Jerk (music genre)

Jerk is a music subgenre blending hip-hop and internet rap that emerged in New York City during the early 2020s. It draws inspiration from the original 2000s wave of jerk rap and street dance

Characteristics#

Writing for British magazine The Face, music journalist Kieran Press-Reynolds described jerk as “fidgety rhythms, staggered snares and mangled vocals”, and noted that a variety of jerk rappers “boast” but also showcase “a quirky and sensitive lyrical undercurrent that tends to lurk beneath the tough-guy facade”. he never listened to the original wave of jerk rap and is more inspired by Milwaukee hip-hop’s lowend scene in his “percussion choices”.

Origins#

The style was originally pioneered by Islurwhenitalk and the collective Jewelxxet. In 2021, New York rapper Xaviersobased formed the collective 1c34, Writing for The Face, music critic Kieran Press-Reynolds labelled tracks such as Xaviersobased’s “Patchmade” (2022), and Nettspend’s “Shine N Peace” (2023) as “jerk anthems”. ksuuvi, percosits, Nettspend and Feardorian further contributed to the movement. Artists Islurwhenitalk and Subiibabii were credited with pioneering the “vampjerk” style, which drew from the subgenre of hip-hop music sigilkore.

Regional scenes#

While rooted in the US, the jerk scene gained further momentum in the UK underground rap scene, with the movement being regarded as a “new UK rap revolution”. The British jerk scene saw wider popularity in 2024, being spearheaded by artists like Fakemink as well as YT with his singles “Black and Tan” and “Prada or Celine”. These releases were followed by further contributions in the genre by artists such as Jim Legxacy, EsDeeKid, Len, and Fimiguerrero.

Influence#

Writing for Dazed magazine, music journalist Solomon Pace-McCarick noted rapper Cortisa Star as drawing influences from jerk in her production choices.

Jugg rap#

Jugg rap (also known as Jugg) is a microgenre that draws from the “twitchy snare rhythms” of jerk. While writing for Pitchfork, music critic Kieran Press-Reynolds stated that the style’s “breakout smash” was the song “everyday is the same” by rapper ocelot, who drew inspiration from rapper Islurwhenitalk “a sigilkore deity who pioneered this sort of ultra-twitchy, rhythmic meltdown that’s as much dance music as rap”. Artists such as ss3bby, xannaholik, fauxf6r, 5lim and Heymylan, on top of the collective 25r3set, have also been noted as influential in the development of the genre. The style is characterized by “sequences of sound effects and sidechained bass that swallows everything”. The term “FXspam” has also been used on SoundCloud to describe the scene for its use of “degraded samples”.