How Juice WRLD Turned Heartbreak to Stardom

The "Lucid Dreams" artist talks emo rap, tainted happiness and new direction. HYPEBEAST [Features]( August 03, 2018 [How Juice WRLD Turned Heartbreak to Stardom]( The "Lucid Dreams" artist talks emo rap, tainted happiness and new direction. [Asian Doll]( EDDIE LEE/HYPEBEAST For the better half of 2018, the internet knew little about rapper Juice WRLD — except that, with zero songs available for streaming, he landed a $3 million USD deal with Interscope Records. Juice WRLD was Soundcloud Rap’s best kept secret, always present on social media but never fully recognized as rap’s next big star. Now, only four months since signing, Juice WRLD has landed in the top 10 of the Hot 100 and Billboard 200. Born Jared Higgins, the 19-year-old from the suburbs of Chicago built his following through emo rap, yielding lyrics that touch on heartbreak and splintered feelings. While not new to hip-hop, the artist’s approach brings a sense of familiarity that heartbroken teenagers of this generation gravitate to. His records such as “Lucid Dreams,” off WRLD’s debut full-length EP 9 9 9 that dropped in June 2017, and “All Girls Are the Same,” off of his three-song EP, Nothings Different, catapulted his career. Both songs are now on the charts, with “Lucid Dreams” peaking at No. 4 on the Billboard Hot 100. It’s a gift and a curse. [Asian Doll]( EDDIE LEE/HYPEBEAST While some industry critics charge WRLD’s style of rap as a dangerous and tired narrative, the rapper holds he only writes from personal experience and finds strength in his vulnerability and pain. “It’s a gift and a curse,” he explains when asked about the openness of his lyrics. “The one thing talking about shit like that is I be pissing a lot of girls off. Like my current girlfriend, ‘Why you talking about this and that?’” Higgins’ Goodbye & Good Riddance album was released in May 2018, debuting at No. 15 of the Billboard 200, pushing out 39,000 album-equivalent units in its first week. Each week since the release, the album has risen on the charts, steadily keeping on an upwards trajectory and cementing Juice WRLD as the rapper to watch. [READ FULL ARTICLE ON HYPEBEAST →](   [Go To Preference Centre](     [More HYPEBEAST Features]( [[FASHION]( [7 Drops You Don't Want to Miss This Week]( [[FASHION]( [The Absolute, Definitive and Correct 25 Best Music Projects of 2018 So Far]( Get The App Free on iOS and Android Follow 2018 HYPEBEAST Limited. All Rights Reserved [Manage Subscriptions]( [Unsubscribe]( You are receiving this email because you have subscribed to HYPEBEAST's marketing emails. You can unsubscribe from us any time by clicking [here](. Our Mailing Address: HYPEBEAST, 12F, 10-16 Kwai Ting Road, Kwai Chung, Hong Kong