The Forever Story

The Forever Story
Studio album by JID
Released	August 26, 2022
Recorded	2020–2022
Genre	Hip hop alternative hip hop [1] R&B [2]
Length	66:32
Label	Dreamville Interscope
Producer	2One2 Aviad BadBadNotGood Benji Cardiak Childish Major Christo DJ Khalil DJ Scheme E. Jones Elite Groove Hero the Band Hollywood Cole James Blake JD Beck Kaytranada Khrysis Monte Booker Nami Nonstop da Hitman Nurі Pluss QRiley Tane Runo Tommy Brown Tu! Yuli
JID chronology
Spilligion (2020) The Forever Story (2022) Forever & A Day (TBA)
Singles from The Forever Story
"Surround Sound" Released: January 14, 2022 "Dance Now" Released: August 9, 2022

The Forever Story is the third studio album by American rapper JID. It was released on August 26, 2022, through Dreamville and Interscope Records. Recorded over a two-year period, the album features introspective lyricism showcasing JID's upbringing. The album incorporates R&B, alternative hip hop, and trap. The album features guest appearances from Kenny Mason, EarthGang, 21 Savage, Baby Tate, Lil Durk, Ari Lennox, Yasiin Bey, Lil Wayne, Johntá Austin, Ravyn Lenae, and Eryn Allen Kane. Production was handled by a variety of record producers, including Monte Booker, Childish Major, Christo, Cardiak, Kaytranada, DJ Scheme, Khrysis, and James Blake, among others. The album serves as the follow-up to JID's second studio album, DiCaprio 2 (2018) as well as Spilligion (2020), his collaboration album with Spillage Village and EarthGang.

The Forever Story was met with critical acclaim upon its release, in which critics praised the album for its ambition, lyrical content and introspective writing. It debuted at number twelve on Billboard 200 chart. The album was supported by two singles: "Surround Sound" and "Dance Now", as well as the promotional single "2007".

Background

The Forever Story was a highly anticipated project, as it marks JID's first solo output in almost four years, since the critically acclaimed DiCaprio 2 was released in 2018. ^[3] Our Generation Music wrote: "With a forthcoming album that's been in the works for nearly a half decade, fans could ironically call the wait for JID's next project 'The Forever Story.'" ^[4]

Conceptually, The Forever Story is a sequel to JID's debut album, The Never Story , released in 2017. ^[4] The title is a direct reference to the 2017 album's title, and the artwork alludes to the 2017 album's artwork. ^[5] The artwork depicts the rapper "standing in the middle of a crowd containing people from all walks of life", ^[6] capturing "the different realities Black people face in America." ^[7]

Recording and production

In March 2020, JID began working on the album at the Spillage Village studio house in Atlanta with members of the group expected make appearances. However, due to the COVID-19 pandemic, they decided to record collectively for the album Spilligion . ^[8] In an interview with, he told Billboard , "This next album [The Forever Story] is the best shit I've ever done in my life. Every step I've taken was worth it, and our blocks are building." ^[9]

The album was executive produced by Barry "Hefner" Johnson, JID, and Christo. The production was mainly handled by Christo, Monte Booker, Kaytranada, James Blake, Thundercat, DJ Khalil, Childish Major, Groove, Tommy Brown and Cardiak, among others. ^[10]

Promotion and release

JID began teasing his third studio album in 2019 through use of social media, but promotion did not begin until January 2022, when the lead single, "Surround Sound", was released. During his performance at Coachella in April 2022, he told the crowd he would announce the album release date during another performance the next week; however, he never ended up doing it. ^[11] On August 9, 2022, he unveiled the album artwork and revealed that it would be released on August 26. A second single from the album, "Dance Now", was also released the same day. ^[5] On August 19, JID released "2007"—a song which was originally meant to serve as the album's outro, but could not be included in the end due to problems with sample clearance—exclusively through YouTube. ^[12] On August 22, he revealed the album tracklist, consisting of fifteen tracks. ^[13] Two days before the release, JID hosted a promotional scavenger hunt event in three different US cities; he instructed fans that those who are able to locate a Pontiac G6 (a car JID used to own) will get to hear the album early. ^[14] The album was officially released on August 26, 2022. ^[15]

On November 2, 2022, JID announced that intended album outro "2007" would be released the following day, ^[16] and on November 3, 2022, an extended version including the song was released to streaming services.

