Inside The Kid LAROI's Bold Reset: Why He Remade His Album From Scratch

The Kid LAROI is entering a new chapter — and he’s doing it on his own terms. During his exclusive iHeartRadio Album Preview hosted by iHeartRadio's EJ, the 22-year-old artist gave fans their first listen to his brand new album BEFORE I FORGET, while opening up about the emotional journey behind the album, scrapping an entire previous project, and channeling heartbreak into some of his most personal music yet.

“I woke up yesterday being like, ‘Whoa, I’m dropping an album. That’s crazy,’” LAROI admitted, laughing as he described returning from vacation mode straight into album rollout. Despite the whirlwind, excitement clearly outweighed nerves — even if the pressure was very real.

One of the biggest revelations of the night? BEFORE I FORGET almost wasn’t the album fans were getting. LAROI revealed that he completely abandoned a finished project after realizing it didn’t feel right. “There was something about the old album that never really sat fully right with me,” he explained. “I was trying to convince myself that I liked the music more than I did.” After life events sparked a new wave of songwriting, everything clicked. “These songs feel so much better to me. I feel so much more connected to these.”

That realization led to a bold move: remaking the album from scratch under intense pressure. “I just locked in for a month in the studio every single day and I made the new album,” he said, admitting he works best when the stakes are high. “If I have too much time, I just float.”

Throughout the night, fans heard several tracks from BEFORE I FORGET, including previously released singles like “Back When You Were Mine” and “A Cold Play,” alongside songs fans have never heard before like “Private” and “Her Interlude.” The common thread across the album is emotional honesty, heavily influenced by his recent breakup. “You feel every different emotion possible,” LAROI shared. “Some songs are super sad, some are optimistic — it’s chaotic, because breakups don’t make sense.”

Sonically, the album leans into a blend of pop and R&B, with LAROI citing influences like Babyface and Boyz II Men. “I just listen to everything,” he said. “If I hear a song and I like it, it’s in the rotation.” That genre-fluid approach shines on tracks like “A Perfect World,” which he revealed was inspired by listening to New Edition's “Can You Stand the Rain.”

Despite his success, LAROI admitted he still struggles with vulnerability — especially playing new music for others. “I hate listening to my music in front of people,” he confessed. “The moment I play it for someone else, I’m like, ‘This sucks. Everything’s bad.’” Still, having trusted collaborators helps, including his younger brother, who co-wrote and produced on the album. “He’ll always tell me the truth,” LAROI said. “If he loves a song, I really trust it.”

When asked to describe BEFORE I FORGET in one word, LAROI didn’t hesitate: “Complicated.” And that complexity is exactly what makes the album resonate. “This feels like a LAROI album,” he said. “The last one could’ve been anyone’s album with my voice. This one is very specific to me.”

As the night wrapped, LAROI teased that a tour is on the way and thanked fans for sticking with him through the evolution. “This album feels like a bookmark of a period of life,” he reflected. “It’s like a diary — you can come back to it and remember how you felt."