As someone who is from Milwaukee and loves the music scene here, J.P.’s meteoric rise has been so awesome to watch. It has been amazing to watch his progression over the last several months. J.P. started to pop off in 2022 with his song ‘Juicey Ahhh’ and continued his momentum in 2023 with the song ‘Get Down,’ but he has really taken the world by storm in 2024 due to the success of ‘Bad Bitty.’ The steady development of this song’s virality has been fascinating to watch. It started as a meme that went viral on TikTok and has not become one of the hottest tracks of 2024. It seems like everyone who’s anyone has been jumping on to the craze that has been surrounding ‘Bad Bitty.’ From popular Twitch streamers like Kai Cenat to popular singers like Chris Brown, so many high-profile people have been captivated by this track. This has led to more eyes being put onto the Milwaukee music scene than ever, which I love so much. Milwaukee has such a unique and infectious energy that is reflected in the music made here, and ‘Bad Bitty’ captures this energy so well. It is certainly not difficult to see why so many people have been attracted to J.P.’s music so quickly. It has this cheerful element to it that will make anyone want to smile and dance when they hear it. J.P. has such an exuberant personality and aura which permeates through his music. It is difficult to not smile and have a good time when a J.P. video or song comes on, as everything about his demeanor is just so positive. J.P. has been ready to capitalize on his viral success, as he recently released his new album called Coming Out Party. Here is how I feel about this new project from J.P. Please let me know in the comments below what your favorite songs are from Coming Out Party, and also comment on how you feel about the project as a whole!
When you get an artist as quirky as J.P., it is not easy to know what to expect. That said, I have to say that I never saw the track ‘YDKM’ coming. The melody of this track samples the popular TikTok audio from the song ‘O Superman’ by Laurie Anderson. When that triggering vocal bit of “You don’t know me, but I know you’ comes in at the beginning of the track, it certainly threw me for a loop. ‘YDKM’ is a two-part track where the first half goes a lot harder than the second half. The song starts with pretty intense Trap energy, with J.P. rapping with a gruff tone in a manner I have never heard from him. The second section of ‘YDKM’ has a smooth R&B sound where J.P. shows his deep and silky singing vocals. ‘YDKM’ is not the most fluid track and does throw me for a bit of a loop, but it does show off two very different sides to J.P.’s artistry which I think is pretty cool. ‘Idk You’ sees J.P. return to the upbeat Milwaukee Slap sound that has made him so popular to begin with. This song has a bit of a lower and darker sound than the other music of his that has gone viral, though. Instead of having a high-key and colorful melody, the melody for ‘Idk You’ is kind of dark and cold. This melody is provided by an R&B-style vocal sample that is complemented by various synths. J.P.’s vocals on ‘Idk You’ are solid, but they are not as riveting as they usually are. I feel like J.P. was trying to ride the more melancholy energy of the instrumental with his vocals, which does work but also does not help the track stand out in any way. ‘Idk You’ is a solid Slap song that is definitely enjoyable, but not overly memorable. ‘Never Make Me Hate You’ is another track with an interesting sample that comes from a very popular TikTok trend. This one samples the track ‘I Wouldn’t Mind’ by He Is We. Similar to ‘O Superman,’ even if you think you do not know this song if you are active on TikTok at all, I promise you have heard this audio. When put over a Milwaukee Slap beat, this kind of melancholy Pop-Rock melody is certainly a strange and cool thing. As much as it seems like this kind of sample would not work with a beat like this, it actually works very well and is super catchy. The main reason this track works so well is due to J.P.’s vocal performance. The way his deep and gruff vocals sit on this melody works so perfectly and makes this track earworm. I could see ‘Never Make Me Hate You’ going viral because of how weird and catchy it is. Speaking of viral and catchy, the next track is the iconic ‘Bad Bitty.’ I do not think I need to talk about this one too much, as I have already done a full write-up on it and I would assume most people reading this have heard it many times. This version of ‘Bad Bitty’ does have a slightly different mix than the original TikTok hit. Some extra layered vocals come in towards the end of the track. These extra vocals make the song pop and give it even more depth. ‘Bad Bitty’ is a banger that has song-of-the-year potential because of how fun it is and how much good energy it produces.