Music and lyrical themes

Prior to the release, JID commented on the album's themes and creation process: "Initially I wanted to create an album that serves as an origin story and speaks to who I am and what I came from. [...] This has been the heaviest project for me to make and I take pride in my vulnerability that came in the midst of creation." ^[17] In an interview with Complex , JID spoke on why he wanted to include personal family stories in the album saying:

[My family] is basically a part of how I became who I am. It gives inklings of why my [mindset] is a certain type of way. I gave more detail and in-depth stories [on this album], but there's still more layers to be peeled back, which I am going to do because this is going to be a long process of trying to understand me. This is just a good piece of the origin story, and this is me finding that space to be more visible and present with words. ^[18]

The original outro for the album, "2007", is a narrative-driven song that tells the story of JID's upbringing and college experience from an aspiring football player to a rapper. JID highlighted release dates of several albums as checkpoints to depict critical moments in his life, such as J. Cole's The Come Up , The Warm Up , and Cole World: The Sideline Story , Kendrick Lamar's Section.80 , and his debut The Never Story . The song also includes skits from his father talking about when he found out JID was kicked out of college and decided to pursue rapping, and J. Cole telling the story about how they met and when he decided to sign him to Dreamville. ^{[18] [19]}

Critical reception

Professional ratings

Aggregate scores
Source	Rating
Metacritic	83/100 [20]
Review scores
Source	Rating
AllMusic	[21]
Clash	8/10 [22]
Sputnikmusic	4.6/5
Pitchfork	7.3/10 [23]

The Forever Story was met with critical acclaim upon its release. At Metacritic, which assigns a normalised rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream publications, the album received an average score of 83, based on 6 reviews. ^[20]

Ben Broyd of Clash praised the album, saying "JID's latest release is a wonderful insight into the rapper's formative years, and ultimately through the introspective manner allows for an enthralling listen. Through 'The Forever Story' JID has claimed his seat at the prestigious table of Atlantan greats". ^[22] Writing for Pitchfork, Dylan Green called it "a sprawling and sometimes frustrating bridge between JID's upbringing and his place within hip-hop canon and Black history at large". ^[23] In an anonymously written assessment for AllMusic, the reviewer claimed that it was "an album every bit as ambitious and monumental as the two solo studio outings that preceded it" and felt it demonstrated that JID was, "growing in terms of technical talent while also opening up more lyrically." ^[21]

