Released in December 2020, "It Wasn't Enough" Album serves as a poignant posthumous final act for the immensely talented yet profoundly troubled rapper XXXTENTACION.
Across its 4 tracks, the diverse production sees X nimble navigate between trap-inflected bombast and lush, emotionally raw pianos and strings. He casts himself in various states of anguish and catharsis over the diverse sonic landscapes.
Songs like "Ex Bitch" and "Before I Close My Eyes" deliver ruthless bars and hooks that cement why X emerged among rap's vanguard during his short life. Meanwhile, the Jon Bellion-featuring "Introduction (The Ways)" adds pop brilliance to X's tumultuous songwriting.
Perhaps most affecting are the vulnerable piano ballads "The Interlude That Never Ends" and the title track, where X lays his soul utterly bare through minimalist, borderline spiritual aesthetics.
While imperfect in spots, as an artistic full stop, "It Wasn't Enough" presents X's looming potential in hard-hitting clarity. It reminds that beneath destructive proclivities lay madness, magic and musical mastery still left to unveil when fate intervened.
For fans and newcomers, the album stands a visceral coda to one of this generation's most mercurial talents - a still-developing icon who left devastation and art in his wake.