The most popular thing to do is to label a wild teen like XXXTENTACION as a waste of time to listen to; however, what I hear when I listen to him is an opportunity for a regular Joe like myself to enter into the mind of a rebellious teen that doesn’t care for the boxes that society wants to put him in. With ’17,’ X knows that it is his time to show the world how artistic he can be, and much to my surprise, he ends up spitting out a borderline masterpiece.

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TOP 5

 

5. REVENGE

“Revenge” showcases XXXTENTACION’s ability to make alternative music (I Can’t believe I am actually saying this). While XXX is no Paul McCartney, he actually does a very good job of sounding similar to him on this particular track.

The overall musicality of “Revenge” is amazing, to me! I truly believe XXX did lots of studying to perfect the nostalgic sound you hear on the song, cause it sounds way too authentic to be taken as a joke.

 

 

4. EVERYBODY DIES IN THEIR NIGHTMARES

As expected, on a song called “Everybody Dies In Their Nightmares,” XXXTENTACION is dark, somber and negative.

I love the fast flow that XXX raps with on this song, as to me, he mimics vintage Luda on it. For some odd reason, this fast flow works on emotional songs like “Everybody Dies In Their Nightmares.”

 

 

3. ‘CARRY ON’

‘Carry On’ is yet another somber-sounding track production-wise, but this time around, XXX approaches s**t in more of an aggressive rap way.

Harmonizing is usually the best way to show emotion on a song, but in other times, rapping the way XXX is rapping on this song can be a great way to show it, too. On his verses in “Carry On,” XXX approaches his fears head on, sounding like a guy that is ready to conquer them all.

This song will surprise many true Hip hop fans out there.

 

 

2. JOCELYN FLORES

‘Jocelyn Flores’ is beautiful, is thoughtful, and pretty damn deep. On it, XXXTENTACION describes the pain he feels from some of his regretful actions towards his ex named Jocelyn Flores. On the chorus to the song, you can hear a woman crying out to you, while on XXX’s verses, you hear this angry youth that needs a bit of Jesus in his life.

This song is so good that it made me want to be depressed! Where can I buy 4 ounces of depression?

 

 

1.’F–K LOVE‘

“F**k Love” is probably the most commercial/joyful sounding song on “17,” and it is still depressing as s–t.

“F**k Love” is powered by this smooth, yet hard-hitting instrumental. Over this instrumental, XXXTENTACION sings his ass off about being fed up with love, sounding like a PnB Rock clone the whole time. To me, the Florida rapper holds his own on the track, providing us with as highly infectious a sound as it gets.

How about the hook from featured guest Trippie Redd on this song!? He killed it by not even doing too much.

I don’t even want to know what ‘Love’ did to these two guys… (It probably molly-whopped them upside their heads)

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SONG BY SONG BREAKDOWN

1. JOCELYN FLORES (5/5)

2. DEPRESSION & OBSESSION (4/5)

3. EVERYBODY DIES IN THEIR NIGHTMARES (5/5)

4. REVENGE (4.9/5)

5. SAVE ME (4/5)

6. DEAD INSIDE (4/5)

7. F–K LOVE (5/5)

8. CARRY ON (5/5)

9. ORLANDO (4.4/5)

10. AYALA (INTERLUDE) (4/5)

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OVERALL RATING

(A-)

The disclaimer that XXXTENTACION gives you on the intro to “17” is fitting: the album is very f**king disturbing! At the same time, I see this album as a painfully honest project that you will find either riveting or relatable.

Though XXXTENTACION exploded onto the music scene with “Look At Me” — A hardcore rap tune that sounds like a bunch of s**t you hear on the radio today — he actually shows an ability to be an all around artist in “17.” More than anything, X relies on his emotions to guide him to where he needs to go on a song, which at times causes him to morph into artists such as Paul McCartney and Bob Dylan (That’s a huge exaggeration, but hopefully you get my point).

Let’s talk about the elephant in the room when it comes to this album: XXXTENTACION is troubled. Nearly every song on this album has this somber tone to it, which as a result, forces X to bring out a depressed version of himself. With that being said, if you heard pieces of this album mixed in with all of the other s**t you have in your music library, you won’t appreciate it; if you listened to the album from start to finish without even skipping an interlude, you will enjoy it a lot!

“17” is really good, guys! I think it can be enjoyed in many different ways. I once was an XXXTENTACION basher, but this album makes me see him in a brand new light.