Magic Man

Magic Man is the second studio album by Hong Kong singer and rapper Jackson Wang. It was released on September 9, 2022, through Team Wang Records, 88rising and Warner Records. Debuting at number 5 in South Korea and number 15 in the United States, the album received positive reviews from critics, who complimented Wang's vocal experimentation and new sound. Background Preparations for Wang's second full-length studio album began in spring 2020 with the aim of publishing it by the end of the year. Between 2020 and 2021, the singer experienced a mental breakdown, during which he began to feel lost, didn't know who he was and what he was doing, and thought he was not good enough or not working hard enough. After a year and a half, he started overcoming it by confiding his problems to friends for the first time, and the feeling of rebirth led him to decide to leave behind his former self, as a person and artist, and start over, wanting to show the public a more honest side of himself, whether good or bad. The release of the album was moved to August 2021, then in the autumn of the same year, and further postponed after deciding to delete and re-do eight songs. It was finally announced on July 29 for September 9, 2022, along with the tracklist. Wang's burnout is the inspiration for most of the album, which is about embarking on a journey of exploration and research of the new self, introducing Jackson Wang's present persona. The title was announced in the final credits of the music video for "Drive You Home", a single released on July 29, 2021, accompanied by the subtitle "The longer the night lasts, the more our dreams will be." On April 26, 2022, the last song on the album was replaced and created; the singer decided the entire direction of the record, as well as writing the lyrics and composing every track. The recording sessions for each song lasted an hour and a half, during which Wang followed his instinct, without aiming for perfection and caring too much about the technical part; instead, he concentrated on delivering the lyrics.