Frank Ocean releases ‘Blonde’ and ‘Boys Don’t Cry’ magazine

Flyer via boysdontcry.co.

Just over 24 hours after the release of his visual album Endless, Frank Ocean has released his long-awaited studio album, Blonde, alongside a limited-edition magazine titled Boys Don’t Cry. Blonde premiered on Apple Music alongside a music video for its lead single, “Nikes.” The album will remain exclusively on the platform for three weeks, after which it will premiere on Spotify and elsewhere on September 9. In addition to its digital debut, Ocean has also released Blonde physically, with CDs included in his companion magazine. Boys Don’t Cry is a 370-page, large-format art book that features is a compilation of poetry, short stories, editorials, interviews, lyrics, artwork, fashion, and photography by Ocean and 54 other contributors, including the likes of Tyler The Creator, Kanye West, Lil B the BasedGod, Kate Tempest, Wolfgang Tillmans, Tom Sachs, A$AP Rocky, Christophe Chassol, Tyrone Lebon, and more.

A glimpse inside Frank Ocean’s NYC pop-up shop (YouTube: Sam Sheffer).

On the morning of August 20, 2016, Ocean shared a flyer on his website, boysdontcry.co, and Tumblr listing the addresses of four pop-up shops in Los Angeles, Chicago, New York, and London where “Blonde/Boys Don’t Cry” was available for free. When fans arrived at these themed locations, they received a copy of Boys Don’t Cry magazine in foil packaging. After breaking its seal, they pulled out an art book with one of three covers. Inside the first pages, Ocean greets his readers with a letter introducing the magazine and album. As fans flipped through various articles printed on matte and glossy paper, they found a CD-R of Blonde secured to a plastic hub in the magazine’s centerfold. Compared to its digital release, this limited-edition CD includes MP3 files with one of four album covers and two remixed tracks: an extended version of “Nikes,” featuring a final verse by Japanese rapper KOHH, and an alternative mix of “Pretty Sweet,” which omits its opening verse. [Later reissues replaced this Blonde CD with a version identical to its streaming release.]

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Ocean first teased the magazine and album in April 2015, with a post on Tumblr featuring a photo of himself next to two stacks of magazines with two different covers, both titled Boys Don’t Cry; he captioned the image:

I got two versions. I got twoooo versions… #ISSUE1 #ALBUM3 #JULY2015 #BOYSDONTCRY

Shortly after he posted the teaser, a spokesperson for Ocean confirmed to Billboard that his follow-up to channel ORANGE, then known as Boys Don’t Cry, would arrive in July 2015.

However, July would pass without a word from Ocean. A year after missing his initial release date, in July 2016, a new image appeared on Ocean’s website. The post, titled “Late,” featured a series of stamped due dates running vertically down an old-fashioned library card. The title of the checked-out material is printed across the bottom: Boys Don’t Cry. The final stamp reads “July 2016” with the exact day smudged in red ink.

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Writing about the update on July 2, 2016, Devon Ivie for Vulture captured the zeitgeist at the time:

Frank Ocean’s long-gestating second studio album, Boys Don’t Cry, has been making the boys and girls cry in heightened anticipation for years. But take a deep breath, everyone, because we may have finally made it to the finish line—it appears that the follow-up to channel ORANGE will be dropping this month.

However, another July passed with no release from Ocean, leaving many fans disappointed, but it wouldn’t be long before their spirits were raised once again. On August 1, 2016, a mysterious live stream appeared on boysdontcry.co. The broadcast alternated between live and offline over 18 days, culminating on August 19 with the release of Endless on Apple Music. At the end of the 46-minute film, a logo scrolled across the screen that foreshadowed what was to come the following day: “Blonde/Boys Don’t Cry.” The music video was merely the first piece of Ocean’s broader “Boys Don’t Cry” project, encompassing the visual album Endless, studio album Blonde, and magazine Boys Don’t Cry.

Blonde has ended up as ‘album four’ after Endless; however, some allusions to an earlier release date remain in the zine, including the text “album 3” on its foil packaging and cover, as well as the alternate tracklist and unreleased lyrics for Blonde printed on its center pages. Nevertheless, it is Ocean’s third studio album.

Notably absent from the album and magazine is the label Def Jam Recordings; instead, the copyright lists Ocean’s new imprint “Boys Don’t Cry.” The release of Endless fulfilled Ocean’s album contract with Def Jam, allowing him to release Blonde and Boys Don’t Cry independently one day later and marking a new era in Ocean’s career.

