On December 8th, 2019, Juice WRLD tragically passed away after suffering a seizure. It sent ripples through the hip-hop world and music community at large. Juice was one of the most promising new artists on the scene, having already achieved some huge hits at the ripe age of just 21.
TMZ reported earlier in the year that Juice had left behind roughly 2,000 songs in the vault. A small handful of songs have made it to his first posthumous album Legends Never Die out today, while a few more have trickled through since his passing.
On top of that, his presence has been felt across a number of choice features from Eminem to Trippie Redd. Here is a guide to what’s been put out since last December and what it contributes to Juice’s legacy.
Let Me Know (I Wonder Why Freestyle)
This one’s a freestyle that Juice dropped before he passed but got a wider release following. It seemed to strike even more of a chord for fans at that time thanks to some pretty chilling lyrics. “Now when you left, left, it wasn't right,” he raps, echoing the feeling of family, friends and family around the world.
No Me Ame (with Rvssian & Anuel AA)
Juice proved himself to be one of the versatile rappers in the game. He was able to jump from a collab with Ellie Goulding to one with YoungBoy Never Broke Again with ease. No Me Ame was one of his first times in the Latin genre and he brings a melodic backbone to the song.
Righteous
Righteous is the lead-single from Legends Never Die and it felt like a purposeful lead drop from his family. It vividly details his struggle with anxiety and self-medicating as he raps, “Taking medicine to fix all of the damage/My anxiety the size of a planet.” Stylistically, it owes to the emo genre that he often cited as his biggest influence. It’s angsty and introverted as if we’re getting an insight into his deepest thoughts.
Godzilla (with Eminem)
Juice was a huge fan of Eminem, frequently citing him in interviews so it’s bittersweet that he wasn’t here to see his collaboration with Em released. Godzilla was the biggest song off Eminem’s 2020 record Music To Be Murdered By. Godzilla is a damning, furious track with an immediate hook provided by Juice. Em was obviously a big fan of the rapper too telling Crook’s Corner, “That kid was so talented, man. His freestyle he did on Westwood where he rapped for an hour — what the fuck?”
Suicidal (YNW Melly Feat. Juice Wrld)
YNW Melly and Juice were on the come up at a similar time. They previously appeared together on Trippie Redd’s 6 Kiss but a posthumous remix of Melly’s song dropped this year. Suicidal is from Melly’s 2019 record Melly vs. Melvin and it was propelled by Juice’s addition. He gives a stunning opening verse, getting deep with lines like, “Everybody wishin' bad on me.”
PTSD (G Herbo Feat. Chance The Rapper, Juice Wrld and Lil Uzi Vert)
G Herbo’s 2020 album PTSD is one of the most feature-heavy of the year but few songs have a more impressive lineup than the title track. Chance, Uzi and Juice all find themselves alongside Herbo here. It’s Juice who takes the hook on this one addressing death with the opening line, “I turn the news on when I smell death in the air.” It’s hard to imagine the song being anything without the addition of Juice.
Flex (with Polo G)
Polo G’s excellent 2020 album GOAT features some of the best of rap’s new crop from Lil Baby to NLE Choppa. It’s only right then that Juice got an inclusion too. He appears on the hypnotising Flex, currently one of the best performing songs off the record. Juice’s verse is dark but it’s also triumphant with lines like, “Lately I been on a roll, yeah, show after show,” shining through. “He was just a really big kid, and even for being a superstar he always was there to try and help me out,” Polo told The Morning Hustle about Juice.
Tell Me U Luv Me (with Trippie Redd)
Trippie and Juice have a short but sweet collaboration history. The third official collaboration between the pair dropped this year and it’s instrumentally one of their sunniest. It’s Juice and Redd we’re talking about though so the lyrics are as dark as they come. Juice opens his verse with the chilling line, “Bitch, I'm a druggie, so can you hide my drugs from me?” Following Juice’s death, Redd pledged to give up drugs for good.
Go (with The Kid Laroi)
It’s impressive that young-gun Aussie rapper The Kid Laroi was able to get Juice WRLD on a track but it’s a testament to his collaborative spirit. “I think he was a great artist, and the music shouldn’t stop being released, because he definitely deserves to live forever and his legacy deserves to be great,” Laroi told Billboard about the rapper who he called his “big brother.”
Life’s A Mess (Feat. Halsey)
Halsey and Juice were friends so it feels right that she appears on his first posthumous album. They first collaborated on a remix of her 2019 mega-single Without You but this is their first released original from Legends Never Die. Following the release of the song Halsey debuted a hand tattoo paying tribute to Juice and wrote on Instagram, “Juice was one of the greatest people I have ever known.”
