“He’ll just do whatever, do whatever he likes.” It has taken him some time to get there, but Australian pop artist, Troye Sivan, did just that. The guy who was initially recognized on YouTube who turned pop sensation released his sophomore album, Bloom, on August 31, 2018 to a sea of fans ready to ingest everything that the young, 22-year-old, gay artist had to say since releasing his first album, Blue Neighborhood, in 2015.

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Before the release of “Bloom”, Sivan interviewed with Them where he tell told the the magazine the reality of his life before coming out as a gay man: “I remember distinctly feeling like there was a delay on my life”. He continued explaining how his friends were living the life of the the “typical” teenager -- experiencing parties, crushes in heteronormative environments, and, as he stated, experiencing romantic and sexual encounters: “All my friends were doing just dumb stuff that kids do, like making out with people at parties and starting to date...I didn’t know any gay people growing up or any queer people growing up, and so I just really felt alone and kind of lost, and I just wasn’t experiencing life.”

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He continued in the interview to note that his experience is “almost universal” for queer individuals in the world as he is just now truly living his authentic experience where he felt he could not exist for a long time. “Now, to be 23,” he said, “maybe it’s a little weird to be experiencing these things for the first time, maybe it’s not… I just felt excited to finally be getting the experience of crazy, unabashed love that I’ve always wanted to know and feel.”

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When asked by Them’s Davey Davis about whether or not he keeps queer audiences in mind when expressing his inner-thoughts through music -- specifically noting the track, “Bloom”, on the album speaking about bottoming exclusively -- he said that this idea was a big idea for him when approaching the overall feel and experience of the album. He said “I wanted to write music that didn’t feel like — I’m sorry — bullshit. I didn’t want to bullshit anybody. I live in this very particular, surreal world where I hang out almost exclusively with queer people… You know, for me, this is really real life, being able to celebrate these things, being able to talk about these things, and just being as open and honest as you want, and I didn’t want to come to this album writing for anyone but me and my friends.”

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This realness and the absolute brilliance of Sivan’s music itself is enough to absolutely entrance any listener who gives the complete work its due diligence by listening attentively and critically. The ten track album, which Metacritic gave an 86 out of 100, has been categorized as “universally acclaimed.” Complex News describes the album as delicate, vulnerable, and transparent.

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“Seventeen” is a track that explores his relationship with the popular, gay hook-up app, Grindr, where he would disguise himself while connecting with older men. The song says, “You should know I'm green but I'll find my way around, Heard the whispers, now let's see what all the talk's about”. Track 6, “Dance to This”, gives one the feel of pure ecstasy and oneness in the hopes of connecting with someone else. Pop icon Ariana Grande joined Sivan on the track after he had contacted her to see if she would be up for collaboration. “Lucky Strike” tells of a boy who Sivan meets who tastes like a cigarette, or a Lucky Strike if you will, who ignites the fire inside of him: “You drag, I light, boy, Tell me all the ways to love you”. “Bloom”, the track with which the album was named, invites fans to “Take a trip into my garden, I’ve got so much to show ya”.

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Troye Sivan’s story and his message is necessary, convivial, and imperative. His work gives light to a community that is so easily passed to the wayside amogst popular culture and he has finally been given the light he deserves; Sivan is in Bloom.