‘Come And See’ is a song that seems to lean in the R&B-infused Pop-Trap sound that has become big in Hip Hop over the last couple of years. This song has a super groovy feeling that reminds me a lot of the production from The Neptunes. When I hear this one, I think of some of that early 2000s music being made by artists like Snoop Dogg, T.I., and Justin Timberlake which had that smooth and funky sound. The beat for this track is very intricate, sort of fusing the Milwaukee Trap sound and typical modern Pop-Trap. This is my favorite vocal performance of the record from J.P. so far including the one on ‘Bad Bitty.’ His sultry vocals on this track ride the instrumental so nicely and make ‘Come And See’ so pleasant to listen to. ‘Come And See’ is a track where J.P. goes in a slightly different direction than what he is known for and completely nails it. We go from what is the coolest song of the album to what is probably the most mundane in ‘Over Here.’ This is the first one that sort of just feels like a throwaway to me. ‘Over Here’ is not necessarily bad; in fact, it is a decently enjoyable Slap track with a pretty jolly melody and energetic beat. There is just nothing about this track that stands out. Everything about it, from the instrumental to the vocals, is just okay to me. ‘Over Here’ does sound pretty good in the overall context of the album because it fits the sonic theme, but it is not a song that I see myself coming back to on its own. ‘Bring ‘Em Here’ is another Slap song with a light and sweet melody, but it is a lot more entertaining than the track that precedes it in my opinion. I really enjoy the melody on this track, as its light and airy feeling makes me feel like I am floating when I hear it. The Atmospheric feeling of the instrumental on this one contrasts the fast pace of the beat in a very cool way which makes the song pop. As cool as the instrumental for ‘Bring ‘Em Here’ is, the best thing about this track is J.P.’s vocal performance. I love how he uses a more delicate and subdued tone at some points in the track and uses a more forceful and gritty tone at other sections of the track, as it makes this vocal performance as dynamic as any on the project. ‘Bring ‘Em Here’ is a Slap track with a more Celestial sound than anything before it, which makes it very noticeable. ‘Oh Yeah’ is a song that seems to be trying to copy the energy and overall style of ‘Bad Bitty.’ The first thought that comes into my head when listening to this one is “Man, this sounds like ‘Bad Bitty.’” I am not going to say this is automatically a bad thing, though. For what it’s worth, ‘Oh Yeah’ is certainly pretty entertaining. It does have a bright and sugary melody and a beat that will make anyone want to dance when it comes on. Like ‘Bad Bitty,’ there is a Country element to the melody of this track that makes it palatable to a wide range of music listeners. ‘Oh Yeah’ also has one of the best vocal performances of the record from J.P. for sure. His range on this song is excellent; the vocals throughout the track certainly show off J.P.’s talent. ‘Oh Yeah’ is not the most original song within the context of J.P.’s music, but it is still a fun track to listen to for what it is.
‘My Fault’ is a moment where J.P. goes in a completely different direction than what one would expect from him. In my opinion, he completely nails it on this one too. This is another track that has a major viral hit potentially. I will say that lyrically it is a bit silly, but its tongue-in-cheek nature makes it endearing and is also very easy to sing along to. This song has the most “Country” feeling out of anything on this project; I could literally see an artist like Morgan Wallen singing on this melody. Instead of having a Slap beat, though, ‘My Fault’ has a hard-hitting Pop-Trap beat that makes this song super catchy and fun. ‘My Fault’ is an additional moment where J.P. shines as a vocalist. The way his deep and raspy vocals sit on this melancholy Country melody makes the song nice to listen to. I would love to see J.P. go in this direction more often in the future, as it seems like he is onto something great with ‘My Fault.’ Like ‘My Fault,’ ‘Private Room’ is a song where J.P. goes in a totally different direction from what one would expect from him. This one does not hit as much for me as the previous track does, but I still appreciate it for sure. This one reminds me of the R&B music that was big in the late 2000s and early 2010s. When I hear this one, I think of artists like The Dream, Trey Songz, or even Jacquees. The melody for ‘Private Room’ is so celestial and bright, and the beat for this song is deliberate and punchy. J.P.’s vocal performance on this song is pretty good for what it’s worth. I am not going to say he is on the vocal level or the artists I mentioned above on ‘Private Room.’ but the potential is there. ‘Private Room’ is a sweet and sexy R&B track that shows yet another side to J.P.’s artistry that I would love to see him explore in the future. Like ‘Oh Yeah,’ ‘Love Bone’ is a song that is trying to capture the magic of ‘Bad Bitty.’ This song is less shameless in the fact that it almost just feels like a rework of J.P’.’s biggest hit. The melody for this one is a bit brighter and more saturated, but it has a very similar tone to ‘Bad Bitty;’ also, the beat for this one is almost exactly the same as that track as well. Even the flow that J.P. sings with and the lyrics that he spits on this one sound so much like ‘Bad Bitty.’ ‘Love Bone’ is not unpleasant or boring in any way. I guess you can just pick your poison with ‘Bad Bitty’ and ‘Love Bone’ because they are just so similar. J.P. closes out Coming Out Party with ‘It’s Yo Time.’ This track does follow the general formula and style of ‘Bad Bitty,’ but it does differentiate itself a bit. ‘It’s Yo Time’ has a bit more of a quick and intense sound than ‘Bad Bitty.’ The beat on this one absolutely pounds, which gives it a raucous energy that I am totally into. J.P.’s rap flow on this track matches the intensity of the instrumental nicely and makes ‘It’s Yo Time’ feel larger than life. J.P. certainly wanted to end Coming Out Party in an energetic and rowdy manner, and he certainly does that with ‘It’s Yo Time.’
Not too many up-and-coming rappers around the country that have the sort of momentum that J.P. has right now. Hip Hop listeners from everywhere have been captivated by his unique sound and style, and his infectious energy has been permeating anyone who hears him. Coming Out Party is a solid project where J.P. shows off his massive potential. There are moments on this record where he seems to play it safe and go back a little too much to what he knows(so much so that there are a couple of songs that almost feel like redos of ‘Bad Bitty’). There are other moments where he goes in a completely different direction than what we would expect from him and nails it. I hope he can find a middle ground, as I love to see him branch out but also love seeing him embrace the sound that helped him blow up to begin with. Nonetheless, Coming Out Party is a super enjoyable and fun project from one of Hip Hop’s new stars, and it makes me very excited to see what J.P. does next.
EAST SIDE VIBES 