By Kelly Sanchez

When you look at George Kusunoki Miller’s old crude Youtube character “Filthy Frank” and compare him to “Joji,” a brilliant artist and musician, there’s no doubt that his transformation has been incredible. He went from being an outrageous persona on the internet to venturing a risk by pursuing his dreams — and attractively taking the world by storm.

In 2018, the Japanese-Australian singer released his debut album, ‘Ballads 1’. Joji’s music blends a variety of sounds and visuals to create a dark and melancholic ambiance. Despite this, he was missing one thing: an artistic identity. That, however, is understandable considering he had just kicked off his music career.

Last week, Joji released his follow-up album,‘Nectar,’ where he shows off his improved vocals and expands his musical horizons with elements of synth-pop and alternative rock. 

In the album’s opening track, “Ew,” Joji sings about his past relationships, and how he wishes to find true love, instead of people who constantly leave him and break his heart. “Ew” seems to express his disgust toward love and hints at the album’s name.

On the latter side, “Gimme Love” is a love ballad, with him pleading with his lover for affection. The track starts with a darker, lo-fi electronic instrumental that Joji is known for. However, the upbeat acoustic ending of the song creates a stark difference from his past work.

While the subject of Miller’s intense focus, lost love and depression, has not changed since his last album, one major change from his last album is that he’s now being assisted by featured artists. For instance, the Diplo-produced “Daylight” is a post-breakup anthem. Not to mention his collaborations with Omar Apollo and Yves Tumor. 

Although some people criticize him for this, this album is a testament to inventive genre-bending. And his presence on these songs is versatile and hardworking.

The 18 track-long album may be lengthy, but it pays off and leaves fans and critics wondering what he’s going to do next.