God Does Like Ugly

Despite its meticulous narrative cohesion, God Does Like Ugly is by no means an easy listen, lacking the smoother and more unified sound of The Forever Story, his discography’s most impressive entry.

The result plays less like the next step for a talented artist and more like an expensive audition reel. It’s all hubris and no humility.

Far from a total collapse like The Big Day or Curtis, JID’s fourth album reads more like Lupe Fiasco’s Lasers or A$AP Rocky’s Testing: a just-okay lateral move that invigorates fans towards a new chapter.

The album balances more violent, hardcore material (the Clipse-featuring "Community") with songs primed for the club (the Miami bass-influenced "WRK" and "Sk8"), with the nostalgic coming-up story "For Keeps" being a highlight.

What immediately clicks on his newest record here, is that he’s just cracked the code on how to write a great track, as one would hope over a decade in. Choruses catch, he has natural chemistry with every feature, and he changes his flow so much he almost has chemistry simply by himself.

It’s been three years since The Forever Story, and JID’s returned with something more precise, more obsessive, and possibly more brilliant than anything he’s touched before.

JID takes on heavenly, soul-stirring soundscapes (“Glory”), amped-up, motivational production custom-made for the gym (“WRK”), and dark, ambling beats that bring to mind a never-ending march toward understanding oneself (“Community”). JID ties it all together with irrepressible energy and boundless determination.