GRAMMY nominated and Platinum selling rapper J.I.D has returned with a brand new single titled, “WRK.” Produced by GRAMMY winning producer Pluss and longtime collaborator Christo, “WRK” centres J.I.D signature double time bars, infectious word plays and vocal changes that keeps the listener hooked for the length of the three-minute track. Listen here.
The song was first teased at Dreamville Festival earlier this month when J.I.D played it to packed crowds in Raleigh, N.C. with fans having already shared the snippet online feverishly.
Though the Atlanta rapper has stayed busy with sold out tours and collaborations with Lil Yachty, Ab-Soul, NewJeans, Eminem and more — “WRK” is the first solo cut from J.I.D since the release of his critically acclaimed album, The Forever Story (Dreamville/Interscope Records, 2022). The album which Rolling Stone, Complex, NPR, GQ, XXL and more included in their “Best Albums of The Year” lists bore fruits well past its release date. Almost a year after its release, a cut from the record — the infectious track “Surround Sound” — soar to viral acclaim with its own TikTok challenge and ended the year in the #1 position across Billboard Viral 50, TikTok Viral and TikTok 50. The song featuring Atlanta natives 21 Savage and Baby Tate re-entered the Billboard Hot 100 charts in 2024 and went onto be 3x Platinum certified.
Born and raised in East Atlanta, Grammy nominated J.I.D grew up on his parents’ collection of classic funk/soul LPs, and broke onto the scene with his 2015 EP, DiCaprio. The EP saw him collaborating with hip-hop duo EARTHGANG, whom he’d previously joined on a 2014 tour. Spotted here by J. Cole, J.I.D was promptly signed to Dreamville/Interscope Records. Soon after the signing, J.I.D made his major-label debut with the widely celebrated The Never Story (2017) which was quickly followed by the critically acclaimed album DiCaprio 2 (2018). The sophomore project received major looks from press and tastemakers like Rolling Stone, Billboard, FADER, NPR and helped induct the rapper to the year’s XXL’s Freshmen class. In 2019, J.I.D continued his momentum as rap’s most exciting additions with stellar contributions on Dreamville’s Platinum certified compilation Revenge of the Dreamers III which went on to debut #1 on the Billboard Top 200 charts and received multiple GRAMMY nominations including “Best Rap Album” and “Best Rap Performance.” J.I.D began working on his follow up effort The Forever Story (2022) during this time all while selling out venues and festival stages across the world and lending his rap stylings to peer projects including the Grammy nominated Planet HER by Doja Cat as well as Dua Lipa, Denzel Curry and more recently John Legend and Joey Badass. The Forever Story debuted at #12 on the Billboard Hot 200 has been critically acclaimed as a “classic” (Clash) and one of the year’s “best rap albums” (GQ, The Ringer). Almost a year after its release, a cut from the record — the infectious track “Surround Sound” — soar to viral acclaim with its own TikTok challenge and ended the year in the #1 position across Billboard Viral 50, TikTok Viral and TikTok 50. The song featuring Atlanta natives 21 Savage and Baby Tate re-entered the Billboard Hot 100 charts and is certified 3x Platinum. A highly anticipated live performer, J.I.D has sold out venues across the globe and played some of the biggest festival stages including Coachella, Lollapalooza, Bonnaroo, Splendour in The Grass and more. J.I.D’s nimble, head-nodding lyricism and lightning fast flow has awarded him a loyal and cult-like fanbase and his dedication to perfecting the art is sportsman-like, leaving room for him to be one of rap’s greatest in the making.
