Wiz Khalifa’s ‘Kush & Orange Juice 2’ campaign feels like a resurgence of the mixtape era

In 2010, Wiz Khalifa’s Kush & Orange Juice helped change the way people discovered and shared music. He dropped the project online for free, and it went viral almost instantly. Fans made it trend worldwide on X, crashed the DatPiff website trying to download it and turned the tape into a classic. Without any big label push or radio single, Kush & Orange Juice showed just how powerful the mixtapes of that period were.

Now, more than a decade later, Wiz Khalifa plans to bring that energy back with Kush & Orange Juice 2. While some people see it as just a throwback (or a potential misstep), this release could be something bigger. It might be the start of a new wave or, at the very least, a reminder of what’s possible when artists drop music on their own terms.

What we know so far about Kush & Orange Juice 2

Wiz Khalifa raised hype in early 2024 when he revealed the sequel was “done and going into mixing.” Since then, he’s confirmed working with the same producers who helped create the original sound, including Cardo, ID Labs and Sledgren. The Taylor Gang frontman hasn’t said how he’s going to release the project yet. It might go to streaming platforms, but it could also drop in a more old-school way — like on his own website, a fair possibility since Wiz is fully independent.

While the upcoming project will be an official album, the campaign is moving like it’s the mixtape era again. Over the past few months, Wiz Khalifa has been dropping freestyles left and right — just like he and his peers used to do over a decade ago. He’s rapped over 2Pac’s “So Many Tears," Solange’s “Cranes in the Sky” and even System of a Down’s “Aerials,” blending his usual themes of weed, women and luxury with classic production.

Alongside the freestyles, fans have also received a steady stream of loose singles, including “Khalifa’s Home,” “Hide It” with Don Toliver, “Bring Your Lungs” with Smoke DZA and “Hit It Once.” Whether any of these tracks will end up on Kush & Orange Juice 2 or if they’re just warm-ups remains to be seen.

Why the original Kush & Orange Juice mattered

Simply put, Kush & Orange Juice was an unforgettable moment in time. With his newly established Rostrum Records partnership, he began a steady grassroots movement that led to his loyal Taylor Gang fanbase and a slew of dope cuts. Instead of being sold in stores or pushed by an industry machine, Kush & Orange Juice, the follow-up to 2009’s Deal or No Deal, was a free download that spread through word of mouth, social media and music blogs. People couldn’t get enough of it.

The music was smooth and soulful, with laid-back beats and chill lyrics. Songs like “The Kid Frankie” and the timeless “Mezmorized” had a sound that felt different from anything else at the time. And it wasn’t just a bunch of random tracks — it played like a full album. It had a theme, a look and a vibe that stuck with people.

More than anything, Kush & Orange Juice showed that you didn’t need a label to make noise. You could drop something for the people and let them run with it. It was proof that mixtapes could be career-changing drops. Wiz Khalifa’s incredible journey following the release stands as a perfect example.

What happened to the mixtape era?

After Kush & Orange Juice and similar drops, the mixtape game started to change. Namely, streaming took over. Instead of putting out music for free, artists focused more on albums for Spotify and Apple Music. Then, labels got more involved and sample-heavy offerings became harder to release because of legal issues. Everything became more polished, more business.

Even the platforms started to disappear. In 2023, DatPiff, the site that hosted so many classics, shut down. That moment felt like the end of something huge -- a whole era of music discovery officially faded away.

No, mixtapes didn’t fully disappear, but they weren’t the same. Some artists still used the term for commercial releases, but the spirit of it — the rawness and the no-rules approach — wasn’t there like it used to be.

Could Kush & OJ 2 bring the mixtape era back?

That’s what makes this situation so interesting. Wiz Khalifa is in a rare position. He’s a superstar who doesn’t need a label to tell him how to move. If he wants to drop the tape on a random day of the week, he can. That kind of creative freedom is what mixtapes were always about.

This moment could inspire others. A lot of younger artists are already moving in that direction by dropping tapes on YouTube or SoundCloud (the latter of which inspired its own branch of Hip Hop), building real fanbases without waiting for industry approval. Kush & Orange Juice 2 could show artists that the mixtape lane still works and still matters. Most of all, this project could remind everyone what made that era so great. It wasn’t about numbers or playlists. It was about the feeling and the connection between the artist and the listener.

So, yeah, this might be more than a sequel. It could be a reset. And if Wiz plays it right, he might help bring back one of the most creative and important parts of rap culture.