Hip-Hop Wired was in Atlanta this week to witness one of Hip-Hop’s brightest young stars on the cusp of releasing his upcoming project, this after expertly rocking the A3C festival in his hometown last month. J.I.D. was the main event at the Verizon Up fan experience, and we chopped it up briefly ahead of an informative Q&A session.

J.I.D., who is affiliated with EarthGang and signed to J. Cole’s Dreamville label, has been putting the final touches on his second solo studio album, DiCaprio 2. We briefly spoke with J.I.D. about the vision for the album, and what he intends to do next.

“I named the first part of the project after Leonard DiCaprio, who is one of the best creative minds and at the time I did the first one [DiCaprio EP], he didn’t have an Oscar despite his talent at the time. So the second part of this story is that the artist is now recognized,” J.I.D. explained.

Soft-spoken and extremely humble, we asked about the 28-year-old rapper’s approach to music since the release of The Never Story last year, which was his proper studio debut.

“The Never Story was about someone who never had anything, never got anywhere, yet still have to tell a story. It’s a journey like all music should be, you know? If you’re not telling a story, being honest, and expressing passion, then why do this art? I feel like with my music, I have a chance to be seen more for my talent but for what I left behind.”

J.I.D. then sat down for a quick Q&A with The Kid Skoob, breaking down where he’s hoping to take his career and sharing that his favorite live performer is Yukimi Nagano of Little Dragon.

We asked him during the open portion of the chat if he intends to display more of his singing ability, featured heavily on The Never Story. J.I.D. told us that he’s working on a project now that will feature him singing primarily.

After the talk, J.I.D. worked the room and met fans who were invited by way of the Verizon Up program. Verizon Wireless customers can join the Verizon Up program and earn rewards by way of paying their monthly bills and earning exciting experiences such as sporting events, music concerts, and other V.I.P. exclusives.

In Atlanta, J.I.D. greeted Verizon Up fans and played NBA 2K19 head to head with those in attendance. From what we saw, it looks like he knew what he was doing on the blacktop in a two-on-two game.

DiCaprio 2 drops on Nov. 26. Check out the expanded tracklist below.

Hit the gallery for images from the Verizon Up event below as well.

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Photo: Verizon Up

Source: HipHopWired.com