JPEGMAFIA performed in-the-round inside a reimagined space on Wednesday, May 8 as part of the Red Bull Music Festival New York. Taking place at Brooklyn’s Elsewhere, he showcased his gritty, forward-thinking beats during the dynamic live show, A TRIBUTE TO BUTTERMILK JESUS. Today, Red Bull Music has shared two live performance videos from the show for “Puff Daddy” and “Thug Tears.”
For JPEG, no icon, politician, or peer is above reproach. The 29-year-old rapper/producer has been through too much to suffer fools gladly. JPEG spent his childhood in Brooklyn before his family moved to Alabama. Faced with the south’s stark racism, he found consolation and inspiration in the militant music of Ice Cube and Bad Brains. After a harrowing stint in the Air Force, he earned a masters in journalism, moved to Baltimore, and began making the acerbic, politically-charged songs on early projects like Communist Slow Jams (2015). 2018’s Veteran, on which he skewers cable news anchors and Internet trolls with pointed impersonations, was a critical breakthrough, landing a spot on year-end lists from publications like Pitchfork.
Red Bull Music Festival New York returned for the critically-acclaimed international music series’ seventh installment in the city. Launched on April 29, this year’s festival featured headline shows with steadfast, perennially innovative Red Bull collaborators, and partner with additional groundbreaking artists to bring their unique, boundary-pushing visions to the stage for stunning performances.