Listen to Blonde exclusively on Apple Music.

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Blonde

Tracklist:

1. Nikes

2. Ivy

3. Pink + White

4. Be Yourself

5. Solo

6. Skyline To

7. Self Control

8. Good Guy

9. Nights

10. Solo (Reprise)

11. Pretty Sweet

12. Facebook Story

13. Close to You

14. White Ferrari

15. Seigfried

16. Godspeed

17. Futura Free

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Above are the album artworks for Blonde embedded with the CD in Boys Don’t Cry magazine. Below are digital banners promoting the album on Apple Music/iTunes.

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Blonde digital poster by Apple Music.

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Blonde Snapchat filter by Apple Music.

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Boys Don’t Cry

An annotated bibliography by blonded.blog’s Odysseus.

Table of Contents

No. … Title … Contributor … Location … Page

1. Front Cover … masthead by Zak Group; photography by Wolfgang Tillman, Viviane Sassen, or Frank Ocean … Berlin, Germany; Tokyo, Japan; or Manhattan, New York …… p. [i]

2. Behind the Scenes (Mood Board & Screenshots) … photography by Frank Ocean … pp. [ii], 1–3

3. Prologue (Open Letter) … text by Frank Ocean … pp. 4–5

4. Auntie Fee Interview … feat. Auntie Fee; text by ??? [sic]; photography by Frank Ocean … pp. 6–7

5. “Color (Comprehensive Color Code Guide Book)” … photography by Tom Sachs; text by Tom Sachs & Van Neistat … Tom Sachs’ Studio, New York, New York … pp. 8–25

6. “This Is Mom” (Auntie Rosie Interview) … feat. Rosie Watson; text by Danna Takako; photography by Max Farago … Culver City, California … pp. 26–29

7. “Glitterboy Down (Best Day Ever)” … photography by Frank Ocean; text (Truisms) by Jenny Holzer … Munich, Germany … pp. 30–49

8. “Godspeed” (Episode 1) [Screenplay] … text by Frank Ocean, quotes Vade Mecum by C. JoyBell C … pp. 50–55

9. “Hopes and Dreams” (Futura Free Interviews) … feat. Ryan Breaux, Sage Elsesser, Na’kel Smith, Ibrahim Hariri & Evan Clark; text by Mikey Alfred … Los Angeles, California … pp. 56–61

10. “Holy Combat” (BasedGod Interview) … feat. Lil B; text by Frank Ocean & Mikey Alfred; illustration by Daniel David Freeman … Hollywood, California … pp. 62–69

11. “The McDonald’s Man” … text by Kanye West; photography by Nabil Elderkin … Calabasas, California … pp. 70–81

12. “Tricolor” … text by Tyler, The Creator … Los Angeles, California … pp. 82–83

13. “Make, Model” … feat. Ollie Adegboye, et al.; photography by Michael Mayren … Manchester, England … pp. 84–87

14. “I Shot a Video for Fun” (Behind the Scenes of ‘Nikes’) … feat. Frank Ocean, Vasilisa Forbes (Mermaid), Valentine Rose (Baby), Nathan (Devil Dancer), et al.; photography by Tyrone Lebon … London, England … pp. 88–97

15. “Le Go Fast” (Comic) … graphics by Pablo Jones-Soler; text by Romain Gavras … pp. 98–101

16. Movie List … text by Frank Ocean … Frank Ocean’s Apartment, Mayfair, London, England … pp. 102–103

17. Song List … text by Frank Ocean; photography by Rick Rubin … Rick Rubin’s Home, Malibu, California … pp. 104–105

18. “Television Waterfall” … photography by Frank Ocean; sculptures by Gary Card … London, England … pp. 106–115

19. “Bon Jovi Naked” (Web Browsing History) … feat. A$AP Rocky, James Blake, Evian Christ, Frank Ocean, JJJJound & Michael Uzowuru; text by Various [sic] … pp. 116–117

20. “Fishtail” … feat. RWB Porsche; photography by Michael Mayren … Tokyo, Japan … pp. 118–131

21. “Foxface” … photography by Viviane Sassen … Tokyo, Japan … pp. 132–175

22. Blonde CD & Lyrics … text by Frank Ocean, interpolates The Beatles & Elliott Smith; photography by The Collaborationist (Jessica Haye), feat. Angel; graphics by Thomas Mastorakos … pp. 176–193

