Credit: Bob Boilen/NPR

Everything JID does is intricately detailed. He seems to care much more than the average emcee, and throughout this entire production, I felt his strong desire to get it right. The weight was lifted from his shoulders at the midway point of the set as he turned to his band, saying, "We're pretty hot guys. We're pretty f***ing hot." In this performance, recorded weeks before the release of his now widely praised third studio album, The Forever Story, the East Atlanta native performs songs from the album live for the first time, plus career-defining songs in ways we've never heard before.

The origin of JID makes up the puzzle pieces in The Forever Story. It's the story of a kid with derailed football dreams, searching for purpose until it found him. These are tales that many kids from the inner city can relate to — but what sets JID's story apart is that nobody raps like him. His music casts a wide net, considering history, family and hometown, and connecting with hip-hop enthusiasts and music nerds alike.

In these stripped-down versions of songs like "Never" and "Surround Sound," the focus is on how JID can manipulate pitch, bend words and hop from one cadence to another. After he playfully cuts the "Usher tension," he and his stacked band and backup singers close with the powerful and spiritual "Kody Blu 31."

SET LIST

  • "Galaxy"
  • "Workin Out"
  • "Off da Zoinkys"
  • "Never"
  • "Sistanem"
  • "Surround Sound"
  • "Kody Blu 31"

MUSICIANS

  • JID: vocals
  • Najinga Luster: vocals
  • Rashida Chitunda: vocals
  • Teja Lanier Veal: bass
  • Grady Housworth: trombone
  • Allan Knighton: saxophone
  • Michael Cruse: trumpet
  • Samuel Williams: keys
  • Divante Davis: drums

TINY DESK TEAM

  • Producer: Bobby Carter
  • Audio Engineer: Josh Rogosin 
  • Director: Kara Frame 
  • Creative Director: Bob Boilen
  • Editor: Joshua Bryant
  • Videographers: Kara Frame, Joshua Bryant, Michael Zamora, Alanté Serene
  • Audio Assistant: Andie Huether
  • Production Assistants: Jill Britton, Joby Tanseco
  • Tiny Desk Team: Suraya Mohamed, Marissa Lorusso, Hazel Cills, Ashley Pointer, Maia Stern
  • VP, Visuals and Music: Keith Jenkins
  • Senior VP, Programming: Anya Grundmann

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Tags: Genre: R&B/Soul  Genre: Hip-Hop  JID  Series: Tiny Desk