Progression by Andy Higgins

I first heard about Andy Higgins around 2011 and at the time I didn't think much of his mixtapes, I just thought he had a cool style. I followed him as he would make more and more mixtapes, and I enjoyed them, they just weren't anything special. Then in late 2012 he announced that he was releasing an album in early 2013 and I got pumped! After many months of waiting and waiting patiently, yet anxiously, Progression by Andy Higgins is FINALLY out!

On his earliest mixtapes Andy was just that guy who had clever rhymes and a decent flow, so to be 100% honest I wasn't expecting anything too crazy on this album, just some pump up songs really. Well, I've been wrong before and this was an album I was completely wrong about. If you had never heard hip-hop music before than I would suggest this album because Progression has a perfect balance of songs that are lyrical, and songs that get you pumped up. I think anyone who has ever listened to Andy Higgins will say that this album is honestly his best work. He completely surprised me on how much he has grown as an artist over the past few years. Even now his flow isn't the best, but Andy works so well with the beats that it sounds really nice. I can't recall another artist who uses beats as well as him, and by that I mean that he can have a mediocre pop beat, and make a really hard rap song out of it because of his energy in his lyrics, and his tone in his voice.

    On this album you hear a lot of "anthem tracks." Those are the tracks that you just blast while driving or songs that you would hear in the club, but these tracks are much deeper than that. Andy chose some awesome beats to work with for this album, but they may have been too awesome because on the first few times I listened to it, I was focusing on the beats rather than his lyrics. Then I truly listened to what he was saying and I realized that Andy can be very lyrical. The track "Addiction" has a very nice beat, and very deep lyrics if you truly listen to it. I stated previously that maybe he chose beats that were too good because they overshadowed his lyrical ability, or maybe they were just right because it was the beats that kept me listening to the album over and over, and eventually realizing how good the tracks really were, so well played Andy Higgins.

    I also was expecting to hear a lot of marijuana references on this album because that was very common in his previous mixtapes. On Progression, you really just hear good, solid lyrics with minimal drug references, which for me I enjoyed because I feel like Andy decided to make songs that he really enjoyed rather than what a lot of people would like to hear, and I respect that. My favorite tracks from this album is either "She Do It" or "Progress." Both of these tracks are just fun, pump up jams that also are more than what they seem. This album taught me to not judge an artist by past projects, and always expect the most from people, because Andy showed all the "haters" that he is really good at what he does, and that he is going to do things his way. He showed the world that North Carolina hip-hop ain't dead!

*Buy this album on itunes, bandcamp, or most other sites by visiting HigginsBoy.com and follow Andy on twitter @AndyHigginsNC