IDK

Maryland rapper IDK, born Jason Mills in London in 1992, centers his work on candid, often intensely personal narratives drawn from his own encounters with addiction, the intricacies of the drug trade, and the broader realities of substance abuse. Early mixtapes paved the way for studio albums that arrived at a steady annual pace, beginning with the 2019 release Is He Real? and continuing through the fully developed 2021 effort USEE4YOURSELF. Subsequent projects followed the same pattern, yielding Simple in 2022 and F65 the next year, before the jazzy, trap-inflected BRAVADO+INTiMO surfaced in 2024.

The acronym IDK expands to “Ignorantly Delivering Knowledge,” underscoring the vulnerable tone that runs through his writing. His recorded output began with the 2014 mixtape Sex, Drugs & Homework, followed by SubTrap in 2015 and Empty Bank the year after. During that period he also linked with artists including Deniro Farrar, Cole King, and Jimi Tents while sharing bills with more established rappers. His first full-length project, IWASVERYBAD, appeared on the Adult Swim label in 2017 and showcased contributions from Chief Keef, DOOM, and Del the Funky Homosapien. A series of 2018 singles arrived next, among them “No Wave” with Denzel Curry and “Lil Arrogant” featuring Joey Bada$$ and Russ, before the seven-track EP IDK & Friends :) closed out the year in November.

Is He Real?, IDK’s second studio album and first for a major label, reached listeners in 2019 and broadened his scope to encompass questions of faith and social issues. The following year he served as music supervisor for Kevin Durant’s documentary Basketball County: In the Water and issued the nine-track IDK & FRIENDS 2 as its companion soundtrack, which included appearances by Juicy J, PnB Rock, Denzel Curry, Maxo Kream, and additional guests. USEE4YOURSELF arrived in 2021, spotlighting Jay Electronica, Rico Nasty, and Slick Rick; the project topped Billboard’s Top Heatseekers chart and crossed into the Billboard 200. Simple followed in 2022 and contained the charting tracks “Taco” and “Dog Food (feat. Denzel Curry).” The standalone single “Monsieur Dio” preceded the 22-track fourth album F65 in 2023, whose roster featured Snoop Dogg, Benny the Butcher, and Rich the Kid. “Win” emerged after that release, and a renewed partnership with Joey Bada$$ produced “DENiM” in 2024, a track later included on BRAVADO+INTiMO alongside a guest verse from Conway the Machine.