“Sunflower,” Post Malone and Swae Lee’s bright contribution to the Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse soundtrack, is currently the No. 1 song on the Billboard Hot 100. It’s the third song of Malone’s career to reach the top of the chart. Before he was cranking out number one hits, though, Austin Richard Post was like any other teenager: in his bedroom, playing guitar, making songs.
Now, thanks to the sleuthing of a few of Malone’s fans, it seems we have a glimpse into those angst-filled teenage years. On Thursday, some Soundcloud users discovered an account under the name “Austin Richard.” On it, they found six tracks that appear to be made by Malone that were published during the 23-old-year artist’s pre-fame years. None of the songs feature Malone’s now signature emo-rap sound and are of more melancholic, pop-punk bend. They boast titles like “Borkowski,” “Sell,” and “Golden Floors.” There’s even a strange, albeit tender, rendition of the Christmas classic, “Silent Night.”
This isn’t the first time traces of Malone’s past life have crept back onto our timelines. In 2015, shortly after another Soundcloud track “White Iverson” catapulted him into fame, a video of the rapper resurfaced on YouTube. In it, a fresh-faced, teenage Malone wears cut-off denim shorts and a Bad Boy zip and performs a cheesy ’80s synth ballad called “Why Don’t You Love Me?” Malone later explained during an interview on The Breakfast Club that video was actually a parody that he and his friends made for a high school art project. Still, it seems Posty can’t seem to escape his past. You can listen to his old songs here.
