Mala Luna Artist Spotlight: J.I.D
Written by Yuliana Bourdin on October 27, 2017
Rapper Destin Route seems to have an appropriate name for the up-and-coming moves that he is making by the better known stage name J.I.D. Earlier this year he became one of the latest artists who got signed to J. Cole’s Dreamville Records, following which he released his debut album The Never Story in March.
J.I.D, who adapted his name from being called a jittery kid by his grandma, grew up fairly quickly since he was the youngest of 7, so growing up everyone went through different stages that the family was in and as they moved around a lot they would live in low-income situations. In the midst of growing up he would listen to what his parents did, which was mainly old school jams by the likes of Sly & the Family Stone, Earth, Wind and Fire, and other classic funk and soul music. Hip-hop was never far behind though and was always a part of his life.
In 2012, J.I.D decided to dive into the rap game and went on to not only listen to East Coast rap for inspiration but also read books in order to learn more about past great artists and to make a habit of seeking out inspiration that will spark a light so he can spit badass lines. In the early stages of his career he was impacted by D’Angelo, Wu-Tang Clan, Little Dragon, Jay-Z and his lyricism reflects such influence.
J.I.D wants to show that there are different types of Atlanta artists and that the inspiration that stems from there may have different types of outputs. His first EP DiCaprio (2015) did just that. With it’s soulfulness and witty and crude lyrics it became an album that was worth paying attention to (although it was titled as such because J.I.D at the time thought DiCaprio wasn’t getting the attention he deserves, something he found kinship in).
Fast forward to the beginning of 2017 and Dreamville Records is announcing that they had signed J.I.D with teases of intro videos and a debut album, which proved to be solid work of a talented rapper that is only at the beginning of telling his story. He plays around with his sound a lot and has gotten vocal comparisons to Kendrick Lamar and Anderson.Paak but his Atlanta roots shine through and allow him to stand out. With the desire to be one of the greats one day, I dare say, he’s well on his way.
This upcoming weekend J.I.D will be performing at the Mala Luna Music Festival in San Antonio. Tickets are still available here so buy buy buy!
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