Track listing

The Forever Story track listing

No.	Title	Writer(s)	Producer(s)	Length
1.	"Galaxy"	Destin Route Ahmanti Booker	Monte Booker	0:52
2.	"Raydar"	Route Asheton Hogan Gary Fountaine Markus Randle John Welch Jesse Gumer James Icart Jalal Mansur Nuriddin	Pluss Nonstop da Hitman Childish Major Christo 2One2 QRiley	3:24
3.	"Dance Now" (with Kenny Mason)	Route Edwin Green, Jr. J. Welch Aviad Poznansky Shlomo Gaisin Zachary Goldschmiedt Elisha Mlotek	Christo Aviad	3:47
4.	"Crack Sandwich"	Route J. Welch Thomas Brown Dylan Teixeira Carl McCormick Benjamin Tolbert	Tommy Brown Nami Cardiak Groove Christo	4:57
5.	"Can't Punk Me" (with EarthGang)	Route Olu Fann Eian Parker Louis Celestin James Beck	Kaytranada JD Beck	3:23
6.	"Surround Sound" (featuring 21 Savage and Baby Tate)	Route Shéyaa Bin Abraham-Joseph Tate Farris Gabriel Guerra Nuri Saberin J. Welch Charles Singleton Eddie Snyder	DJ Scheme Nurі Christo	3:49
7.	"Kody Blu 31"	Route Justin Barnett Jerramy Barnett DJ Barnett Nick Barnett J. Welch Ian Welch Margaux Whitney Taji Ausar	Christo Benji Yuli Tane Runo	3:44
8.	"Bruddanem" (featuring Lil Durk)	Route Durk Banks Khalil Abdul-Rahman Neal H. Pogue II J. Welch Whitney Daniel Seeff	DJ Khalil Tu! Christo Yuli [a]	3:55
9.	"Sistanem"	Route Kameron Cole J. Welch Taalib Johnson Osunlade Eric Roberson James Blake Litherland	Hollywood Cole Christo Yuli	6:09
10.	"Can't Make U Change" (with Ari Lennox)	Route Courtney Salter Anthony Parrino J. Welch Jorge Cardoso Augusto Alexander Joseph Hall Quincy Jones Leon Ware Bruce Fisher Stanley Richardson	Elite Christo AJ Hall [c] Cardoso [c] Feliciano Ecar Ponce [c] Harissis Tsakmaklis [c] Luzian Tuetsch [c]	4:48
11.	"Stars" (featuring Yasiin Bey)	Route Yasiin Bey Ausar Chester Hansen Matthew Tavares Alexander Sowinski Eric Jones J. Welch	BadBadNotGood E. Jones Christo	4:18
12.	"Just in Time" (with Kenny Mason featuring Lil Wayne)	Route Dwayne Carter Green Booker J. Welch	Booker Christo	3:27
13.	"Money"	Route Christopher Tyson Paul Coleman	Khrysis	4:26
14.	"Better Days" (featuring Johntá Austin)	Route Johntá Austin J. Welch I. Welch Justin Barnett Jerramy Barnett D. Barnett N. Barnett	Christo Benji Hero the Band	4:14
15.	"Lauder Too" (featuring Ravyn Lenae and Eryn Allen Kane)	Route Ravyn Lenae Washington Litherland Tolbert Booker Leon Sylvers Edmund Sylvers	James Blake Groove [a] Booker [a]	3:53
Total length:				59:06

Extended version

No.	Title	Writer(s)	Producer(s)	Length
16.	"2007"	Route Tolbert Dorcas Cochran Eddie Jones George Kerr Gerald Harris Gerry McClelland J. Welch Latrell Jaimz Boyd Lionel Newman	Latrell James Christo Groove	7:26
Total length:				66:32

Notes

• ^{^[c]} signifies a co-producer
• ^{^[a]} signifies an additional producer
• "2007" features uncredited vocals by J. Cole, Ibrahim 'Ib' Hamad, and Carl Louis Route Jr. ^[12]

Sample credits

• "Raydar" contains a sample from "Mean Machine", written by Jalal Mansur Nuriddin, as performed by The Last Poets.
• "Dance Now" contains a sample from "Yoel's Niggun", written by Shlomo Gaisin, Zachary Goldschmiedt, and Elisha Mlotek, as performed by Zusha.
• "Crack Sandwich" contains uncredited samples from "Bliss", written and performed by Pete La Roca; and an uncredited interpolation of "Party Up (Up in Here)", written by Earl Simmons and Kasseem Dean, as performed by DMX.
• "Surround Sound" contains samples from "One Step Ahead", written by Charles Singleton and Eddie Snyder, as performed by Aretha Franklin.
• "Kody Blu 31" contains uncredited samples from "Funky Fanfare", written and performed by Keith Mansfield.
• "Sistanem" contains a sample from "Mary Go Round", written by Taalib Johnson, Osunlade, and Eric Roberson, as performed by Musiq Soulchild.
• "Can't Make U Change" contains a sample from "Body Heat", written by Quincy Jones, Leon Ware, Bruce Fisher, and Stanley Richardson, as performed by Jones.
• "Money" contains a sample from "I'd Like to Know You Better", written by Paul Coleman, as performed by Rasputin Stash.
• "Lauder Too" contains a sample from "Forever Yours", written by Leon Sylvers III and Edmund Sylvers, as performed by The Sylvers.
• "2007" contains a sample from "Let's Prove Them Wrong", written by Eddie Jones and George Kerr, as performed by Debbie Taylor; a sample from "Again", written by Dorcas Cochran and Lionel Newman, as performed by Doris Day; a sample from "Come, Listen to Me", written and performed by Gerry McClelland; and an uncredited sample from "HiiiPower", written by Kendrick Duckworth, Herbert Stevens, and Jermaine Cole, as performed by Kendrick Lamar. ^{[lower-alpha 1]}

