot people think I’m just doing shit to do shit. In a way, thats true. But I like making things. I wanna do things well. I’m learning music theory, and taking lessons. Learning languages so I can write in other languages. I love making stuff. I really do," wrote Gambino in a tweet storm that preceded the release of the track. With lyrics like "Even Black Thought thought I maimed it a little hard, I gotta be honest/Feeling like the other stuff is kinda behind us/Making jokes here and there done got us some dollars/I'm tryna show the whole world what it is and it ain't a game/He said homie stay the course, ain't shit changed," Gambino's search for both a stable identity and respect is made clear.
1. III. Telegraph Ave. ('Oakland' by Lloyd)
With Lloyd's dreamy vocals softening the beat, the Gambino-driven R&B undertones mesh perfectly with the intersection of sunny California beach-pop and traditional hip-hop on "III. Telegraph Ave." A clear road-trip-with-an-ex narrative bleeds through the lyrics, playing out with cinematic ease on the track's accompanying music video featuring the talents of Jhene Aiko. The full-bodied Goransson production compliments the ease at which Gambino can weave in and out of soulful melody--a smooth track that is equal parts tranquil and invigorating, setting "Telegraph Ave." at the top spot of Grammy Award-winning artist's impressive discography.