struggler

In a press statement upon announcement in May 2023, Owusu said, "The struggler runs through an absurd world with no 'where' or 'why' at hand. Just an instinctual inner rhythm, yelling at them to survive the pestilence and lightning bolts coming from above. A roach just keeps roaching."{{cite web |url=https://www.nme.com/news/music/genesis-owusu-sophomore-album-australia-north-america-europe-tour-dates-tickets-3444855 |title=Genesis Owusu announces sophomore album, Australia, North America and Europe tour |website=NME |date=19 May 2023 |access-date=21 May 2023|author=Singh, Surej}}

As with Owusu's previous album, Smiling with No Teeth, Struggler has been described as incorporating elements from a wide variety of genres. Timothy Monger of AllMusic observed a "collision of experimental post-punk, rap, and R&B", while Wesley McLean of Exclaim! described the album as "amalgamating elements of post-punk, R&B, hip-hop, funk, new wave, psychedelic rock and more". Tracks such as "See Ya There" and "Tied Up!" were stylistically compared to the work of Prince.

{{Music ratings

| MC = 82/100{{cite web|url=https://www.metacritic.com/music/struggler/genesis-owusu|title=Struggler by Genesis Owusu Reviews and Tracks|website=Metacritic|access-date=8 September 2023}}

| rev1 = AllMusic

| rev1score = {{Rating|4.5|5}}{{cite news|url=https://www.allmusic.com/album/struggler-mw0004003900|title=Genesis Owusu - Struggler Album Reviews, Songs & More|website=AllMusic|last=Monger|first=Timothy|date=8 September 2023|access-date=8 September 2023}}

| rev2 = Exclaim!

| rev2score = 8/10{{cite magazine|url=https://exclaim.ca/music/article/genesis_owusu_struggler_album_review|title=Genesis Owusu Puts the World on Notice with Struggler|magazine=Exclaim!|last=McLean|first=Wesley|date=15 August 2023|access-date=14 September 2023}}

| rev3 = The Guardian

| rev3score = {{Rating|3|5}}{{cite news|url=https://www.theguardian.com/music/2023/aug/17/genesis-owusu-struggler-review-moments-of-brilliance-in-an-otherwise-limp-record|title=Genesis Owusu: Struggler review – moments of brilliance in an otherwise limp record|newspaper=The Guardian|last=D'Souza|first=Shaad|date=18 August 2023|access-date=18 August 2023}}

| rev4 = NME

| rev4score = {{Rating|4|5}}{{cite web|url=https://www.nme.com/reviews/album/genesis-owusu-struggler-review-album-3483418|title=Genesis Owusu – Struggler review: an artist at the top of his game|website=NME|last=Williams|first=Sophie|date=16 August 2023|access-date=18 August 2023}}

}}

Struggler received a score of 82 out of 100 on review aggregator Metacritic based on eleven critics' reviews, indicating "universal acclaim". Sophie Williams of NME considered Struggler "the work of an artist giving power to some of his most radical sonic ideas. Songs don't often build to a crescendo, they begin there" as "Owusu's stylistic choices are both unexpected and impressive, visiting all corners of his eclectic taste".

Reviewing the album for AllMusic, Timothy Monger claimed that, "Owusu could have gone any number of ways on his sophomore set, but it's a testament to his artistic conviction that he chose to make something so risky and complex. Even better, he pulled it off." Shaad D'Souza of The Guardian contrasted it to Owusu's "brilliant debut" album Smiling with No Teeth as "an ill-defined retread that plays it too safe" and "comparatively mild, Owusu-Ansah seemingly riffing and stalling in hope of a grand set piece that never arrives".

Consequence ranked Struggler 37th on its list of the 50 Best Albums of 2023.{{cite web|url=https://consequence.net/2023/12/consequence-50-best-albums-of-2023-list/ |title=The 50 Best Albums of 2023 Ranked|work=Consequence|last=Krueger|first=J.|date=December 4, 2023|access-date=December 15, 2023}}

{{Track listing

| headline = Struggler track listing

| extra_column = Producer(s)

| title1 = Leaving the Light

| writer1 = {{hlist|Kofi Owusu-Ansah|Jason Evigan|Jeff "Gitty" Gitelman|Ben "Smiley" Silverstein}}

| extra1 = {{hlist|Evigan{{ref|p|[p]}}|Gitelman{{ref|c|[c]}}|Smile High{{ref|c|[c]}}|Jackson Rau{{ref|v|[v]}}}}

| length1 = 3:10

| title2 = The Roach

| writer2 = {{hlist|Owusu-Ansah|Simon Christensen|Mikey Freedom Hart}}

| extra2 = {{hlist|Hart|Psymun}}

| length2 = 2:38

| title3 = The Old Man

| writer3 = {{hlist|Owusu-Ansah|Christensen|Hart}}

| extra3 = {{hlist|Hart|Psymun}}

| length3 = 2:24

| title4 = See Ya There

| writer4 = {{hlist|Owusu-Ansah|Jonti Danilewitz|Michael Di Francesco|Andrew Klippel|Jono Ma|Hamish Stuart|Julian Sudek}}

| extra4 = Klippel

| length4 = 4:39

| title5 = Freak Boy

| writer5 = {{hlist|Owusu-Ansah|Evigan}}

| extra5 = {{hlist|Evigan{{ref|p|[p]}}|Rau{{ref|a|[a]}}{{ref|v|[v]}}}}

| length5 = 2:28

| title6 = Tied Up!

