Jpegmafia is likely best-known for his assertive scream-rap style, so his latest new single may come as a shock to longtime fans. “Bodyguard!” which Jpeg released today along with a low-budget, self-shot video, finds the eccentric Baltimore rapper switching lanes to deliver his take on an R&B slow jam. Peggy croons through an voice-changing filter, delivering typical syrup-y R&B lines like ““Why you wanna hurt me, babe?” and “I know you want the world.”
The video itself riffs on the fish-eye lens, bare-chested-with-a-jacket-on style of videos that was popular in the genre at the turn of the millennium — maybe Peggy had tickets to Lover And Friends Fest before the coronavirus hit. The song is halfway between an earnest attempt at making a bedroom bop and a parody of one, which fits right in line with Jpeg’s usual, self-deprecating sense of humor — which he last showed off with his previous self-released videos for “Bald!” and “Covered In Money!”
“Bodyguard!” isn’t the first time the quirky rapper gave autotune crooning a go. In March, he delivered an a cappella cover of Carly Rae Jepsen’s “Call Me Maybe.” He also showed off that self-deprecating sense of humor when his appearance on People’s Party With Talib Kweli included an unfortunate moment that he gamely played off later in the interview.
Watch Jpegmafia’s “Bodyguard!” video above.