Get Better at It (Donald Intro) (09/26/2020)

A recap of the week's writing at Atticus Review. Introduction by Donald Quist.

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I’ve been thinking about how the rapper Juice Wrld (Jarad Anthony Higgins) embodied a sentiment by best-selling author Octavia E. Butler. On the value of persistence, Butler said, “You don’t start out writing good stuff. You start out writing crap and thinking it’s good stuff, and then gradually you get better at it.”

Higgins’ posthumous release,

Legends Never Die

, is among my favorite albums of the year. I love its catchy choruses, the chest-rattling trap bass, the electronic dance influences and pop-punk spirit. I often write while listening to it. What I appreciate most about the record is how it serves as a portrait of an artist as a young man cultivating his craft. From start to finish, the collection of songs follow Higgins as he interrogates himself—

, and misconceptions about masculinity. 

When I listen to the album, I hear growth.

Higgins first rose to prominence in 2017 on the success of a song called “

.” The track garnered so much online popularity it led to Higgins receiving a $3-million record deal from Interscope Records. Overtly misogynistic, the song features the chorus, “All girls are the same, they’re rotting my brain.” However, less than seven months after the release of this single,

where he disparaged the song. He said, “That is how I felt at a certain point in time, you know. And that’s clearly wrong cause everybody is different [...] That statement pretty much represents teenage emotion.” 

Before arriving at the radio station that morning, Higgns had spent the evening recording six songs and had yet to sleep. He was prolific during his career, releasing three albums before his death in December 2019. Seven months after his passing,

Legends Never Die

demonstrates that through the persistent focus on his work, Higgins was in the process of revising himself. The single “

” featuring pop singer-songwriter Halsey, exemplifies this progression, musically and personally. Car-thumping deep tones, acoustic guitar, orchestral strings, and operatic runs from his guest-star compliment Higgns’ mumbling croon as he reflects on immature perceptions of romantic love and suggests that everyone regardless of their gender or expression is entitled to be loved for who they are as an individual. 

This is all a lesson in progression. 

Butler said the most valuable trait to her writing was persistence. In persisting at our chosen craft we provide ourselves opportunities to get better at our art, and through this effort we might grow as individuals. This isn’t easy. It requires a willingness to try new things, make mistakes, acknowledge those mistakes and try to fix them. Persistence involves self-interrogation and revision. It means learning to forgive the artists we were yesterday, and  appreciating where we are in our current process. When our work seems to fall short of our vision, we should remember Butler’s words. We should think of Higgins as Juice Wrld and all he managed to accomplish during his short career because of his sticktoitiveness. Consider

Legends Never Die

and the following lyrics from “Life’s a Mess”:

Been pretty f*ckin’ bad,but it’s better now.

Thanks for reading. We're glad you're here.

Donald Quist

Columns Editor

ATTICUS NEWS

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