Since early May, Kevin Abstract has been teasing a project called Blush. Its existence began with a series of Instagram posts on an account named @clifford__73. The account contained a series of different photos of musicians with block text overtop that read “June 2025”. Shortly after, Abstract gave a proper announcement for Blush on his personal Instagram, giving the project some proper branding and tagging the Clifford account, which now acts like a hub for all things Blush related.
[ 'Blush Letter' Written By Kevin Abstract ]
You may be curious, what even is Blush? Blush, at the moment, is a collaboration album with ex-Brockhampton member Kevin Abstract at the centre orchestrating it all. Though the details of Blush are still relatively up in the air, here's what we know: Blush will hit streaming officially on June 27th via Juno, Abstract's own label, as well as X8 Music, Quadecas label. The project is currently listed as having 18 tracks on Spotify’s pre-save page and has been confirmed to have a massive roster of contributing musicians. Dominic Fike, JPEGMafia, Quadeca, Love Spells, Danny Brown, Truly Young, and more will all make appearances on Blush, adding this element of community to Abstract's overall vision for what Blush is.
[ Blush Album Cover]
Beyond being a tangible album you can listen to, Abstract’s vision for Blush taps into something richer, something more permanent than a single era in his career. Blush is loose, with nothing about its existence being completely finalized after this first installment. “It [Blush] is a platform for discovering new possibilities through collaboration, the group is ever-changing and can involve anyone who brings value to the vision,” Abstract states on Instagram. This sentiment can already be seen with Abstract reaching out to the community via Twitter to find Talent for Blush.
Blush as a group also has no set identity, with the possibilities for the project being “truly limitless”, allowing “for a journey that can be defined as it is, embarked, and travelled on”. Overall, Abstract is trying to build something that lasts, something that not only honours his own career, but also art as a medium of self-expression.
“Blush brings focus back to the product and the music. Blush disrupts. Blush challenges the norm.”
Our first taste of Blush is a summery track called ‘Geezer’. Featuring alongside Abstract on ‘Geezer’ is Dominic Fike, who is Abstract's long-time friend and close collaborator. The last time the two hopped on a track together was in 2019 for Abstract's song ‘Peach’, where Fike was somewhat of a surprise feature.
‘Geezer’ brings the two back together in a completely new way. Rather than this being a simple feature from Fike, he and Abstract have formed this sub-duo within the larger group of Blush that coincidentally shares the same as the track: Geezer. The two aren’t promoted as being individuals (apart from when on streaming), and instead are simply classified under their duo name.
That being said, I’m left curious if we’ll see some other pairings start popping up upon album release or if this is strictly an Abstract-Fike thing. Alongside that, I wonder if Fike will be seen elsewhere on the album, or if his involvement pertains to ‘Geezer’ only. With Blush still being a semi-secret and up in the air, it seems we’ll need to wait for the project's full release to get any answer.
There’s some wonderful storytelling intertwined within ‘Geezer’, with Abstract and Fike breaking down the lives of a girl named Janine and her Father. Both of these muses seem to be tethered deeply to their hometown for different reasons, though there's this implication that they aspired for something more. ‘Geezer’ brings out this feeling of hometown reflection, where, after being gone for so long, you come back to this familiar and nostalgic place just to discover that some of the people here haven’t changed, while you can barely recognize yourself. It’s both this mix of a ‘What the F*ck’ moment of realization and having the urge to scream, Abstract does on the track, “You way more special than what that neighborhood is givin'”, just in an attempt to get it through these people’s heads.
Musically, though, it can be easy to brush away the themes and lyrics within ‘Geezer’. I could easily imagine this track being played on a drive to the beach or as you’re putting together dinner on a campsite shooting the shit, all moments where music comes first and lyrics second. Fans have also made a comparison between ‘Geezer’ and ‘Peach’, with comments popping up saying “If you told me this was made six years ago, I would believe you” and “This sound feels like what we fell in love with all those years ago”. It goes to show that even after all these years, Fike and Abstract have created this chemistry and consistently, when collaborating, with their joined talent resulting in these strong lyrical pieces that can pass off as mellow, beachy summer hits.
STREAM ‘GEEZER’ HERE.
Keep Up With Kevin Abstract & Blush
Instagram / Clifford__73 / Blush Clips / Twitter / Website
