Genesis Owusu
Struggler
AWAL
Genesis Owusu blew up in 2021 with his ARIA-sweeping debut Smiling with No Teeth, where the Ghanaian-born and Australia-based songwriter’s penchant for macabre wordplay and gritty symbolism—alongside his unique use of rock, R&B, hip-hop, and funk—coalesced into an invigorating stew of pure melodic delight. On his new follow-up Struggler, Owusu languishes in the absurd with a carnivalesque yet life-affirming journey utilizing the musical blueprint of the record’s predecessor, though largely stripped of its nihilistic musings.
At its core, Struggler wrestles with Shakespeare’s famous existential question: To be or not to be? We’ve all answered this question—consciously or not—by merely continuing to exist, but what can you do with this existence, especially with so many of the world’s horrors being outside of your control? Owusu’s response is to resist existential terror despite the inevitable end. He fights off nihilistic malaise on the album’s second track, “The Roach,” by cleverly employing a cockroach as his avatar and a symbol of revolution. He subverts its association with Kafka by giving the roach agency—it’s no longer the pawn of some bureaucratic horror but an agent of that horror’s destruction.
Yet Struggler’s funk beats, bright melodies, and catchy post-punk riffs don’t necessarily mirror Owusu’s lyrics of personal angst and climate apocalypse—even so, this narrative tension doesn’t feel ironic but sincere. His words and music are opposing forces in a Hegelian battle for synthesis, creating a new space not constrained by powerlessness. Melody holds the antidote to his despair, allowing his new philosophy to float gently to the surface. “No guide, no knowing / When you’re going through hell, you just keep going,” he raps on “Stay Blessed.” It’s a turn of phrase that Samwise Gamgee could’ve offered Frodo as encouragement. However, Owusu’s epic end isn’t about the godly and good. It’s about the fallen trying to find their way through hell—there is no final triumph.
Struggler ends with “Stuck to the Fan,” a mellow R&B number where Owusu looks back at the past and his internal contradictions: “I hid my horns in my crown of thorns / Singing ’Praise the Lord,’” he sings. However, despite his inner turmoil, he still has hope. “Cleared from the haze / Know all my roaches / See better days.” Although not as punchy as his debut, Struggler confirms Owusu is a master storyteller capable of creating complex narratives that are consistently interesting, engaging, and fun to listen to.
