Music is a timeless art. An art that is meant to be reflected upon and revisited often; this results in artist’s creating legacies for themselves with the constant repetition of plays and support from their fans. Some artists legacies are short-lived while others live on throughout the decades, however, recently music has suffered a loss of an artist who was unknowingly writing his legacy at the age of 21.
The loss of Lil Peep was quite impactful to the rap community due to his recency and effort to help create the emo-rap genre in music. A rap-rock genre like this hasn’t been popular since bands like Limp Bizkit and Hollywood Undead in the 90’s and 2000’s respectively. Lil Peep was a crucial architect in emo-rap who opened the doors for artists such as Trippie Redd, XXXtentacion, and Wicca Phase Springs Eternal. This creation of emo-rap has blown up on Soundcloud due to its ability to let anyone upload; people can listen to musicians who they otherwise wouldn’t have been able to hear before due to the simplicity and accessibility that Soundcloud boasts.
Lil Peep’s particular music saw him talking about relationships, drugs, and money in a new light. The combination of rap and emo is one of the most versatile and “out there” sounds to ever exist in this modern age. With songs like “Save That Shit” and “Absolute in Doubt” which tell a sad tale of heartbreak but are yet reinforced with a lavish lifestyle undertale, Lil Peep is able to seamlessly merge two very different genres into one cohesive sound. This discovery led to an onslaught of other musician’s trying their hand at this sound, especially on Soundcloud. Lil Peep was ahead of the game and already on his way to monumental success in the future.
However on November 15th, 2017 the world lost Lil Peep and thus his life as an artist was seemingly complete. This leads to the discussion about the legacy of Lil Peep and how it can be continued and preserved through the years. Since his passing, songs and music videos have been released posthumously which continue to spread the lyrics and idea of Lil Peep across new and old fans alike. This continuation of music is quite unique for an artist who already released around 90 songs during his short lifetime. This preservation of talent allows for years of releases to come out hence giving Lil Peep’s legacy a form of endurance to go on for a seemingly long period of time. The motivation that Lil Peep gave during his life is what gives his music the sustainability it deserves, allowing for the eventual release of his full recorded discography in the future.
The loss of Lil Peep wasn’t the end of Lil Peep’s career. With posthumous releases being an option on the table, artists can take this inspirational note and continue to record as much as they can so when they do eventually pass, they may continue to live on through their music. While the passing of Lil Peep was very unfortunate, it’s a sign that music truly is eternal and needs to be preserved at all costs moving forward. Lil Peep’s music career is still alive and will continue to astonish and please due to his work ethic when he was unaware of what the future held.
