| Jerk | |
|---|---|
 Xaviersobased performing at Baby's All Right in Brooklyn on February 2, 2023. | |
| Other names | |
| Stylistic origins | |
| Cultural origins | c. 2020; New York, United States |
| Typical instruments | |
| Subgenres | |
| Regional scenes | |
| United Kingdom | |
| Other topics | |
Jerk is a microgenre of hip-hop that emerged in New York City during the early 2020s, drawing inspiration from the original wave of jerk rap, known as jerkin' in the street dance culture, which initially gained popularity in the early 2010s.
Kieran-Press Reynolds while writing for British magazine The Face described jerk as "fidgety rhythms, staggered snares and mangled vocals", and noted that a variety of jerk rappers "boast" but also showcase "a quirky and sensitive lyrical undercurrent [that] tends to lurk beneath the tough-guy facade". [3]
In 2021, New York rapper Xaviersobased formed the collective 1c34, [4] [3] who reimagined the sound of jerk rap into a completely different style, adapting its framework to fit the evolving aesthetics of underground rap. [3] They are credited with spearheading and popularizing the movement which was then further developed by Californian producer kashpaint. [3] This new style of jerk rap blended elements of cloud rap, digicore, Milwaukee lowend and plugg, [3] with songs being released and proliferated on music streaming services like SoundCloud, and on social media platforms such as TikTok. [5] [6]
The Face labelled tracks such as Xaviersobased's "Patchmade" (2022), [7] Phreshboyswag's "Inspire" (2023), [8] and Nettspend's "Shine n Peace" (2023) as "jerk anthems". [3] Artists such as Yhapojj, [9] [10] ksuuvi, [6] Bloody!, [2] idkcap, [2] percosits, [2] Tenkay, [11] Nettspend [12] [13] and Feardorian [1] further contributed to the movement. [1] "Underground heroes" like Duwap Kaine later drew influence from the style, releasing the album DuwapSoBased in 2023. [3] Artists Islurwhenitalk and Subiibabii were credited with pioneering the "vampjerk" style, which drew from the genre sigilkore. [3]
While rooted in the US, the jerk scene gained further momentum in the UK, with the movement being regarded as a "new UK rap revolution". [14] [15] The British jerk scene only saw wider popularity in 2024, as spearheaded by artists like Fakemink [16] [17] [18] [19] as well as YT [7] [20] [21] with his singles "Black and Tan" and "Prada or Celine". [22] [23] These releases were later followed by further contributions in the genre by artists such as Jim Legxacy, Len and Fimiguerrero. [8] [24] [25]