Personnel

Musicians

• JID – vocals
• Reggie Ball Sr – additional vocals (track 1)
• Benji – background vocals (1, 2, 7), additional vocals (9, 11), bass guitar (7)
• Asiahn – background vocals (1)
• Eryn Allen Kane – background vocals (1), additional vocals (15)
• Fousheé – background vocals (3), additional vocals (9)
• Jesse Royal – spoken word (3)
• Bas – additional vocals (4)
• Christo – additional vocals (4), drums (7)
• Yuli – additional vocals (4)
• JD Beck – drums (5)
• Jean – additional vocals (7, 9, 11)
• Sheed – additional vocals (7, 9–11)
• Barbara Wilson – additional vocals (7)
• Hero the Band – additional vocals (7)
• Olu – additional vocals (7)
• Vonda Fuller – additional vocals (7, 10)
• Mustafa the Poet – spoken word (8)
• Justine Skye – additional vocals (9)
• Tane Runo – additional vocals (11)
• Emma Hathaway Delhomme – additional vocals (13)
• Kaden Chea – additional vocals (13)
• Maddison Williams – additional vocals (13)
• Randall Smith – additional vocals (13)
• Sunshine Hathaway Delhomme – additional vocals (13)
• Andrew Barnes – bass guitar (13)
• Jonathan Curry – drums (13)
• Russel Favret – guitar (13)
• Howard "GiveEmSoul" Joyner – keyboards (13)
• Juran Ratchford – saxophone (13)
• Cameron Tripp – trumpet (13)
• Angel White – additional vocals (14)
• Ravyn Lenae – additional vocals (15)
• Thundercat – bass guitar (15)

Technical

• Nicolas "Dep" de Porcel – mastering
• Derek "MixedByAli" Ali – mixing
• Cyrus "NOIS" Taghipour – mixing (6), mixing assistance (1–5, 7–16)
• John Kadadu – engineering
• Curtis "Sircut" Bye – mixing assistance

Charts

Chart performance for The Forever Story

Chart (2022–2024)	Peak position
Australian Albums (ARIA) [24]	42
Belgian Albums (Ultratop Flanders) [25]	65
Dutch Albums (Album Top 100) [26]	59
Irish Albums (OCC) [27]	50
Lithuanian Albums (AGATA) [28]	46
New Zealand Albums (RMNZ) [29]	16
Swiss Albums (Schweizer Hitparade) [30]	69
UK Albums (OCC) [31]	74
UK R&B Albums (OCC) [32]	36
US Billboard 200 [33]	12

