South Korean lyricist and Rap technician JUSTHIS dropped his highly anticipated sophomore studio album, LIT, last week. Arriving nearly a decade after his acclaimed debut, the 20-track project serves as a dense, introspective journey, anchored by its powerful title track, ‘LIT.’

The song also serves as the album’s opener, ‘LIT’ [which stands for Lost In Translation] sets a commanding tone for the project. It opts for a raw, minimalist aesthetic. Listeners are immediately greeted by a production that fuses thumping basslines with sophisticated Jazz keys. The instrumentation feels live and organic, providing a complex backdrop for JUSTHIS’s passionate delivery.

The beat’s jazzy inflections punctuated by unexpected chord progressions mirror the track's lyrical themes of confusion and self-discovery. JUSTHIS’ flow weaves through the off-kilter rhythms with an intensity that feels like a hardcore Hip Hop track wrapped in the smoke of a late-night Jazz lounge.

Beyond the title track, the album LIT is generating massive buzz for its star-studded roster. Spanning two CDs, the project features heavyweights like DEAN, Insooni, and Ra.D. However, the release has also sparked controversy due to a hidden feature by banned singer Steve Yoo [Yoo Seung-jun] on the final track, ‘Home Home’.

Check out a live performance of JUSTHIS’ ‘LIT’ and the full album below.