NEW YORK (AP) — On paper, the song might be an unusual pairing, or something resembling Mad Libs. Two Atlanta rappers with idiosyncratic styles — Offset's melodic, aggressive flow and the dexterous lyricist JID — speaking the same language on “Bodies.”
Their collaboration, largely recorded in China, arrives atop a sample of nu-metal band Drowning Pool's 2001 cut “Bodies.” It's become a 2025 Billboard Hot 100 hit of their own, and it doubles as an ode to self-determination — standing your ground and working toward evolution.
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JID poses for a portrait on Tuesday, Aug. 5, 2025, in New York. (Photo by Andy Kropa/Invision/AP)
Offset poses for a portrait on Tuesday, Aug. 5, 2025, in New York. (Photo by Andy Kropa/Invision/AP)
JID poses for a portrait on Tuesday, Aug. 5, 2025, in New York. (Photo by Andy Kropa/Invision/AP)
Offset poses for a portrait on Tuesday, Aug. 5, 2025, in New York. (Photo by Andy Kropa/Invision/AP)
This combination of images shows Offset, left, and JID during a portrait session on Tuesday, Aug. 5, 2025, in New York. (Photo by Andy Kropa/Invision/AP)
“As soon as he played it, it was like history,” JID says of hearing their “Bodies” for the first time. “The production is one of my favorite compositions I ever recorded over.”
It also serves as a kind of introduction of a new era for both artists, who both have new albums this month.
In the post-"Bodies” glow, JID released his fourth album, “God Does Like Ugly” last week. The title is a play on his grandmother's Southern colloquialism, “God don't like ugly.”
“It's more intentional,” he says of his new release. “The last project was more of an origin story, where I came from until now,” he says of 2022's elastic “The Forever Story.”
“This one is closer, up to date, of where I am mentally — and my perspective of the industry.”
That's immediately clear on the virtuosic “God Does Like Ugly” and its formidable list of collaborators, Clipse, Ciara, Don Toliver and Vince Staples among them.
It's also evident on the lead single, “WRK,” an examination of ambition, and the surprising run up to his album release. JID embarked on the J. Cole-inspired “Dollar & A Dream” Tour, a series of exclusive performances across the U.S., where attendees only needed to pay a buck for entry.
“I just thought it was a cool idea. A great way to be intimate and see your fans,” he says. “Getting to perform the new songs for them every night is perfect.”
Drive is certainly something the pair have in common, but when it comes to their new releases, the comparisons end there. Offset will release “Kiari,” his third solo album on Aug. 22. The title is his legal name — a direct reflection of the album he calls “a look in the mirror.” He says it's a collection of “different versions of Offset, which comes from Kiari … I'm always trying to rebrand and recreate.”
Where his last release, “Set It Off,” sought to “bring rap back, not so much melody,” as he told The Associated Press in 2023, “Kiari” combines the best of both worlds.
He says he's pulling from “life events” on the album. “It feels very personal,” he says. “Not just about what I'm speaking on, but how serious the moment in time is for me to prevail.”
“'Set It Off' was a freedom,” he adds, proof that he could shine as a solo artist outside of Migos, the group that launched his career.
“Kiari,” instead, is “me, for what I am. And recognizing who I am, because I feel like sometimes you could get lost in trying to please other people and trying to do what they want you to do. So, this is like my rebellion. My rebellion album.”
And he's got an A-list crew of collaborations helping him rebel: Not just JID, but also Gunna, Key Glock, YoungBoy Never Broke Again, Ty Dolla $ign, Teezo Touchdown and perhaps most surprising of all, John Legend on the emotive “Never Let Go.” He says it is for the late Takeoff, his Migos bandmate and cousin, who died in a 2022 shooting.
“It’s a song for him,” says Offset. “The last album, I had not did a song (for him) because I couldn't during the time.”
Even still, “Never Let Go” was a challenge. “The song is beautiful. I was able to be vulnerable on the song and speak and say certain things I've never said out loud.”
“Kiari” is also Offset's first new album since the birth of his third daughter with rapper Cardi B in September, shortly after she filed for divorce from him.
It is likely fans will read the final track on the album, “Move On,” to be about their relationship. He says it's simply “about moving on peacefully. That's what the message is supposed to be: moving on peacefully.”
He chosen to end the album that way to “end that chapter, just move on. It's over and done with. It was great while it lasted. That shouldn't be the topic for neither one of us no more. It's a book that's closed.”
