Dirty Computer (album)

*This article is about the album. You may be looking for the film, the novel, or the song*.

## Studio album by Janelle Monáe

### **Studio**

* Wondaland (Atlanta, GA)
* Chalice (Los Angeles, CA)
* Atlantic (New York, NY)
* Shawty Ra (Los Angeles, CA)
* Stankonia (Atlanta, GA)

### **Genre**

* Pop
* R&B
* neo soul

### **Label**

* Wondaland
* Bad Boy
* Atlantic

### **Producer(s)**

* Janelle Monáe
* Nate Wonder
* Chuck Lightning
* Nana Kwabena
* Roman GianArthur
* Wynne Bennett
* Jon Brion
* Mattman & Robin

## **Singles from *Dirty Computer***

1. "Make Me Feel"
Released: February 22, 2018
2. "Django Jane"
Released: February 22, 2018
3. "Pynk"
Released: April 10, 2018
4. "I Like That"
Released: August 17, 2018

> My message to Dirty Computers who are made to feel defective, to feel like they're bugs and they're viruses, are negatives and need to be deleted and need to be reprogrammed, is to know that there's nothing wrong with you. Your features are your bugs and your viruses. They're attributes. They add value to this society, to this country, to your communities. Continue to lead with love. I hope that with this album and with this emotion picture, you feel more seen, you feel more heard, you feel more celebrated—and continue to be free-ass motherfuckers.
>
> Janelle Monáe to *Complex*

***Dirty Computer*** is the third studio album by Janelle Monáe, released on April 27, 2018, by Wondaland Arts Society, Bad Boy Records and Atlantic Records. Featured guests include Brian Wilson of the Beach Boys, Zoë Kravitz, Grimes, and Pharrell Williams. She worked closely with Prince, and upon his death, it made her consider, "I couldn't fake being vulnerable. In terms of how I will be remembered, I have anxiety around that, like the whole concept about what I'll be remembered for."

The short film of the same name was released alongside the date of the album, where Monáe called it an "emotion picture" that centers on five different stories. She explained to *Q*, "Dirty computers are individuals who refuse to assimilate. They refuse to, you know, wipe away their queerness, wipe away their Blackness, and because of that, they are a threat to the status quo....I guess the best way to describe them is they are free-ass motherf--kers." In April 2022, they released the novel *The Memory Librarian and Other Stories of Dirty Computer*, bringing scope onto the Afrofuturistic world.

They told *OkayPlayer*, "We know that we exist in so many different ways. The fact that we have those stories on-screen, and I was a part of both those movies, made me feel more emboldened and encouraged to dig deeper inside to be more vulnerable and more honest in the way that I approach my storytelling. *Dirty Computer* digs deep into the viruses and bugs of Janelle Monáe. And ultimately, it's an album that encourages you to embrace the things that make you unique, even if it makes others uncomfortable."

## Background

On April 26, the day before the official release, Monáe debuted their album at a release party for select fans at Mack Sennett Studios, Los Angeles, additionally doing a performance of the songs "Django Jane," "I Like That," "PYNK," "Make Me Feel," "Screwed" and "I Got the Juice."

The tracklist is split into three parts: the reckoning, the celebration, and the reclamation, where she told iHeartRadio, "the first four songs are the reckoning; realizing what you mean to this society" while the middle is "celebration; celebrating your dirt, celebrating being a 'dirty computer'" and the final part is "then you kind of go through the fear of what that means to stand up for yourself and those who are oftentimes marginalized. [...] So, it goes through phases." She had the title and concept before her debut album *The ArchAndroid*, but put it aside, knowing it would be an ambitious record, and had to be "emotionally available" and more experiences. The central theme is love, where they described it as the "root" of *Dirty Computer*.

She told *Billboard* of the intent behind the record, "I wrote it from a deeply personal space, but I also kept in mind the importance of community for people like myself who identify in many of these marginalized groups. From the LGBTQI community, to black women, to minorities, my Latina and Latino brothers and sisters—my heart is deeply connected to immigrants and what they're going through in this country. There's an interconnectedness that I wanted to be at the center of this project: I'm a black woman, but I still understand your pain and how you feel as someone who has felt pushed to the margins of society because of where they come from. Regardless of me being an artist and being able to entertain and go around the world, when I come home at night and take off my makeup and my performance uniform, I still am a young, black, queer woman from America who grew up with working class parents. At the core, that is my identity. So it was just important to speak from that perspective and, in the process, let people know that it was important for Dirty Computers to feel like we have a community. I wish we didn't have to do these sorts of things, but it's real—this is where we are in history."

## References

1. ↑ Setaro, Shawn (October 29, 2018). "Reckoning, Celebration, and Reclamation: Janelle Monáe Dissects 'Dirty Computer'". *Complex*.
2. ↑ Leight, Elias (April 27, 2018). "Janelle Monae Talks Enlisting Brian Wilson for 'Dirty Computer' Album". *Rolling Stone*.
3. ↑ Ginsberg, Gab (April 19, 2018). "Janelle Monae Says Prince's Death Made Her Pause on Recording 'Dirty Computer': 'I Couldn't Pick Up the Phone'". *Billboard*.
4. ↑ "Janelle Monáe on her Afrofuturist literary debut and why she identifies as a 'dirty computer'". *CBC*. July 13, 2022.
5. ↑ "Janelle Monáe's 'Dirty Computer' comes alive in a new collection of stories". *NPR*. April 17, 2022.
6. ↑ Ani, Ivie (July 3, 2018). "Janelle Monáe Is Redefining What It Means to Be a Genius [INTERVIEW]". *OkayPlayer*.
7. ↑ Smith-Strickland, Stephanie (May 7, 2018). "Janelle Monáe Talks New Album 'Dirty Computer' & Her Artistic Responsibilities". *Billboard*.
8. ↑ Mastrogiannis, Nicole (April 19, 2018). "Janelle Monáe Reveals Important 'Dirty Computer' Messages & Meanings". *iHeartRadio*.
9. ↑ Ginsberg, Gab (August 29, 2018). "Janelle Monáe On Owning Her Queer Identity With 'Dirty Computer': 'It's Important to Speak From That Perspective'". *Billboard*.