23. “I’m a Morning Person” (Frank, in the Shower) … feat. Frank Ocean; photography by Wolfgang Tillmans … Berlin, Germany … pp. 194–199

24. “Jumbo” … feat. Ysham Jackson; photography & text by Frank Ocean … Manhattan, New York … pp. 200–221

25. David Bowie Tribute (1947–2016) … feat. David Bowie; photography by Brian Ward … London, England … pp. 222–223

26. “Key Words” … feat. Christophe Chassol & Om’Mas Keith; photography by Nabil Elderkin; illustration by Daniel David Freeman; text by Frank Ocean & Zing Tseng … Paris, France … pp. 224–231

27. “I Compact U” … photography by Ren Hang … Beijing, China … pp. 232–239

28. “Crouching Tiger, Hidden Water Moccasin” … feat. Frank Ocean, Raymond Buck, et al.; photography by Jim Mangan … Red Creek, Mississippi … pp. 240–253

29. “Babyface” … photography by Michael Mayren … London, England … pp. 254–269

30. “Kimchi” or “Partial List of Misappropriated Hood Ornaments” … photography by Michael Mayren; illustration by Eric Yahnker; text by Ben Brooks … pp. 270–275

31. “Scale 1:1” … photography by Frank Ocean … Milton Keynes, England … pp. 276–287

32. “Brown Eyed Man” … text by Kate Tempest … pp. 288–289

33. “Blast CMD + C” … photography by Jim Mangan … Goblin Valley, Utah … pp. 290–303

34. “Ed aka the Sloth” … feat. Evan Clark; photography by Francisco Soriano; text by Federico Aliprandi … Willow Springs International Raceway, Rosamond, California … pp. 304–309

35. “No Way Out/In” … photography by Viviane Sassen … Africa, Various … pp. 310–323

36. “Fluxus” … photography by Harley Weir; text by Michael E. Smith, Joan Jonas, Joan Brossa, Andreas Slominski & Erwin Wurn … Dakar, Senegal … pp. 324–331

37. “Twelve and Drifting” … photography by Michael Mayren … Larnaka, Cyprus … pp. 332–339

38. “Pensive Racecar Drivers” … artwork by Max Küng … pp. 340–350

39. “Boyfriend” … text by Frank Ocean … p. 351

40. “You’ve Been Flirting Again” … illustration by Kilian Eng; text by Andrew Durbin … pp. 352–355

41. “Mikey Pieces Does the Horoscopes” … text by Mikey Alfred; illustration by unknown [Kilian Eng?] … pp. 356–357

42. “Active Analysis on the Superiority of Lesser Objects” … text by Federico Aliprandi … N/A [sic] … pp. 358–359

43. “Catching Feelings, U.K.” … photography by Maxime Ballesteros; collage by Evan Clark … pp. 360–361

44. “Magazine Contributors” (Credits) … text by Frank Ocean … pp. 362–363

45. “Fashion Call Outs” (Appendix) … text by Rita Zebdi … pp. 364, [I]

46. Behind the Scenes (Screenshots) … photography by Frank Ocean … pp. [II–III]

47. Photo Collage (B&W Portraits) … photography by Frank Ocean [Bob Adelman?] … pp. [IV–V]

48. Back Cover … photography by Viviane Sassen, The Collaborationist, or Frank Ocean … Tokyo, Japan; Death Valley, California; or Unknown… p. [VI]

Appendix

“Fashion Call Outs” by Rita Zebdi, pp. 364–365

• “Glitterboy Down (Best Day Ever)” … photography by Frank Ocean … Munich, Germany … pp. 30–49

  • Custom racesuit by Sparco, vintage Good Year cap … p. 32

  • Customized jumpsuit by Band of Outsiders … p. 42

  • Custom Bell helmet by Piers Dowell, white T-shirt by Levi’s … p. 43

  • Trousers by Dickies, racing shoes by Sparco, chain model’s own … pp. 44–45

  • Trousers by Dickies, vintage boots customized by stylist … p. 47

• “Jumbo” … feat. Ysham Jackson; photography by Frank Ocean … Manhattan, New York … pp. 200–221

