DaBaby Makes A Song That Shows He’s A Grown-Up MC With A Real Message

Jonathan Lyndale Kirk, also known by his Rap moniker DaBaby, has been having a stellar campaign in 2019. After being featured in XXL‘s “Freshman” class this season, the 27-year-old MC released his debut album, Baby On Baby, which reached the top 25 of the Billboard 200 charts. It was accompanied by his Top 10 single, “Suge,” which has become of the sought-out freestyle instrumentals of 2019. Along the way, DaBaby has also been featured on some of 2019’s most popular records, including Chance The Rapper’s “Hot Shower,” Megan Thee Stallion’s “Cash S**t,” and a stellar appearance on Dreamville’s chart-topping Revenge Of The Dreamers III, and the North Carolina repped track, “Under The Sun” with J. Cole and Lute.

While DaBaby is known for charting hits and big buzz, the Cleveland, Ohio born rapper recently released one of his deepest, most cerebral tracks with “Intro.” Laced with a soulful instrumental from producer DJ Kid, DaBaby provides fans with a record dedicated to the friends and family who helped him along the way, including those he’s lost in the process. Now, DaBaby has dropped an official video to coincide, celebrating the people closest to him during his recent bout of success.

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Opening the visuals in a dimly lit church, DaBaby solemnly walks towards a white casket. He raps passionately about the family he’s lost at the same time he’s achieved success. “Thinkin’ ’bout my grand-mama and sh*t / I got the #1 record, they acknowledged the jit / They goin’ crazy when they play it, head bobbin’ and sh*t / And I’m just somewhere f*cked up thinkin’ ’bout my father and sh*t / They found him dead a couple days before I started tour / Same day I flew back to the city from Miami / I was out there with the family / Just lookin’ at my daughter / Thinkin’ to myself like, “Damn, my baby look just like my daddy.”

Despite the solemn introduction, the video flips to show the other side to DaBaby’s life, eating and drinking alongside the comfort of friends and family. In line, DaBaby reflects on the struggles of his past that he experienced in the midst of his climbing fame in the game. He cerebrates, “You know I never gave a f*ck about the world, just about my family / How the f*ck I make it to the top same day I lost the ni**a that had me? / How a ni**a perform on BET and a year ago couldn’t afford a sandwich? / I had to move in with TG when I went broke movin’ out to Cali’ / What you know you smilin’ every day for all your fans, actin’ like you happy? / I spent a hundred thousand layin’ my daddy to rest, but I ain’t braggin’ / I got some questions, I’m a die about respect if I don’t get answers / My mama stood up in that chair, took it like a G when she had cancer / My brother be thinkin’ that we don’t love him and let him struggle like we ain’t family / Like I won’t give up all I got to see you happy, ni**a / We shocked the world, everybody know what’s happenin’, ni**a.”

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As the video closes, the Reel Goat cinematographers capture the juxtaposition of DaBaby’s familial life. With shots of his friends, family members, children, marriages, and funerals, the video honors those who are still able to support DaBaby and his ventures from the background, both in life and in death.

“Intro” is DaBaby’s first single released from his forthcoming album, Kirk, scheduled to release late September. You can find DaBaby’s track with J. Cole and Lute, “Under The Sun,” on the official Ambrosia For Heads playlist, alongside records from Pete Rock, Pusha-T, Lauryn Hill, Rapsody, Little Brother, and more.