It was just last year, Kentucky rapper Jack Harlow released his sophomore album, Come Home, The Kids Miss You. He had the number one hit on Billboard with his single “First Class” and an album full of great features. Amongst this all seemed to be the makings of a recipe for success, many fans feel like they were left with a sour taste in their mouth feeling the album didn’t live up to the hype. Fast forward a year later, Jack Harlow surprises fans with his third studio album Jackman.
The element of a surprise drop is a tactic that has been used for some artists at all levels of their career. The move is a double-edge sword as it can prove to be beneficial or a hindrance to artists. Jack Harlow announced the album only a few days before release with solely dropping the album cover. The 24 minute project was compact as there were ten songs, no features and Jack feeling like he had something to prove to fans who doubted him. It can be heard from the album’s first track “Common Ground”. On the day of release, he released the album’s first single, “They Don’t Love It” a fan favorite to listeners.
Jackman was a lot to digest in one listen that calls for it to be listened to it many times. It was a therapeutic project as the artist seemed to get a lot of his chest when it comes to fans questioning his artistry, authenticity and his longevity. Will this translate into album sales? Only time will tell. Fans will be divided listening to this album. The mainstream version of Jack Harlow has been put on the backburner for the moment as we are now experiencing a reintroduced version. I’m liking the path he’s taking with his career and I’m sure this will grow to be a side of the Kentucky rapper that all fans will grow to love. You can listen to Jackman on all streaming services and click here for a surprise.
Reggie Johnson is a poet reigning from Cincinnati, Ohio. Starting at the age of nine, Reggie has been writing poetry through their love of music and life experiences. He has 9 books now available on Amazon. You can follow him on Twitter@r_d_johnson and on IG @rdjohnsonwrites.