| writer6 = {{hlist|Owusu-Ansah|Sol Was}}

| extra6 = {{hlist|Sol Was|Henry Was}}

| length6 = 3:09

| title7 = That's Life (A Swamp)

| writer7 = {{hlist|Owusu-Ansah|Kirin J. Callinan|Di Francesco|Sudek}}

| extra7 = {{hlist|Klippel|Dave Hammer}}

| length7 = 5:26

| title8 = Balthazar

| writer8 = {{hlist|Owusu-Ansah|Evigan|Jackson Rau}}

| extra8 = {{hlist|Evigan{{ref|p|[p]}}|Rau{{ref|p|[p]}}}}

| length8 = 3:00

| title9 = Stay Blessed

| writer9 = {{hlist|Owusu-Ansah|Nate Campany|Kyle Shearer}}

| extra9 = Valley Girl

| length9 = 2:57

| title10 = What Comes Will Come

| writer10 = {{hlist|Owusu-Ansah|Pat Morrissey}}

| extra10 = Morrissey

| length10 = 3:51

| title11 = Stuck to the Fan

| writer11 = {{hlist|Owusu-Ansah|Di Francesco|Klippel|Ma}}

| extra11 = Klippel

| length11 = 4:16

| total_length = 37:58

}}

Notes

• {{sup|{{note|p|[p]}}}} signifies a primary and vocal producer.
• {{sup|{{note|a|[a]}}}} signifies an additional producer.
• {{sup|{{note|c|[c]}}}} signifies a co-producer.
• {{sup|{{note|v|[v]}}}} signifies a vocal producer.

Musicians

{{div col}}

• Genesis Owusu – vocals
• Jason Evigan – bass, drums, guitars (1, 5, 8); keyboards (1, 8), background vocals (1)
• Jeff "Gitty" Gitelman – additional background vocals (1)
• Ben "Smiley" Silverstein – additional keyboards (1), keyboards (5)
• Mikey Freedom Hart – guitar, programming, synthesisers (2, 3); bass (2); baritone guitar, dubs (3)
• Psymun – bass, programming, synthesisers (2, 3)
• Max Freedberg – drums (2, 3)
• Melody English – background vocals (2)
• Julian Sudek – drums (4, 7, 11)
• Andrew Klippel – keyboards (4, 7, 11), backing vocal arrangements (4)
• Kye – backing vocals (4)
• Hamish Stuart – drums (4)
• Jonti Danielwitz – guitar (4)
• Blush – background vocals (5)
• Steinj – background vocals (5)
• Sol Was – bass, guitar, synthesisers (6)
• Henry Was – programming (6)
• Michael Di Francesco – bass (7, 11)
• Kirin J. Callinan – guitar (7, 11)
• Jackson Rau – guitar (8)
• Valley Girl – performance (9)
• Pat Morrissey – programming (10)
• Jono Ma – synthesisers (11)

{{div col end}}

Technical

{{div col}}

• Joe LaPorta – mastering
• Manny Marroquin – mixing
• Chris Galland – mix engineering
• Jason Evigan – engineering (1, 5, 8)
• Mikey Freedom Hart – engineering (2, 3)
• David Hart – engineering (2, 3)
• Simon Christensen – engineering (2, 3)
• Simon Cohen – engineering (4, 11)
• Jackson Rau – engineering (5, 8)
• Sol Was – engineering (6)
• George Nicholas – engineering (7)
• Dave Hammer – engineering (7)
• Kyle Shearer – engineering (9)
• Nate Campany – engineering (9)
• Pat Morrissey – engineering (10)
• Ramiro Fernandez-Seoane – mixing assistance
• Jess Dess – additional engineering (4)
• Kofi Owusu-Ansah – additional vocal engineering (3, 7, 11)
• Nicolas Mendoza – engineering assistance (4)

{{div col end}}

Visuals

• Kofi Owusu-Ansah – art direction
• Lisa Reihana – art direction, photography
• Ady Neshoda – art direction, artwork
• Kiran Best – art direction, artwork

{{Reflist}}

{{ARIA Award for Album of the Year}}

{{Authority control}}

Category:2023 albums

Category:ARIA Award winners

Category:AWAL albums

Category:Genesis Owusu albums