  • Custom racesuits by Balmain … pp. 210–211

  • Simpson racesuit and Levi’s jeans customized by stylist … p. 208

  • Sequin top by Zadig & Voltaire, asymmetrical top worn underneath by Vetements … pp. 208, 218–219

  • Jacket by Versace, backpack by North Face & Supreme … p. 209

  • Custom racesuit trousers by Alpinestars, gloves by RWB, vintage cap by Nacional for Ayrton Senna … pp. 212–213

  • Custom racesuit by Sparco, custom Bell helmet by Piers Dowell … p. 214

• “Twelve and Drifting” … photography by Michael Mayren … Larnaka, Cyprus … pp. 332–339

  • Turtleneck by John Smedley, racesuit driver’s own … p. 332

  • Vintage jumper from Palace Costume, racesuit & helmet driver’s own … p. 333

  • Vintage sweatshirt from Wow Retro, vintage Adidas tracksuit bottoms from Palace Costume … p. 334

  • Vintage Renault shirt from Wow Retro … p. 335

  • Long sleeve shirt by Raf Simons, racesuit & shoes by Sparco … p. 337

  • Racesuit & shoes by Sparco … p. 338

  • Vintage shirt & T-shirt from Palace Costume, gloves by Sparco … p. 339

Credits

“Magazine Contributors” by Frank Ocean, pp. 362–363

• Magazine Contributors

1. Andrew Durbin

2. A$AP Rocky

3. Auntie Fee

4. Aunt Rosie

5. BasedGod

6. Ben Brooks

7. Bob Adelman

8. Cod Steaks

9. Christophe Chassol

10. Daniel David Freeman

11. Danna Takako

12. Darren Ankenman

13. Elias Evans

14. Eric Yahnker

15. Esra Gurman

16. Evan Clark

17. Federico Aliprandi

18. Francisco Soriano

19. Frank Ocean

20. Gary Card

21. Harley Weir

22. Holly Shackleton

23. James Blake

24. Jim Mangan

25. Justin R. Saunders

26. Kanye West

27. Kate Tempest

28. Kilian Eng

29. Louis Butler

30. Max Farago

31. Max Küng

32. Maxime Ballesteros

33. Michael Mayren

34. Michael Uzowuru

35. Mikey Alfred

36. Nabil Elderkin

37. Om’Mas Keith

38. Pablo Jones-Soler

39. Patrick Welch

40. Ren Hang

41. Rick Rubin

42. Rita Zebdi

43. Romain Gavras

44. Simmonds Ltd

45. Somesuch Productions

46. Tom Sachs

47. Thomas Mastorakos

48. Tremaine Emory

49. The Collaborationist

50. Tyler, The Creator

51. Tyrone Lebon

52. Viviane Sassen

53. Wendi Morris

54. Wolfgang Tillmans

55. Zak Group

• Special Thanks

1. Achna Speedway

2. Adrian Hamilton & family

3. Alex Box

4. Anna Wintour

5. Ari Emanuel

6. Barry Brown

7. BMW

8. Brent Smith

9. Brian Kobo

10. Bodhi (R.I.P)

11. Caius Pawson

12. Charolette Holdbrook

13. Chris Lyons

14. Dan Gibling

15. Danny Garcia

16. Dave Wirtschafter

17. Duncan-Hamilton

18. Ebisu Circuit

19. Featherwax

20. Fukoyama Circuit

21. Edition Patrick Frey

22. Everest

23. Guy Usherwood

24. Hanneke van Leeuwen

25. Hans Ulrich Obrist

26. Holly Shackleton

27. Isamaya Ffrench

28. James Blake

29. Jefferson Hack

30. Jenny Holzer

31. Jerome Hunt

32. Jimmy Kitaji

33. Jun Sui

34. Jony Ive

35. Lewis Hamilton

36. Luke Huxham

37. Mason Hayes

38. Marcel Meesters

39. Mark Gillespie

40. Mathias Moka

41. Melody Ehsani

42. Michael Rapino

43. Millbrook

44. Mom

45. Olivia Gideon-Thomson

46. Olivier Rousteing

47. Pascal Duvier

48. Peter Heryng

49. Purple PR

50. Roald Goethe

51. Royston Beserve

52. Ruth Crawford

53. Ryan Wade

54. Scott O’Donnell

55. Somesuch Co.

56. Tash Tan

57. The Clancys

58. Three Six Zero Group

59. Tim Nash

60. Tim Noakes

61. Tom Birmingham

62. Toshi San & Nakai San (RWB)

