After high hopes, “Hollywood’s Bleeding” definitely delivers

In recent years, arguably in the recent decade, no one has topped the music charts more than Post Malone. Austin Post, from Grapevine, Texas, emerged seemingly out of nowhere, with his first big hit “White Iverson” in February 2015.

This song gained popularity right from its release on the streaming platform SoundCloud. He would release his first studio album, “Stoney,” and open up for Justin Bieber on his world tour the following year.

Now, Post has released three albums, began his third tour and has dominated the music industry for just over three years.

Chances are, you have heard at least one of his songs.

Among his biggest hits are “Congratulations,” “rockstar,” “Psycho” and “Better Now.” Because his style fits into so many different kinds of music, his voice hardly ever leaves the radio. And that certainly does not stop at the release of “Hollywood’s Bleeding” — his latest album. Although originally classified as a rapper, he has diversified his sound to fit a multitude of genres, including pop, country, rock and even grunge.

Toward the end of 2018, Post released songs “Wow” and “Sunflower” featuring Swae Lee. The latter skyrocketed to the top of the charts on streaming services such as Spotify and Apple Music.

“Sunflower” was also the lead single of the soundtrack to “Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse,” promoting the song not only on the radio but also in the movie. Last summer saw the release of singles “Goodbyes” featuring Young Thug and “Circles,” both of which have over 100 million streams on Spotify already. Each of these singles paved the way for high expectations for the new album.

So, how did they hold up?

On Sept. 6 of this year, Post Malone released his third album, “Hollywood’s Bleeding.” If there is one word to describe “Hollywood’s Bleeding,” it’s diverse. Post has been called a versatile artist before, but it definitely shows in this LP.

Some of his songs demonstrate his ability to concoct another pop/rap hit, including “Enemies” featuring DaBaby, “Die for Me” featuring Future and Halsey and “On the Road” featuring Meek Mill and Lil Baby.

Evident from these two songs alone, Post has some awesome features on the album.

Notably, “Take What You Want” features rock legend Ozzy Osbourne and mainstream rapper Travis Scott. The combination seems unusual at first, but what comes of it is a rare blend of talent — Post crushes his part before dishing a verse to Travis Scott and giving Ozzy a guitar solo that is reminiscent of the rock music of the 70s and 80s.

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What attracts many people to Post Malone’s music is his unique voice and ever-catchy melodies. “Staring at the Sun” featuring SZA and “I’m Gonna Be” are simply feel-good songs that draw in the listener, making them anticipate every new line.

He can captivate the listener with a hook that is sure to stay in one’s head while sitting in class or working at the office. “Thousand Bad Times,” “Myself” and “Internet,” all demonstrate this use of catchy hooks as Post sings about his regrets and mistakes.

Post also uses his somber tone in the songs “Hollywood’s Bleeding,” “I Know” and “Saint-Tropez,” talking to his audience about past flings that fell through and the struggles that come along with attaining fame. He has an uncanny ability to make the listener jam to a song during a fun party, even if it may have a somber premise or tell a story about an arduous relationship.

The album’s diversity of sound, features and overall catchiness makes it one of Post’s best, if not his very best work to date.

Rating: 4.5/5 stars

gillinn@miamioh.edu