While inspirations and general information about the album still remains scarce at the time of writing, it features contributions from Stormzy, Wizkid, Boj, Snoh Aalegra and James Blake.

Petridis, Alexis (8 March 2019). "Dave: Psychodrama review – the boldest and best British rap album in a generation - Alexis Petridis's album of the week". The Guardian. Archived from the original on 8 March 2019 . Retrieved 8 March 2019– via www.theguardian.com. a b Crone, Dave. "Psychodrama – Dave". AllMusic. Archived from the original on 8 December 2019 . Retrieved 8 December 2019.Hancox, Dan (10 March 2019). "Dave: Psychodrama review – debut long-player doesn't disappoint". The Observer. Archived from the original on 25 March 2019 . Retrieved 14 April 2019. Dan-O of Freemusicempire wrote "He opens the album in a therapist[']s office getting personal right off the bat and giving you a setting that makes sense so you don't feel awkward. He's meticulous and diligent…maybe that's not the right word. He's so in love with finding the depth in art, the kind of depth that resonates, that working harder to achieve it doesn't bother him in the slightest." [30] Best Music and Albums of All Time". Metacritic. Archived from the original on 6 April 2019 . Retrieved 14 September 2019. a b Kasambala, Natty (11 March 2019). "Review: Dave's 'Psychodrama' Is A Brutally Impressive Examination Of Society". Complex. Archived from the original on 6 August 2020 . Retrieved 11 March 2019.

a b c "Psychodrama by Dave". Genius. Archived from the original on 28 February 2020 . Retrieved 8 March 2019. Empire, Free Music (3 January 2020). "Rap Radar Podcast can teach you how a song gets made". Archived from the original on 25 February 2021 . Retrieved 30 September 2021. Santan Dave (7 March 2019). "Dave - Streatham". Archived from the original on 7 March 2019 . Retrieved 8 March 2019– via YouTube. Dave heralded the announcement with new single and video ‘Clash (ft. Stormzy)’, which you can watch in full above.

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Under the EDITORS' NOTES section on Apple Music, the album is described as a year-long therapy session revolving around Dave’s life: Conrad, Anna; Levesly, David (27 December 2019). "Best Albums 2019: From Ariana Grande to Stormzy". GQ. Archived from the original on 15 January 2020 . Retrieved 19 April 2020. Our 50 Favourite Albums of 2019". The Vinyl Factory. 17 December 2019. Archived from the original on 16 April 2020 . Retrieved 19 April 2020. Predicted to chart at number five midweek, Psychodrama debuted at number one on the UK Albums Chart, selling a combined 26,390 album-equivalent units. The album became the most-streamed first-week British rap album in the UK with a total of 23.6 million streams. [38] It is also the first British rap album to chart at number one since Gang Signs & Prayer by Stormzy, released in 2017. Psychodrama also debuted at number 26 on the Dutch Album Top 100, number 6 on the Irish Albums Chart and number 19 on the Scottish Albums Chart.

Psychodrama (stylised in uppercase letters) is the debut studio album by British rapper Dave, released on 8 March 2019. [1] It follows his first two EPs, Six Paths (2016) and Game Over (2017). The album features guest appearances from J Hus, Burna Boy and Ruelle. [3] Psychodrama was executive produced by both Dave and Fraser T. Smith. The album features Dave's piano playing, while Smith assisted with Baroque influences, including strings, brass, harps, as well as more contemporary music through the use of drums and the synthesizer. In a 2017 interview with NME, Dave revealed he was working on his debut album slated for a 2018 release, stating: "I know exactly how I’m going to make it and what I need it to be, I just need to find the time." [6] Hodgkinson, Will (15 March 2019). "Dave: Psychodrama review". The Times. Archived from the original on 14 April 2019 . Retrieved 14 April 2019. Copsey, Rob (1 January 2020). "The Official Top 40 biggest albums of 2019". Official Charts Company. Archived from the original on 3 January 2020 . Retrieved 1 January 2020. Dave is releasing a new album, called We’re All Alone In This Together, via Neighbourhood Recordings this July.End of Year Album Chart Top 100 – 2020". Official Charts Company. Archived from the original on 4 January 2021 . Retrieved 5 January 2021. O'Connor, Roisin (20 December 2019). "The 50 Best Albums of 2019". The Independent. Archived from the original on 22 December 2019 . Retrieved 19 April 2020. a b c Petridis, Alexis (8 March 2019). "Dave: Psychodrama review – the boldest and best British rap album in a generation". The Guardian. Archived from the original on 9 March 2019 . Retrieved 9 March 2019. Lewis Capaldi claims third week at Number 1". www.officialcharts.com. Archived from the original on 26 April 2019 . Retrieved 29 April 2019.

Other themes include Dave's strained relationships, poor upbringing, his father's absence and the impact it had on him, and issues such as domestic abuse and racial inequality. [3] [16] [17] Dave has said much of the inspiration for the album came from his older brother, Christopher, who is serving life in prison. The themes of psychotherapy came from the same type of therapy his brother receives in prison. [14] Pometsey, Olive (8 March 2019). "Dave's Pyschodrama is the rap album that Britain needs". British GQ. Archived from the original on 6 April 2019 . Retrieved 8 March 2019. Higgins, Sam (9 March 2019). "Dave's PSYCHODRAMA may be the definitive British rap album of 2019". The Line of Best Fit. Archived from the original on 6 August 2020 . Retrieved 9 March 2019. Empire, Free Music (5 September 2019). "#Bandcampgold-Best U.K. Albums of 2019". Archived from the original on 20 January 2021 . Retrieved 30 September 2021.The 50 Best Albums of 2019". The Guardian. 20 December 2019. Archived from the original on 18 February 2020 . Retrieved 19 April 2020.