JID poses for a portrait on Tuesday, Aug. 5, 2025, in New York. (Photo by Andy Kropa/Invision/AP)
Offset poses for a portrait on Tuesday, Aug. 5, 2025, in New York. (Photo by Andy Kropa/Invision/AP)
JID poses for a portrait on Tuesday, Aug. 5, 2025, in New York. (Photo by Andy Kropa/Invision/AP)
Offset poses for a portrait on Tuesday, Aug. 5, 2025, in New York. (Photo by Andy Kropa/Invision/AP)
This combination of images shows Offset, left, and JID during a portrait session on Tuesday, Aug. 5, 2025, in New York. (Photo by Andy Kropa/Invision/AP)
NEW YORK (AP) — Kamala Harris “wrote off rural America" during the 2024 presidential campaign and failed to attack Donald Trump with sufficient “negative firepower," according to a long-awaited post-election autopsy released on Thursday by the Democratic National Committee.
The committee's chair, Ken Martin, shared the 192-page report only after facing intense internal pressure from frustrated Democratic operatives concerned with his leadership. Martin had originally promised to release the autopsy, only to keep it under wraps for months because he was concerned it would be a distraction ahead of the midterms as Democrats mobilize to take back control of Congress.
On Tuesday, Martin apologized for his handling of the situation and conceded that the report was withheld because it “was not ready for primetime."
Although the autopsy criticizes Democrats' focus on “identity politics,” it sidesteps some of the most controversial elements of the 2024 campaign. The report does not address former President Joe Biden’s decision to seek reelection, the rushed selection of Harris to replace him on the ticket or the party's acrimonious divide over the war in Gaza.
“I am not proud of this product; it does not meet my standards, and it won’t meet your standards,” Martin wrote in an essay on Substack on Thursday. “I don’t endorse what’s in this report, or what’s left out of it. I could not in good faith put the DNC’s stamp of approval on it. But transparency is paramount.”
A spokesperson for Harris did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
The initial reaction from Democratic operatives was a mix of bafflement and anger over Martin's handling of the situation.
“Why not say this in 2024, or bring in more people to finish it, instead of turning this into the dumbest media cycle for 7-8 months?” Democratic strategist Steve Schale wrote on social media.
The postelection report, which was authored by Democratic consultant Paul Rivera, calls for “a renewed focus on the voters of Middle America and the South, who have come to believe they are not included in the Democratic vision of a stronger and more dynamic America for everyone.”
“Millions of Americans are suffering from poor access to healthcare, manufacturing and job losses, and a failing infrastructure, yet continue to be persuaded to vote against their best interests because they do not see themselves reflected in the America of the Democratic Party,” the report says.
The autopsy points to a reduction in support and training for Democratic state parties, voter registration shifts and “a persistent inability or unwillingness to listen to all voters.”
Thursday's release comes as Martin confronts a crisis of confidence among party officials who are increasingly concerned about the health of their political machine barely a year into his term. Some Democratic operatives have had informal discussions about recruiting a new chair, even though most believe that Martin’s job wasn't in serious jeopardy ahead of the midterm elections.
The report found that Harris and her allies failed to focus enough on Trump's negatives, especially his felony convictions. This was part of a broader criticism that Democrats' messaging is too focused on reason and winning arguments, “even in cycles when the electorate is defined by rage.”
“There was a decision in the 2024 Democratic leadership not to engage in negative advertising at the scale required,” the report states. “The Trump campaign and supportive Super PACs went full throttle against Vice President Harris, but there was not sufficient or similar negative firepower directed at Trump by Democrats.”
The report continues: “It was essential to prosecute a more effective case as to why Trump should have been disqualified from ever again taking office. The grounds were there, but the messaging did not make the case.”
Trump's attack on Harris' transgender policies were cited as a key contrast.
Specifically, the report suggested the Democratic nominee was “boxed” in by the Trump campaign's “very effective” ad that highlighted Harris' previous statement of support for taxpayer-funded gender-affirming surgeries for prison inmates.
Democratic pollsters believed that “if the Vice President would not change her position – and she did not – then there was nothing which would have worked as a response," the report said.
The report criticized Harris' outreach to key segments of America while condemning the party's focus on “identity politics.”
“Harris wrote off rural America, assuming urban/suburban margins would compensate. The math doesn’t work,” the report says. “You can’t lose rural areas by overwhelming margins and make it up elsewhere when rural voters are a significant share of the electorate. If Democrats are to reclaim leadership in the Heartland or the South, candidates must perform well in rural turf. Show up, listen, and then do it again.”
The report also references Democrats' underperformance with male voters of color.
“Male voters require direct engagement. The gender gap can be narrowed. Deploy male messengers, address economic concerns, and don’t assume identity politics will hold male voters of color,” it says.
President Donald Trump speaks during an event about loosening a federal refrigerant rule, in the Oval Office at the White House, Thursday, May 21, 2026, in Washington. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin)
Former Vice President Kamala Harris speaks during a fireside chat on Thursday, May 7, 2026, in Las Vegas. (AP Photo/Ty ONeil)
FILE - Democratic National Committee chair Ken Martin speaks during an interview with The Associated Press at DNC headquarters, Jan. 12, 2026, in Washington. (AP Photo/Allison Robbert, File)
