The album that a lot of people have been waiting for dropped March 25th, 2016, whether they were looking forward to hearing the album or to tear it to shreds. "Mind of Mine," ZAYN’s debut album blew up. Good things and bad things have been said about the album. There have been questions about whom most the album is about. Most people seem excited to hear the breakaway singer’s new stuff.
The album is different from what we have heard the singer sing. But it is very fitting for him. ZAYN is able to express all that he has wanted to in the past years that he has been in the spotlight. "PILLOWTALK" was definitely the right song to make the first single because it introduced us to the album perfectly. Like what I’ve said about "PILLOWTALK" in my earlier article, his music and lyrics are really raw. A lot of his songs are related to sex, and he clearly has no problem straying away from the puppy dog pop music he and his former band, One Direction, were singing.
His vocals stand out in a lot of songs, an example would be "fOoL fOr YoU." ZAYN’s falsetto is absolutely gorgeous. This is one of the slower ballads on the album. It is also one of my personal favorites. Another one of my favorites is sHe, it is more upbeat but still holds a lot of R&B slowness. ZAYN decided to include an Intro and an intermission in the album. These two songs, "MiNd Of MiNdd" and "fLoWer," are both sound more Middle Eastern to represent ZAYN’s heritage and culture. I find this very intriguing and also very intimate in showing his fans (Zquad) what his beliefs are.
Another thing that has been a big topic is who most of the album is about. There are a lot of signs that point to his ex-fiancé, Perrie Edwards. However, when he tweets song lyrics he usually tags his current girlfriend, Gigi Hadid. Who knows maybe we will find out one day?
I’ve listened to the album, and honestly I only like some of it. A lot of it sounds very similar. I could not tell you what songs are which unless they are "PILLOWTALK," "sHe," or "fOoL fOr YoU." This really disappoints me, because I was expecting a lot more. Also, some of the songs do not even sound like it is ZAYN singing them. An example would be "SHE DON’T LOVE ME," if you played this song to me without telling me who sang it I would have no idea that it was ZAYN.
Overall I have enjoyed the album, and I look forward to see what else ZAYN will come out with.
