Mind of Mine (Limited Edition 2XLP Neon Green Vinyl)

Following his swift and sudden exit from One Direction, Zayn Malik (now known as ZAYN) was already preparing to jumpstart his career as a solo artist. Upon announcing his debut studio album titled Mind of Mine, he was able to send the world into quite the frenzy with the help of his sultry music video for the lead single, "PILLOWTALK." The album was then released on the anniversary of his departure from One Direction, and was subsequently a commercial success.

In Mind of Mine, ZAYN moves past the sound of his boyband days to focus on a more adult sound––primarily in the Alternative R&B genre. That isn't to say he limited himself merely to that, as he also took influence from the genres of pop, folk, dub, soul, funk, electronic, Qawwali, hip hop, reggae, classical and soft rock among others. His venture into such territory proved to be fruitful, with the album garnering recognition for it's slick production, infectious beats, sexually heightened lyrics––which some said were akin to the early days of The Weeknd and Justin Timberlake.

As not many former boyband members do well on their own, ZAYN' was able to prove to the world that there was much more to him as an artist. The record's provocative and surprisingly mature nature may not have been too accessible nor family friendly to some, but it's only gotten better as time goes by. Even more than a few years later, Mind of Mine is something worth multiple revisits and will probably go on as a notable step forward inn ZAYN's career. Highly recommended!