Donald Glover Talks New Season of 'Atlanta,' Upcoming Album & More for 'Esquire'

Donald Glover is going to be just about everywhere in 2018. First, he'll be on screens for the second season his hit FX series Atlanta and the new forthcoming movie Solo: A Star Wars Story. He's also expected to drop a new Childish Gambino album after inking a new record deal with RCA in January. So for the March issue  Esquire, the multifaceted star sat down with the publication to discuss season two  Atlanta, and why his upcoming album might not be his last. 

Speaking to Esquire's Bijan Stephen, Glover discussed how he developed the idea for Atlanta, which he says was initially inspired by Dave Chappelle. “I remember seeing an interview where Dave Chappelle was talking about how it was important to him that the show was personal,” Glover told Esquire. “So I just focused on making it more and more personal. We shopped it around to all these places. I didn’t get too specific about what the show was, because I just felt like trying to explain it was going to be a hard sell.”

The show found a home at FX, and earned the actor-turned-rapper two 2017 Emmy nominations — he won for outstanding lead actor — and two Golden Globe awards the same year. For the upcoming season Atlanta, Glover is confident the show will avoid any talks a sophomore slump, declaring, “I know season two  Atlanta is something, because it makes me nervous.” 

After rolling out his Grammy award-winning album Awaken, My Love!, Gambino confirmed rumors that his next project would be his last, during a press conference backstage at the 2018 Grammy Awards. “I mean, I'm really appreciative this and I'm still making another project just to make,” he said. “But I like endings. I think they're important for progress. I think like if a lot things had like death clauses in them, we wouldn't have a lot problems in the world, to be honest. So I think endings are good cause they force things to get better.”

However, when questioned about the possibility another album, Glover admitted his upcoming project may not actually be his last: “I feel like that’s not the ending — for me, anyway. I know it’s sometimes a hard pill to swallow, but I don’t care that much about what happens to me. The vibrations that I make, that’s for the people.” Later, he added that he'd “love to be something that just gives and gives and doesn’t take.” 

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