While The World Was Burning

by SAINt JHN

Released November 20, 2020 via GODD COMPLEXx / Hitco

Reviewed December 2, 2020

Top tracks (based on community voting)

Gorgeous (56%), Sucks To Be You (50%), Roses - Imanbek Remix (31%)

If SAINt JHN isn’t in your rotation you’re missing out. From front to back, this album is high energy and easily digestible; the subject matter is similar throughout, but it doesn’t hold the album back too much. The production and beats are top notch trap and fit just about any mood. The features are great and add to the experience; he just has that sauce to make anyone a singer when they hop on his songs. Dababy on “Monica Lewinsky” is a prime example of this. SAINt JHN feels primed to become a household name. He has the sound and talent to top charts, the next step for him to get there feels like the inclusion of more rapping. He does spit from time to time, I just want to hear more. If you’re a fan of trap, definitely give this a listen. – Daniel (7.8/10)

SAINt JHN's arrival album marks him as a welcome yet unnecessary product of current trap/pop rap trends. Amassing a chunk of the market feels realistic, as his melodic murmuring fits nicely with the rattling, outsized beats that race by alongside him. Perhaps not cutting-edge, but there's gold to be mined here, as evidenced by the remix to "Roses" that made him a hot commodity to begin with. However, this chosen aesthetic of croon trap can be a detriment just as much as it is a propulsive element for the album. Despite attempting a few variances of topics and emotions, the continuously recycled delivery colors them all the same shade. While The World Was Burning doesn't capitalize on given opportunity, it certainly doesn't expose SAINt JHN as a fraud either. – Enth (6/10)

Recorded in 2020, While The World Was Burning is a fitting title, but for that reason only. The title implies a sense of urgency of some sort, an overarching theme, or at least frequent mentions of any number of events that have made 2020 the tumultuous year it’s been. But we don’t get any of that on the Brooklyn rapper/singer’s third album. There are a few cuts that might serve fairly well in party situations (those things you used to be able to go to, remember?), but it doesn’t offer too much beyond that. Functioning primarily as an opportunity for him to flex his come up over some fairly underwhelming pop-trap beats, SAINt JHN surely could have capitalized on it with a more meaningful and concerted effort. – Dominick (5/10)

Daniel: 7.8/10 | DeVán: 7.5/10 | Pax: 7/10 | Alan: 6.9/10 | Enth: 6/10