Notes

1. This sample is only heard on the YouTube version of "2007" due to sampling issues. ^[12]

References

1. Ross, Oscar (August 27, 2022). "Album Review: JID "The Forever Story"". Epigram . Retrieved June 22, 2023.
2. Brake, David Aaron (September 22, 2022). "JID 'The Forever Story' Is Technically Sound But Fails To Break The Mold". HipHopDX . Retrieved December 23, 2023.
3. "J.I.D. × Surround Sound". 360 Magazine. January 16, 2022. Archived from the original on January 16, 2022. Retrieved August 15, 2022.
4. Galindo, Thomas (August 8, 2022). "JID drops 'Dance Now' with Kenny Mason ahead of 'The Forever Story'". Our Generation Music. Archived from the original on August 15, 2022. Retrieved August 15, 2022.
5. Kress, Bryan (August 9, 2022). "JID Announces New Album The Forever Story, Shares "Dance Now" with Kenny Mason and Fousheé: Stream". Consequence . Archived from the original on August 14, 2022. Retrieved August 16, 2022.
6. Gonzalez, Alex (August 9, 2022). "JID Finally Shares A Release Date For 'The Forever Story' And It's Coming Sooner Than You Think". Uproxx . Archived from the original on August 16, 2022. Retrieved August 21, 2022.
7. Saponara, Michael (August 9, 2022). "JID Shares New Single 'Dance Now' & 'The Forever Story' Album Cover Art". HipHopDX . Archived from the original on August 13, 2022. Retrieved August 16, 2022.
8. Ridner, Grant (September 24, 2020). "How Spillage Village Hunkered Down in Atlanta and Captured the Chaos of 2020". Rolling Stone.
9. "J.I.D Says His Career Is at a 'Boiling Point' After Top Five Hot 100 Success of 'Enemy'". Billboard.
10. "JID reveals 'The Forever Story' official tracklist". Revolt.
11. Williams, Ian (June 21, 2022). "Everything we know about JID's 'The Forever Story'". Our Generation Music. Archived from the original on July 2, 2022. Retrieved August 15, 2022.
12. DeVille, Chris (August 19, 2022). "JID Tells His Story With Help From His Dad, J. Cole, & More On "2007"". Stereogum . Archived from the original on August 20, 2022. Retrieved August 20, 2022.
13. Destin Route [@JIDsv] (August 22, 2022). "JID.lnk.to/TheForeverStory [...]" (Tweet). Archived from the original on August 22, 2022. Retrieved August 22, 2022– via Twitter.
14. Cummings-Grady, Mackenzie (August 24, 2022). "JID Holds Scavenger Hunt So Fans Can Hear His New Album Early". HipHopDX . Archived from the original on August 24, 2022. Retrieved August 26, 2022.
15. Callas, Brad (August 26, 2022). "JID Drops New Album 'The Forever Story' f/ Lil Durk, 21 Savage, Lil Wayne, and More". Complex . Archived from the original on August 26, 2022. Retrieved August 26, 2022.
16. @JIDsv (November 2, 2022). "2007 is free and coming home tonight Midnight/9Pm PST!!!!!" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
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18. "JID Has Mastered the Art of Patience". Complex.
19. Feldstein, Josh (September 6, 2022). "Atlanta rapper JID showcases storytelling expertise on 'The Forever Story'". The Daily Orange . Retrieved November 30, 2022.
20. "The Forever Story by JID Reviews and Tracks". Metacritic . Retrieved October 4, 2022.
21. Staff, The TiVo (August 24, 2022). "JID – The Forever Story Album Reviews, Songs & More". AllMusic . Retrieved September 14, 2022.
22. Broyd, Ben (August 26, 2022). "JID – The Forever Story: The Atlantan storyteller returns with a generational album …". Clash . Retrieved August 26, 2022.
23. Green, Dylan. "JID - The Forever Story". Pitchfork. Retrieved September 1, 2022.
24. "ARIA Top 50 Albums Chart". Australian Recording Industry Association. September 5, 2022. Retrieved September 2, 2022.
25. "Ultratop.be – JID – The Forever Story" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved September 4, 2022.
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28. "2022 35-os savaitės klausomiausi (Top 100)" (in Lithuanian). AGATA. September 2, 2022. Retrieved September 2, 2022.
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31. "Official Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved September 2, 2022.
32. "Official R&B Albums Chart Top 40". Official Charts Company. Retrieved September 3, 2022.
33. "Debuts on this week's #Billboard200 (1/2)..." Billboard on Twitter. Retrieved September 7, 2022.