Frank Ocean is an American singer and songwriter born on October 28th, 1987 in Long Beach, California. For years, Ocean has been viewed as the king of alternative R&B music, making him very influential. He first began his musical career ghostwriting, until he joined a hip hop group called Odd Future in 2010. He also signed with a record producer, and shortly later released his debut mixtape, Nostalgia, Ultra, in 2011. He then released his debut studio album, Channel Orange, in 2012. This album would soon be nominated for album of the year and would win “Best Urban Contemporary Album.” In 2016, he released Blonde, his second studio album, but also sadly his last. He went on to release several singles throughout the years until 2020, when he ultimately stopped producing music. Ocean is loved by many in the music community and has changed the R&B world, but his absence has made many wonder if he will ever come back.
Ocean has been active in many other aspects throughout the years, creating a clothing brand and headlining at Coachella. But his 2023 Coachella headline was his last.
On April 16th, 2023, Ocean began his set nearly an hour after his scheduled start time. He then had to end the show early due to local curfew restrictions. This enraged music fans who expected a good performance, but were instead given a mediocre show with no refund. After this, Ocean seemed to disappear from the music world and many, including other rappers, did not know what he was up to. Many believed he was not coming back.
“He hasn’t dropped in like eight years, I’m not hopeful” stated senior Christiaan Van Der Walt when he was asked if he believes Ocean is coming back.
Ocean was rumored to be on Tyler the Creator’s new album, with many suspecting that his vocals were in the background of a snippet of one of Tyler’s new songs. When the album was released, fans were shocked to see that Ocean had not been featured on any of the songs, confirming the idea that he really was not coming back to the music industry.
So what does this mean for the music industry? The R&B music industry has been heavily influenced by Ocean. His songs are vulnerable, talking about love, depression, and overall raw emotions. Each song he produced has unique vocals, lyrics, and style, each different from the other. These songs evoke strong emotions in listeners, and whether it’s a slow song or upbeat song, the lyrics never fail to resonate with the listener.
“His style is really unique and he has pretty sounding songs,” Van Der Walt stated when asked why he loves Ocean. Overall he has forever cemented his role in the music industry, ranking at number 190 on the list of 200 greatest singers of all time. No one will be able to replace him and his absence shows that.
