Album Review: "A Letter to My Younger Self" by Quinn XCII

Quinn XCII released his much anticipated third studio album on Friday and it was a pop sensation. After listening to the album once from start to finish, there wasn't one song that didn't fit the album's purpose. Each song had a different message for the album's intent with a concentration on self reflection and growth. You might think that's an easy assumption considering the title is A Letter to My Younger Self, but Quinn's lyrical genius makes you relate, and feel how his own growth as a person and an artist has made him a happier person than ever before.

The album's singles were the consensus favorites because of their catchy, upbeat tone. However, after listening to the album as a whole, the songs that were just recently released had more to do with the story Quinn wanted to tell. The first songs were tailored to bring out feelings like regret, self doubt, repeating mistakes and isolation. During his reflection, he looks at how the good and bad experiences have made him the person he is today.

After understanding that those bad feelings he had were often things that were out of his control. Which to me is a lesson that nobody ever can completely understand. In life there's things that we do and say that happen that we can't take back or change, and that drives us crazy, especially when it's about love. What he would tell his younger self is this; to live more in the moment. That everything will fall into place in your life if you let it.

This idea hit home to me specifically because I often remove myself from the world whenever I have bad thoughts like those and it only put me in a deeper hole than I was before. Quinn's album puts all of those thoughts into words and makes you reflect on the times when you've made life harder for yourself than you needed to.

What makes this album so special is that if you can persevere and grow off reflection, life can be one big party. When you get out of your own head you can get on with the parts of life that are the most rewarding. Spending as much time as you can with the people you're closest to and having a sense of appreciation for what you have right now.

The last song on the album "Everything I Need" speaks on that idea of appreciating what you have, and it truly rounds out the whole album's purpose in a cherry on top of your sundae kind of way. Keeping all of this in mind while I re-listened to the album, I can say no other artist can touch your soul the way Quinn XCII can. The impact behind his music is unseen in the industry today which puts him as my number one artist right now.

I'm not alone when I say that. As this is only the start to his music career, he had some big named features on this album like Logic, BlackBear, Marc E Bassy, and Ashe. In each featured song, Quinn took these artists’ strengths and flows and integrated them seamlessly into his own style. Each beat and chorus has its own unique sound while keeping the same vibe throughout the whole album.

Typically, for me, it gets boring or old when an artist puts out a project where all the songs sound the same. Quinn on the other hand walked the fine tightrope that is originality to perfection. My favorites were:

• "Am I High Rn" (feat. Blackbear)

• "Sleep While I Drive"

• "More than Friends"

• "Meeting Strangers"

• "Everything I Need"

Quinn XCII absolutely knocked this album out of the park and has hits that will only get better over time. A Letter to my Younger Self deserves a 9.1/10 and a must listen tag to go along with it. Quinn recently Tweeted that the next project he will be working on will be A Change in Scenery 2, a sequel to his first album that made everyone fall in love with Quinn. Watch out for one of the hottest artists out in the years to come.

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Stream A Letter to My Younger Self