J.P. Reinvents Himself

J.P. has gone from free-spirited to high-spirited in his newest project, Took A Turn.

Photography by Aloysius Xiong

When you have a memorable come-up like Josiah Gillie, also known as J.P., oftentimes, your biggest competition is yourself. Since his viral 2024 song, “Bad Bitty,” J.P. has gone from free-spirited to high-spirited in his newest project, Took A Turn. After a long journey of self-reflection and introspection, J.P. has tapped into his upbringing of the church choir, R&B, neo-Soul, and gospel.

The Milwaukee native doesn’t aim to erase his viral TikTok era, but is moving forward through his natural evolution of a more expansive artistry. Now that J.P. has opened the door to becoming more multifaceted, vulnerable, and melodic, he and his listeners can take moments to step back and enjoy the slow-burn process.

J.P. spoke with 1202 MAGAZINE about bringing Took A Turn to life, his musical hiatus, unplugging from social media to regenerate his creativity, and how it blossomed into self-discovery, growth, and resilience.

What was the inspiration behind Took A Turn?

I wanted to take a huge leap in growth, which I did during my time off social media, to take some time away and get myself together. As far as mental health goes, I fell into a little bit of a depression, and I started making music that I had made when I was younger. It leaned more towards R&B and neo-Soul. I then decided to create a project to convey what was happening during that time. I didn’t want just to come back to everyone, switch things up, and have no one understand why. It came out pretty well.

You’ve had several viral moments within the past year. What motivated you to switch genres and experiment with more sounds in comparison to doing what has kept you viral?

I am a complete artist. Virality, for the first years of my career, was my thing. I kept trying to get the hit or dance to go viral. However, the path of artistry is not about what’s viral. I’m more concerned with building a catalog, platform, and a solid foundation of fans that really listen to my music. I want listeners to care for and value my music because I am a great artist. I’m not just a dancer on TikTok or someone who had a viral song—I can actually make music. I decided to switch because it’s more of a slow-burn. It’s not TikTok-trendy. I’m more concerned with building a platform that could flourish for the rest of my career rather than a few catchy songs.

Since this project is so different from your previous ones, what has been the feedback from listeners and fans so far?

I knew the music was good, but I was a bit nervous about releasing the project because I didn’t know how people would react to it, since they aren’t used to hearing this sound from me. However, I’ve gotten a lot of positive feedback. I’ve received a lot of love and support from all of the music platforms. I’m very excited to see where the rest of this will go. The project has only been out for a couple of months. We have a lot of time to perform the music in front of people.

During the creation of Took A Turn, what were some emotions you felt, or obstacles you overcame?

When I was writing this project, the most important thing I wanted to do was make it very general and straight to the point so anyone could listen to it and apply it to their own life. I didn’t want to make it exclusive to certain groups of people. You could be going through anything and enjoy it. I made sure I went deep to pull out my more vulnerable and emotional sides without so much bravado. I often have so much bravado in my voice—it’s easy to go out there and rap about parties and nightlife—but it’s not easy to talk about trauma and emotional issues. I took the time to be vulnerable with my fans, and I want to implement that into my future music.

How did your upbringing and the environment around you impact how you make music today?

I grew up in the church. The bulk of my music taste comes from my grandmother. I grew up watching musicals with my grandmother, like Mary Poppins and Singing in the Rain. Those were my first tastes of music outside of church music. It was so fun because we would come home and watch those movies all the time. I know every single song from these musicals. I’ve always been a singer, but when I started taking music seriously and decided to pursue my artistry, I was able to go back and pick up where the greats I grew up listening to left off: Otis Redding, Jagged Edge, Sam Cooke, and Jaheim. There are so many artists I could jump back and forth between, depending on which track I was in the mood for. Having that versatility really helps improve your craft and get your point across. I didn’t want to create a bland EP or have bland artistry, so I took what I had and made the best of it.

Photography by Aloysius Xiong

After this EP, would you say you want this sound to be your signature sound, or do you want to keep experimenting with other genres and sounds?

For the most part, I want to stay more in the R&B lane. There will be more genres here and there, but as far as completely switching genres again, I don’t think I would do that. I want to build from the ground up.

You’ve also been prioritizing mental health and unplugging from social media. Why did you choose to do that, and how has it impacted you?

I chose to do it because I encountered a large amount of fame in such little time. I was only about 19 years old, so that can be a lot at that age. I went from not having cameras on me at all to having cameras on me 24/7. It became outrageous, so I had to take a step back. I was doing things I wasn’t supposed to and going off the rails a bit. I took a step back to really grasp what was going on, who I was, and what kind of image I was portraying. I was hurting my brain, so I took some time away to get my mental health in order to get structure to understand my brand, and how it affects me and others around me. It was one of the more outstanding things I had to take care of to move forward. Even if I wanted to transform and recreate myself as something better, there were some things I had to let go.

While you were taking this break, were you also making music, or were you taking a break from creating altogether?

I took a break from writing music for a week or two, but I quickly got back into the swing of things. I made music and picked up a few instruments. I played music around the house and in the studio all the time. I definitely had a plan because I knew I was going to come back, but I also knew that when I came back, everything had to be polished. I took the time to make sure everything was polished before we put it out.

Can you see yourself continuing to be vulnerable in your music, or would you say this was a one-of-a-kind project?

I would say a little bit of both. There will be some tracks that aren’t so vulnerable, and there will be some tracks that will be whatever the feeling calls for. I have to stay true and authentic to myself. If it doesn’t make sense to me or my fans, I won’t do it. The fans will feel everything at the end of the day. The more true I am to myself, the better things will become.

What can fans and listeners expect from you going forward?

We’re definitely working on routing some tours, so stay tuned for that. There will be some live performances soon. Expect more music soon as well. I want to pay attention to myself and not get too caught up in social media. It’s really easy to get discouraged because you’re not where you want to be yet. I want to stay ten toes down on my grind because I know that this is my own race, and I’m not racing against anybody else. I want to keep going until I cross the finish line. I’m going to stay positive and manifest great energy. That’s what keeps me in order. I have a good group of people around me that will pick you up when you fall and keep you in check.