J.I.D describes “Sistanem,” a standout track on his acclaimed 2022 album The Forever Story, as a song about one of his “greatest failures.” “A relationship with somebody that I love and that’s dearly close to me that’s just damaged,” the Atlanta rapper explains in The Imperfect Journey, a video series Genius has created in partnership with Tres Generaciones Tequila. “I found a way through the music to persevere and get through all the stuff and flesh out my feelings about it,” he adds.
The Imperfect Journey pairs musicians with visual artists who are tasked with creating works inspired by particular song lyrics centered on the theme of perseverance. In this episode, Chicago-born, Brooklyn-based artist Zeph Farmby uses a powerful lyric from “Sistanem” to create a painting of five individuals. While the work looks unfinished, it’s actually complete, as Farmby aims to emphasize the idea “we’re all works in progress.” Farmby’s use of seven colors in the painting is a reference to the fact that both he and J.I.D happen to be the youngest in families with seven children.
Watch the video above to see their whole conversation—and the incredible piece of art that resulted.
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