63. Trina

64. Tuthill Porsche

65. Rob McNulty

66. Wang Daidai

67. 1-800 DINOSAUR

68. The Concierges at 47 N. Row

• Models

1. Ahmad Graida

2. Amber Charles

3. Alycia Bellamy

4. Baby Valentine Rose

5. Bay Rinandi

6. Betty Adewol

7. Billie Jean

8. Bradley Griffiths

9. Brahim Iriri

10. Calandra Stavroudis

11. Catriona Chariffe Greaves

12. Chester

13. Chito

14. Chloe & Yoshi Njapa

15. Christopher McCroy

16. Corbyn Thomas

17. Darius

18. David Joseph

19. Dvwon

20. Ella Rae

21. Eliza Franks

22. Evan Clark

23. Frank Lebon

24. Frankie Wade

25. Frederick & friends

26. Guo Sigi

27. Group South Africa 2001

28. Harrison Wade

29. Isamaya Ffrench

30. Jack Marcy

31. Jamal Chester

32. Jess Maybury

33. Jimi Springer

34. Jony Barrett

35. Jordan Brown

36. Jonathan Martinez Koen

37. Joshua Mesquite

38. Kelland Thomas-Smith

39. Ken Block

40. Lauren Borgers

41. Leo Topalov

42. Lorna Sensi

43. Louis

44. Matty Carrington

45. Mathew Rodwell

46. Mickel Davis Nigel Sargent

47. Moffy

48. Nakel Smith

49. Nathan (Devil Dancer)

50. Nosie

51. Ollie Adegboye

52. Paris Del Fabbro

53. Qui Bohan

54. Raymond Buck

55. Reece King

56. Reese Scholtz

57. Reiss Francis

58. Rio Holdbrook

59. Ryan Wade

60. Sage Elsesser

61. Said

62. Shane Cooney

63. Stavros Grillis & friends

64. Theresa Bon De Soussa Peme

65. Will Kay

66. Ysham Jackson

• Magazine Staff

1. Editor in Chief: Frank Ocean

2. Creative Director: Frank Ocean; Thomas Mastorakos

3. Project Manager: Wendi Morris

4. Fashion Director: Rita Zebdi

5. Art Direction: Simmonds Ltd

6. Design Consultant: Zak Group

7. Sub Editor: Esra Gurman

8. Intern: Federico Aliprandi

9. Editor Assistant: Elias Evans

10. Production Assistant: Georgia Pellegrino

11. Legal: King, Holmes, Paterno & Soriano, LLP

• Publishers

1. McGruder Publishing

• Websites

1. boysdontcry.co

2. frankocean.com

• Dedication

1. Aunt Janet

2. Grandfather Lionel

3. Mathew Lacey

• Album Contributors

1. Amber Coffman

2. André 3000

3. Anthony Phillips

4. Arca

5. Beatles

6. Benjamin Wright

7. Beyoncé Knowles-Carter

8. Bob Ludwig

9. Brian Eno

10. Buddy Ross

11. Caleb Laven

12. Christophe Chassol

13. David Bowie

14. Elliott Smith

15. Fish

16. Gang of Four

17. James Blake

18. Jamie xx

19. Jason Lader

20. Jazmine Sullivan

21. Jeff Ellis

22. Joe Visciano

23. Jonny Greenwood

24. Kanye West

25. Kendrick Lamar

26. Kim Burrell

27. KOHH

28. Loota

29. Malay

30. Matt Mysko

31. Mike Dean

32. Michael Uzowuru

33. Om’Mas Keith

34. Pharrell Williams

35. Rick Rubin

36. Rostam Batmanglij

37. Sam Petts-Davies

38. Sean Oakley

39. SebastiAn

40. Spaceman

41. Tom Elmhirst

42. Tyler, The Creator

43. Yung Lean

44. 88-Keys

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Above are photos of the packaging and front covers for Boys Don’t Cry, courtesy of Zak Group, along with links to scans of the magazine, courtesy of u/sstelar, u/ent_of_the_fores, and u/VndrwPnkMVttr. Transcripts, photos, and commentary are available on Genius. An annotated bibliography of the magazine’s contents and credits is also available here, created by blonded.blog’s u/ody-sss-eus.

All 370 pages of Boys Don’t Cry magazine (YouTube: Record Record, 2021-11-03).

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