The race for 2025's Rap Album of the Year just got even tougher. As if choosing between Clipse’s Let God Sort ’Em Out and Freddie Gibbs & The Alchemist’s Alfredo 2 wasn’t already a challenge, JID has thrown his hat in the ring with yet another instant classic.
On Aug. 8, JID released his long-awaited fourth studio album, God Does Like Ugly. The album comes with excitement brought by a tremendous rollout. Not only did JID release a short prelude to the album, entitled GDLU (The Preluxe), but he also hosted an unexpected revival of the "Dollar & a Dream" tour.
The tour was a series of intimate album release performances, taking place across five major cities such as London, Chicago, Los Angeles, New York, and JID's home city of Atlanta. Tickets were sold for only $1 on a first-come, first-served basis.
However, fans were only made aware of the concert venue's hours before the show. This was a concept previously created by J. Cole in the early days of his career.
JID drops another gem with God Does Like Ugly
Needless to say, the hype leading up to the release of this album was huge. It marks JID’s first release since 2022’s The Forever Story, which earned massive critical acclaim; therefore, expectations couldn’t have been higher.
Over the years, JID has cemented himself as one of the best rappers in the game, setting a huge standard with every album. The only question was whether or not JID could strike gold yet again.
Fortunately for us, JID proves yet again why he has become one of the most consistent artists in hip-hop. God Does Like Ugly is the perfect showcase of JID's versatility as an artist. The album has everything from hard-hitting rap cuts like “Community” to melodic rap/R&B blends like “Of Blue,” and even a standout Spanish chorus on “No Boo,” delivered by Jessie Reyez and JID himself.
In my review of the GDLU (Preluxe), I questioned why certain tracks didn't make the cut for God Does Like Ugly, as some of the features felt too good to exclude from the full-length album. Although I did expect a few surprise guests, I never could have predicted some of the artists who made an appearance.
The features are a highlight of the album. JID has some first-time collaborations with Don Toliver, Jessie Reyez, Ty Dolla $ign, and Clipse, while also working in some familiar features from his Spillage Village mates Mereba, Earthgang, and 6LACK. The album also includes features from Baby Kia, Pastor Troy, Ciara, Westside Gunn, and Vince Staples.
One of my favorite bars on the album comes in the first track, "YouUgly." In it, JID says, "It's been a long time comin', I swear, but let's be clear / N****s know I been killin' this s*** for years / Just took a f****n' ceiling challenge to show I'm above my peers." This is a callback to the "ceiling challenge" that went viral on TikTok in 2023, which made "Surround Sound" JID's first solo hit.
JID admits some discontent that a TikTok trend is what it took for him to finally get mainstream recognition, rather than his skill. Thankfully, it seems that this album has finally brought JID the attention he deserves, as so far the project has been very well received by the entire hip-hop community.
Standout tracks
For me, this album has already been on repeat constantly since its release. After a full week sitting with the album, my standout tracks for God Does Like Ugly are "Glory," "Community," "SK8," "VCRs," "Wholeheartedly," and "No Boo."
It's not often that you hear collaborations between artists who are competing against each other for album of the year. However, capitalizing off the unforgettable run that Clipse has been on this year, JID features the duo in the track "Community."
On first listen, hearing Pusha T’s voice immediately caught me off guard. However, most exciting was hearing a verse from Malice, who arguably has had some of the best lyrical performances in rap this year. This collab between three of Southern hip-hop's finest is easily my favorite feature on the album.
Just when I thought we couldn't get a better 6LACK feature than GDLU (Preluxe)'s "Lisa", the duo somehow outdoes themselves on the track "Wholeheartedly." The track has a very melodic, summertime vibe brought not only by its laid-back production but the combination of 6LACK, Ty Dolla $ign, and JID's angelic vocals.
That same vibe is what makes "VCRs" featuring Vince Staples another standout track. It has touches of a tropical Latin guitar, which makes the track sound like something you'd hear in the background of a Narcos episode.
The track has a similar feeling to Vince's most recent album, Dark Times (2024), which goes to show JID's range. All throughout the project, he is constantly able to adapt to each of his features' unique style, making every collaboration feel organic.
Unlike The Forever Story, God Doesn't Like Ugly isn't much of a concept album. Instead, it plays much more like a collection of songs. Though I'm typically critical of albums that don't have an overarching theme, JID executes it so well that it's hard to critique. With this album, JID has something for everyone to vibe to, no matter what genre you prefer.
Though I wouldn't put this album above any of his past three studio albums (at least not yet), this is undoubtedly an exceptional project that only backs up JID's case among the best. While many artists rush new albums out every few months to stay relevant, JID's catalogue proves that making quality music takes time. This is what has made him one of the most consistent rappers in the game today.
This album will certainly find itself in the conversation for rap album of the year once we get closer to the end of 2025. Though for now, the hype only continues, with JID teasing a deluxe edition for the album, entitled God Doesn't Like Ugly. As JID alluded to, this could be the long-awaited collab album with producer Metro Boomin that has been in the works since 2023.