Rod Wave released the lead single of the album, "Fight the Feeling", on March 31, 2023. The song provoked negative feedback with people opining that his music became "too emotional". However, he claimed that he wrote the song having his haters on his mind.[1] On August 16, 2023, Rod announced the album and released the second single "Call Your Friends" two days later.[2] He also addressed allegations of having moved the release date several times before, saying that this was his first time mentioning any date.[3][4] On September 11, Rod announced the Nostalgia Tour, a North American tour for the album that is set to take place from October to December 2023.[5] The 35-date tour through North America will be backed by special guests Ari Lennox, Toosii, G Herbo, and Eelmatic.[6]
Nostalgia received mediocre reviews from critics. Writing for AllMusic, TiVo Staff stated that his "emotional delivery, melodic flows, gospel underpinnings, and pop-friendly approach to trap" have a similar delivery to that of his previous studio album, Beautiful Mind (2022). He stated that "there's a unified feeling throughout the almost-hour-long project, and it reaches its highest points right around the middle of the journey".[7]HipHopDX's Isaac Fontes stated that "[Rod Wave's] soulful reflections over Trap beats laced with booming 808s accompanied by either a twinkling piano loop or a drawling guitar riff, is a contrast that works because of the depths of his lyrics." He noted that "authenticity and deeply introspective lyrics" play a major factor in why "his movement [is] so powerful".[8]
In the United States, Nostalgia debuted atop the Billboard 200, earning 137,000 album-equivalent units (including 1,500 in pure sales) in its first week. It became Wave's third number one on the chart, and sixth top-ten. The album also accumulated a total of 187.51 million on-demand streams of its songs.[10] In its second week, the album remained at number one on the chart, moving an additional 88,000 units, a 500-unit margin above closest challenger Olivia Rodrigo's Guts.[11]
