Chrysalis

10th March 2022

Chrysalis takes a deep dive into the musings of Poet22. It opens with introspective questions from Poet22 that feel immensely in tune with the title of her debut, “Have your wings formed yet? Have you gathered enough courage to set them free?” She sets scene with the chirping birds as she lays down silky vocals. Her lyrics feel catchy, never forced, always remaining authentic to her feelings. Her single crush manages to capture the feelings of having a crush, a feeling most of us feel during our adolescence which she expresses with the lyrics “when I see you my heart skips a beat / it takes me back to elementary.” I think the decision to enlist Shakko as a feature on this song was important to demonstrate both the male and female perspective of having a crush.

She opens up on songs like crazy 4 u, emotional and OVER IT, these are the rawest moments of the album. In crazy 4 u she talks about searching in a crowded room and this picture is really painted for us, the production encompasses people talking over each other which literally made me think the noise cancelling in my AirPods had stopped working, so mission definitely achieved! She bares all in emotional, this gem of self reflection feels a little slower, more somber than the rest of the album. My favourite lyric of the album “been through way more than I thought I could handle / so please excuse when I act like a handful” is housed on this song. The emotion she carries feels genuine, like a weight she’s carried for a long time. OVER IT stands out to me on the album, the structure of the lyrics and melody is punchy which juxtaposes her soft voice. Definitely the song with the most impact on the ears and so it makes sense that the title is stylised in all caps.

Her vocals feel like self care: bubble baths, lighting candles, laying in silk sheets. The glimmer in shimmery eyeshadow. The album is radiant, it simply glows. The production feels cohesive from track to track. Chrysalis feels spiritual in every aspect from the vocals to the beats. The closer, grateful feels like a glorious way to wrap up the album, she talks about her journey and struggle which feels so honest and real. She ends the album with spoken word the way she opens it, “Dear God, I tried my best. But if today I lose my hope, please tell me that your plans are better than my dreams.” It feels like the final page of a book, the last words. This album really feels so expressive of everything Poet22 has endured in life which is really important for a debut, they set the tone of who an artist is and Poet22 has definitely managed to deliver. After following her crowdfunding journey on TikTok, listening to this album made me feel intense warmth knowing that her dreams of an album had come to fruition, the final product is simply a work of art.