JID's 'God Does Like Ugly' Is a Polished Patchwork

Summary

• JID has shared his fourth studio album, God Does Like Ugly
• The 15-track project features a stacked lineup of contributors – Westside Gunn, Clipse, Vince Staples, Don Toliver, and EARTHGANG included

One of the most eyed albums across the entirety of the vast hip hop ether, JID‘s fourth studio album, God Does Like Ugly, is here. Arriving about three years after The Forever Story, the 15-track album is a profoundly penned tale, piecing together a plethora of genres, guest verses and appearances, and raw anecdotes to create a truly boundless sonic story.

A-list collaborators are ubiquitous, kicking off from the jump with Westside Gunn on “YouUgly,” a two-part track that sees each rapper take the stage solo for about two minutes. Single “WRK” falls at track 3, which builds on the predecessor “Glory”‘s themes of reaping the benefits of hard work.

Clipse steps in for “Community,” with JID handling “Gz,” track five, – another highlight – fully solo almost to just remind us that he can.

The streak of features picks back up, with Vince Staples hopping on “VCR,” and, what seems to be the fan-favorite at the moment, Ciara and EARTHGANG splitting up “Sk8.” Don Toliver delivers on “What We On,” a slower, softer offering, followed up by Ty Dolla $ign and 6LACK, elevating the ethereal “Wholeheartedly.” Jessie Reyez, Baby Kia, Mereba, and Pastor Troy contribute to “No Boo,” “On McAfee,” “Of Blue,” and “K-Word,” respectively.

Intentional interludes carefully splice the selection of sleekly produced tracks, with the rapper’s pastor and someone on his team both appearing on “Glory.”

1. YouUgly (with Westside Gunn)
2. Glory
3. WRK
4. Community (with Clipse)
5. Gz
6. VCRs (with Vince Staples)
7. Sk8 (with Ciara & EARTHGANG)
8. What We On (with Don Toliver)
9. Wholeheartedly (with Ty Dolla $ign & 6LACK)
10. No Boo (with Jessie Reyez)
11. And We Vibing
12. On McAfee (with Baby Kia)
13. Of Blue (with Mereba)
14. K-Word (with Pastor Troy)
15. For Keeps

While not necessarily as unified in sound as DiCaprio 2 or The Forever Story, the entirety of the genre-blurring tracklist is woven together by the rapper’s impeccable storytelling capabilities.

Stream God Does Like Ugly – out everywhere now.