Ricky Himself is a shining star just waiting to be noticed. Having already received props from the likes of Travis Scott, Smokepurpp, and Kevin Abstract as a producer, Ricky Himself began his standout solo career, signing to Alamo Records before even beginning, at the height of the pandemic last summer. Now Ricky has released five exhilarating tracks, with his latest single “F’d Up (but it’s true)” carrying his exciting, pure pop-punk vibe forward.

“F’d Up (but it’s true)” sounds like the quintessential idea of a pop-punk track made in 2021. It mixes modern production with the genre’s classic foundation, angsty vocals, shredding guitars and all. It’s just as melancholy as any punk song too, singing about a doomed, tragic relationship. He realizes there are a lot of things wrong. Like, a lot. He’s not himself around her, they don’t know each other that well, he doesn’t really feel anything when he’s with her, and worst of all, his friends don’t like her. Despite this realization, he’s perfectly happy ignoring all of these red flags for the sake of having someone around to feel less lonely. It’s as crazy as it sounds, with Ricky Himself fully admitting this in the track. The song is strong, exciting, and catchy.

Ricky Himself has hit the ground running this year, with every track, especially this one, bringing the essence of pop-punk back into itself. He’s the mascot artists in the genre should be following. While keeping the heart and soul of pop-punk alive though, he’s still finding a way to keep it modern, creative, and accessible, and I can’t wait to hear him continue to do so in the future.

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