As Juice WRLD joins the long list of musicians that have sadly left us too soon, his music continues to live through the many fans that enjoy it to this day. Juice WRLD’s music brings an insight into the newly established ‘Emo Rap’ genre which has become increasingly popular since the mid 2010’s. Juice WRLD’s ability to express his raw emotions while also producing a catchy and unique beat throughout his songs shows the depth of talent he had as an artist.
Whether you are an OG Juice WRLD fan or you have just become acquainted, here are 10 tracks that are a must for your playlist.
1. Come & Go
One of my absolute favourites from Juice WRLD’s latest album “Legends Never Die.” The track has a perfectly fitted feature from American DJ Marshmello who brings an upbeat spin to the hit. The lyrics describe Juice WRLD’s faults when it comes to love and relationships, and he goes on to explain how he is always trying to better himself and doesn’t want this relationship to “Come & Go.”
2. Stay High
Diving deep into Juice WRLD’s battle with substance addiction, the song talks about his need for staying high in order to cope with the lows of his life. The sombre track is a perfect example of his ability to mix the emotional vocals and instrumentals commonly found in “Emo” music with a seamless feature of rap and hip-hop.
3. Wishing Well
The topic of substance addiction was a prominent theme throughout Juice WRLD’s latest album Legends Never Die, particularly in the hit ‘Wishing Well’. He describes his struggles with depression and drug taking and his desire to overcome these issues. During the chorus he references the track ‘Killing Me Softly’ by The Fugees and also the lead singer Lauryn Hill, which is sadly alluding to Juice WRLD’s acknowledgement that the very thing he is taking to try and rid him of his pain, is also slowly killing him.
4. Smile
Another collab on the Legends Never Die album features the incredibly talented The Weeknd. The two were in talks of collaborating back in September 2019 when Juice WRLD expressed his desire to work with him via tweet. Originally titled “Sad”, the track describes Juice WRLD’s desire to see his girlfriend ‘Smile’ while he struggles with his inner demons. The track eerily predicts Juice’s untimely death within the lyrics:
“Devil on my shoulder tellin’ me I’ll die soon
I don’t really want that to impact you”
5. Conversations
The title of the song ‘Conversations’ references the devil inside Juice WRLD’s head, who he is not yet ready to confront. Instead he chooses to continue to numb his pain through the use of alcohol and drugs. He mentions how it is an expensive habit to keep by comparing it to the likes of luxury brand Dior: “Numb the pain with Oxy and Dior, yeah, pricey”
6. Bad Energy
Juice slows things down in this track to discuss his addiction of Codeine and Oxy (Oxycodone). He goes onto mention his love for girlfriend Ally Lotti, who fans believe he was engaged to. Ally is seen wearing a ring on her left hand in her last few photos with Juice before his death.
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7. Blood On My Jeans
‘Blood On My Jeans’ is another track where Juice WRLD mentions his feelings for girlfriend Ally Lotti, referencing a tweet from July 2019where he said that he wanted to give up codeine for her as he knew his addictions were hurting her. He referenced this in the lyrics:
“I value my relationship, it’s forever
But I’ve been cheatin’ on the drugs (Yeah)
Broke up with Codeine, need a new plug (Yeah)”
8. Hate The Other Side
‘Hate The Other Side’ delves into the topics of relationship struggles during Juice WRLD’s rise to fame. The song features vocals by The Kid LAROI and Polo G and is produced by Marshmello. The ‘other side’ is referring to females – Juice WRLD was raised to put money and his friends before women, which contributed to his struggles with relationships: “I was taught to love my brothers and to hate the other side”
9. Can’t Die
Juice WRLD hails from Chicago, which is known to have some of the most violent neighbourhoods in the United States. ‘Can’t Die’ alludes to Juice WRLD’s inability to die as he believes he “never was alive” due to the depression he encountered from many of his friends passing away. He implies within the lyrics that despite his success, he still feels the pain from losing his loved ones:
“Now I’m getting richer
But it’s too many people missing from the picture”
10. Lucid Dreams
‘Lucid Dreams’ comes from Juice WRLD’s debut full length album Goodbye & Good Riddance. The popular track peaked at number 2 on the Billboard Hot 100 and was likely one of the most streamed songs of 2018. Juice describes the aftermath and turmoil of a breakup to be like lucid dreaming, where you can be in a conscious state while in a dream. In an interview he said the message he wanted to convey to fans was to “just be aware of your feelings.”
The common theme in Juice WRLD’s music is about the struggles and addictions he experienced throughout his life. His ability to express his emotions and experiences through his music is why he has so many fans that can relate to him, and support him to this day.The title Legends Never Die implies that even beyond the life of the artist, true art such as music continues to live amongst the many fans that enjoy it. #lljw
SEE ALSO: Our 10 Favourite Juice WRLD Collabs
