A fresh look at Post Malone and his upcoming album, 'Austin'

Post Malone is coming to Cincinnati in July. He's got an album coming out just a few weeks later. He's not really a rapper, but it's hard to say what else he is. He looks like Pete Davidson's body met Action Bronson's face. And he's one of the most popular musical artists of the last decade.

This is Post Malone.

Post Malone in Cincinnati – what you need to know

Malone will be performing on July 9 at Riverbend Music Center at 6295 Kellogg Ave., Anderson Township. You can still find resale tickets starting at around $115 on both Ticketmaster and StubHub. Parking is free.

Malone is set to release his upcoming album, "Austin," on July 28, so expect Malone to perform a healthy mix of his greatest hits, a run-through of his most recent singles and maybe even a few unreleased tapes from the new record. The album's first single, "Mourning," dropped last month, and is accessible on all major streaming platforms.

There, that's the know-if-you-go stuff. Now let's talk about the music and the man.

The rise of 'White Iverson'

Post Malone, born Austin Richard Post, has always been something of a polarizing and undefinable character.

Post's fame came early with his debut single, "White Iverson," almost instantly blowing up on Soundcloud in 2015, peaking at 14 on the U.S. Billboard Top 100. "I'm saucin', I'm saucin', I'm saucin' on you," Malone moans on the track that fittingly came to him as he was having his hair braided in the style of basketball icon Allen Iverson.

Looking back, the song's blowup was something of a turning point for popular music.

His style was a relatively uncreative, but decidedly popular mix of not-quite-rapping and not-quite-singing. White rappers before Malone had historically earned their credibility either with intensely complex and speedy bars (Eminem) or virtue-signaling tracks (Macklemore).

Post chose to do neither: he found his base in the middle ground between hip-hop and pop, straddling the two camps and winning over hearts in each, earning credibility with his fame and catchiness alone. In 2018, the New Yorker's Hua Hsu described the cross-cultural nature of Malone's appeal by saying he branded himself as someone "who appreciated designer labels and room-temperature Bud Light."

Malone created the market for a white, braided, face-tattooed, warm Bud Light-drinking, joy-seeking rapper. Then he filled that market with top hit after top hit.

Between 2016 and 2019, four of Malone's songs reached No. 1 on the Hot 100, and nine reached the top 10. Ten of his songs have eclipsed a billion Spotify streams. Malone has even been nominated for 10 Grammys, but has never won.

Post's future

Malone is taking a bit of refreshed route with his upcoming album, "Austin," set to be released in full on July 28.

First off, the album is called "Austin," "Like my name – that is my name,” Post explained on an Instagram reel last month. Then he offered an insight into the process of producing the album:

“It’s been some of the funnest music, some of the most challenging and rewarding music for me, at least – trying to really push myself and really do some cool stuff. I played guitar on every song on the record, and it was a really, really fun experience, and I’m super, super excited to share it with you.”

So far, Malone has only released one single, "Mourning," from the new album. "Don't wanna sober up / the sun is killing my buzz, that's why they call it mourning," Malone sings, behind speckled guitar inflections, a strong bass and consistent 808s.

It's a light song, catchy, and something of a return to old form for Malone. Picture the song being played poolside at a party, but maybe that's just the cover photo. Even that cover, however, suggests a strong departure from the deep, ominous hues and tones of his previous two records.

I think we can expect quite a few summer hits from "Austin." Perhaps we'll learn more in person at his Riverbend party.

This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: Who is Post Malone? A fresh look at his career, new album 'Austin'