J.P.’s “Bad Bitty” was one of the most delightful and unexpected hip-hop success stories of the past few years.
Working within the parameters of lowend — a popular hip-hop subgenre from his native Milwaukee where artists surround a relentless beat with anything-goes experimentation, from raw lo-fi sounds to curveball pop smash samples — “Bad Bitty” was a hell of a bop, backed by J.P.’s irresistible, taffy-like rhymes; his infectious personality and fun lyrics; raw and riveting production; and a sly, surprising nod to Corinne Bailey Rae’s “Put Your Records On.”
Released in February 2024, “Bad Bitty” is the most popular song ever from the city’s creative, nationally admired hip-hop scene; the song has north of 30 million streams on Spotify alone. Chris Brown, Wiz Khalifa, Kai Cenat and NLE Choppa all promoted the song on social media — the latter hopping on the remix — and J.P. (birth name Josiah Gillie) booked prime opening slots for Kehlani (another “Bad Bitty” supporter) and Lil Uzi Vert at Milwaukee’s Summerfest. He also was profiled by Rolling Stone and Complex, and he signed a distribution deal with Jay Z’s Roc Nation.
Now for his next project, the 21-year-old J.P. is doing something even more surprising — by doing something completely different.
On the EP “Took a Turn,” released Aug. 22, J.P. trades hip-hop escapism for piercing, vulnerable R&B. Sonically speaking, the result is about as different from “Bad Bitty” as you can imagine.
And from a career standpoint, that may pose a bit of a risk.
But these are songs, J.P. said, he just had to put out, for his own emotional well-being.
And the three songs that J.P. performed from the project live for the USA TODAY Acoustic series are every bit as exhilarating as his biggest breakout. J.P.’s undeniable charisma from “Bad Bitty” is again on display here — albeit now, it’s his palpable pain, and a remarkable singing voice, that cast a spell.
The songs prove, without a doubt, that J.P. is no one-hit wonder. He’s a versatile and inspiring artist who’s just getting started.
How music became J.P.’s calling
Growing up in Milwaukee, J.P. was drawn to music through church and through his grandmother. Together, they watched a lot of musicals he said, including “Mary Poppins,” “Singin’ in the Rain” and “The Sound of Music.” And she introduced him to some of her favorite artists, including Teddy Pendergrass and Luther Vandross.
“When you’re 6 and listening to all that music, it turns into something good,” J.P. said, suggesting he knew how to sing well around that age.
By the sixth grade, he felt more confident singing in front of other people, and while a freshman at the University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point — where he’s still a student — J.P.’s brother, who’s also his manager, “said, ‘Bro, you should actually start making music.’ That’s when I started to take the music seriously.”
The sweet first tastes of success
J.P. admits his first breakout hit was a bit of a fluke.
He was home for a couple of days around Thanksgiving in 2022 when his younger cousin found a lowend beat online that J.P. used to make his first lowend song, what would become “Juicey Ahhh,” a spiritual descendant of Sir Mix-a-Lot’s “Baby Got Back.” J.P. posted a snippet of the song on his TikTok page, and the video got picked up by the Milwaukee-centric 414hypehouse TikTok page.
“Everybody started doing dances to it, and it started picking up and striking on TikTok,” J.P. recalled. Even Lil Uzi Vert took notice and promoted the song on their Instagram Stories.
J.P. became even more motivated to focus on music, releasing about 70 more songs after “Juicey Ahhh” before “Bad Bitty” blew up.
“To just keep going and keep going and keep going on and finally hit that one again that blows everything open, it was big time,” he said. “I was in a college dorm, me and my brother, answering calls in February and, 30 days later, we were in New York, we were in Miami.”
“This was no longer just a Midwest thing,” he continued. “People in Cali were listening to the music, people all over the East Coast. … ‘Bad Bitty’ was a top song in New Zealand. … I was very grateful.”
Taking a risk with the rewarding ‘Took a Turn’
J.P. included “Bad Bitty” on his infectious June 2024 album “Coming Out Party”; his Roc Nation debut, a 20-minute project called “School Dance,” followed in October.
But as much fun as J.P.’s music was, and as much fun as he seemed to be having in his songs and on stage, he said the sudden fame, attention and change of lifestyle “was getting a bit much for me,” leading to a break online and a break from releasing music.
That pause led to a revelation, “(to) display another side of me that everybody doesn’t know,” J.P. said. Not just musically, but emotionally, with unflinching vulnerability.
It led to “Took a Turn,” with the title track, along with “Serenity” and “Strangers,” performed for USA TODAY Acoustic.
Seemingly holding back tears before performing “Took a Turn,” J.P. aptly described the song as “raw, pure, uncut emotion. This is how I was feeling during that time right smack dab in the middle of anxiety and depression and all of those emotions you’re going through (when) everything is falling apart. … I was just open and decided to put that inside of the song. … It’s like an emotional roller coaster.”
“Serenity” is just as powerful, with J.P. calling out for help and yearning for forgiveness. “Strangers,” meanwhile, was informed by a romantic breakup, the sting of that schism sharp in J.P.’s voice and in the bluntness of his words. It’s a song he said he created “for my own sense of closure.”
“These were songs that were made in real time while I was going through what I was going through, so you can feel the downs, you can feel the ups, you can feel the triumph,” J.P. said. “I just want to display that to everybody else that is going through that period or has gone through that period, so that they can listen to that and can feel and confide in that music.”
“I don’t think it’s scary,” he said, about opening up. “I think it’s more powerful.”
J.P.’s plans for the future
Following those opening slots for Kehlani and Lil Uzi Vert, J.P. plans to tour soon, be it as an opening act or with his own headlining run, and to keep building his fan base and “continuing to pave and carve my way out in this R&B lane I’m going in,” he said.
When he hits those stages, J.P. won’t just be offering fans just a fun time. He’ll also be giving them an opportunity to deeply connect with their feelings.
“While I took a break, there was so much maturity that came from that and just finding myself and getting back to the roots of who I was,” he said. “I think ‘Took a Turn’ was needed.”
This story was updated because an earlier version mislabeled lowend rap.
Contact Piet Levy at (414) 223-5162 or plevy@journalsentinel.com. Follow him at facebook.com/PietLevyMJS.
This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Proving he’s no one-hit wonder after ‘Bad Bitty,’ J.P. shows vulnerable side with new R&B music
Reporting by Piet Levy, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel / Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
