It was the end of June in 2019. I had been in Morocco for exactly one week, though it felt like a lifetime. I was half-way through the three-hour bus ride from Rabat to Tangier, looking out into the barren landscape of the Moroccan countryside, when a song I’d never heard started playing on my Spotify. For the first 20 seconds, I was confused. Why was the singer mumbling indecipherable words about kids over what seemed to be a guitar-like rock melody? As the beat came in, I wondered, what genre even is this song? And finally, why had I dissociated from everything around me, to the point where I only existed as a singular, moving entity? 

The song “Kids Turned Out Fine” by A$AP Rocky came to me exactly when I needed to hear it most. After living in Morocco for less than a week, I was nervous about the rest of my time there. I knew that it would be difficult moving to a country by myself where I didn’t speak the language, however I had not anticipated the challenges that would arise within my first week of being there. Already, I had been caught in the middle of two violent street fights (one happened in a grocery store!) and was still getting used to the gender power imbalances and roles that differed from what I had known in the United States. 

Courtesy of A$AP Worldwide.

While I was in Morocco through a government program and knew that I was going to be safe, it was difficult to not feel overwhelmed and completely lost at times. This sounds crazy, but once I heard A$AP repeat, in his soothing voice, “The kids will be alright,” I knew that I, too, would be fine. Over the next few months, this song became a source of comfort and validation for me; I was growing in a multitude of ways and would come out stronger at the end of my time in Morocco. 

“Kids Turned Out Fine” has a cathartic and peaceful tone that makes it feel akin to a warm blanket. Every time I listen, it transports me to that moment on the bus; I now realize the power that music has to change an experience, mindset or perspective. 

If you ever need reassurance that everything’s going to be okay, go to A$AP Rocky’s third studio album, “TESTING,” and click play on the 11th song.

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Gracie Evans (she/her) (25C) is from Los Angeles, California, majoring in comparative literature and dance and movement studies. When she is not in the studio, you can find her reading, listening to Kid Cudi or watching Inside the NBA on TNT.