Rapper JID, seemingly out of the blue, has just dropped two playful new freestyles. Like the flip of a double sided coin, both “Cludder Freestyle” and “JIDtranada Freestyle” represent the duality that JID’s energy radiates. Call heads and you will see the more restless, combative side to JID’s approach to the bars that acts as the marrow for “Cludder Freestyle.” Call tails and you see JID showing off his more soulful, whimsical side on “JIDtranada Freestyle” with the help of legendary producer Kaytranda.
It’s impressive that JID has even had time to release solo music right now given the crucial contributions he has been devoting towards the musical group, Spillage Village’s new album, Spilligion – in which he is a standout, core member and star.
JID always seems ready to spit off the top of his head – his animated and lively spirit always stirring and unsettled like a horse about to take flight. JID has a theme that often exposes itself when he is in this warrior energy, geared up and ready for battle. Images of a western frontier, pistols weighing down the hips as hefty boots pound against the desert gravel is what often comes into my mind’s eye while listening to JID embody this runner energy.
JID often likes to explore this fantasy land in which he is armed for a duel. The beat for “Cludder Freestyles” sets the backdrop for it with it’s menacing piano keys and ruthlessly harsh drums.
Although JID spits about stampedes and even slips in a slick Jumanji reference – these external gimmicks are really alluding to the inner war of clutter and chaos that he finds himself continuously fighting against. This “cludder” is represented in physical form for the cover art of this track as well. A tray filled to the brim with haphazard objects of dumdum lollipops, glocks, green tea, and vitamins is displayed.
Even looking at the polarity of these objects, once again is a physical manifestation of JID’s yin and yang psyche. The inner chatter that is running loose like a steed in his mind are that of trust issues, a growing fear of abandonment, and just purely the prospect of survival. The beat slows down to a halt so that JID can let the magnitude and reality of the bar be truly heard. He raps, How many caskets can n***** buy today? Trap Boom!”
JID even makes a symbolic reference to the battle-ground that he envisions himself immersed in with his lyrics – speaking to how dust storms could never cloud his vision of the truth. He raps,”The truth will come out the closet, all dirty and dusty. But a real n**** can’t get touched by Sandusky.”
JID is hinting that the clutter of the inner closet of his mind is in fact the gravity of having to bear and accept the cold, hard truth. The truth sits and levitates, suspended in his inner mind like skeletons in a hoarder’s closet.
We see JID abandon his fight after victory, of course, to a more blase demeanour in “JIDtranada Freestyle.” The production on this beat is much more light-hearted to match. You can tell JID is not gearing up for confrontation in this track. He is having fun with the world play, inner-weaving and linking words together like a grand jungle gym. He raps, “I’m just an insane, sane n****. An untamed, tamed n****. My membrane tainted, my pen pad painted with pain.”
The juxtaposition of the many opposing sides to JID are once again brought to light here. Although JID’s lyrics in this track still touch on notions of bubbling anger, and an influx of pain that he is spilling out like tears on the track – the overall tone of the freestyle is light in the sense that he seems to be coming into radical acceptance of the emotions that are haunting him. He recognizes not only the intensity and magnitude these emotions have on him, but also their inconsistency and fluctuation. In other words, the realization of this too shall pass: which brings a certain level of hope and faith.
JID even starts to sing as the song winds down, bringing out this idea of the calm after the storm – the frivolous whistling amongst the trees.
Check out both of JID’s new freestyles and bear witness to the duality that JID offers as an artist and a person.
