JR JR (formerly Dale Earnhardt Jr. Jr.) are an American indie-pop band from… Read Full Bio ↴JR JR (formerly Dale Earnhardt Jr. Jr.) are an American indie-pop band from Detroit, Michigan, consisting of Daniel Zott and Joshua Epstein. Zott and Epstein met each other while playing in other Detroit music projects and began recording in Zott’s basement in Royal Oak, Michigan.

JR JR was formed in late 2009 by members Joshua Epstein and Daniel Zott. The band also includes drummer Mike Higgins and the group’s newest addition, keyboardist Jon Visger. The band initially began as a basement recording project with few intentions of reaching the public.

In July 2010, the band released Horsepower EP via Quite Scientific Records. The Horsepower EP consisted of songs “Nothing But Our Love,” “Vocal Chords,” “Simple Girl,” and a cover of The Beach Boys’ “God Only Knows.” Months after their EP was released the band’s genre was described as ‘psych-retro pop,’ ‘an inspired mix of hip-hop and folk,’ ‘minimalist altera-pop,’ and ‘beach wave.’ The band came out with a second EP titled My Love Is Easy: Remixes Pt.1 via Quite Scientific Records on November 2, 2010. They were noted as ‘one of the best new bands’ of 2010 and became very well-liked from various sources such as Stereogum, SPIN, Under the Radar, Real Detroit, and The Metro Times. The band later came out with We Almost Lost Detroit EP via Warner Bros. Records and Quite Scientific Records on April 21, 2011. The duo released two singles, “Morning Thought” and “Simple Girl” on April 8, 2011 and September 9, 2011; respectively.

Then-Dale Earnhardt Jr. Jr. released their first full-length album, It’s A Corporate World on June 7, 2011 via Warner Bros. Records and Quite Scientific Records.

The band came out with their new single, “If You Didn’t See Me (Then You Weren’t On The Dancefloor)” on April 2, 2013. This single was released right before they came out with their new EP, Patterns. The band performed live on May 16, 2013 on KCRW’s Morning Becomes Eclectic to premier a few songs on their upcoming album. The featured songs included: “Hiding,” “Run,” “Mesopotamia,” “If You Didn’t See Me (Then You Weren’t On The Dancefloor),” “Dark Water,” “Knock Louder,” “War Zone,” “Don’t Tell Me,” and “I Think Of You.” They also performed on the TV series Conan, June 11, 2013, featuring the song “If You Didn’t See Me (Then You Weren’t On The Dancefloor).”

Patterns (EP) was released on April 16, 2013, consisting of four songs: “If You Didn’t See Me (Then You Weren’t On The Dancefloor),” “Dark Water,” “Hiding,” and “Habits.” Their 13-track sophomore LP, The Speed of Things, was released on October 8, 2013.

JR JR's first release under their new, shorter moniker on July 16, 2015 was the single "Gone," to be featured on their upcoming LP "Jr Jr," slated for a September 25, 2015 release.

More information can be found at the band's web site, jrjrmusic.com.

For My Brother
Jr Jr Lyrics

Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴

I got love for all of my cousins
And you ain’t messin’ with us
‘Cause we are rollin’ squad deep
Like we all are a bunch of homies
See, but we are
We in the car
Drivin’ down the Boulevard
10 people in an 8-seat

But what you say, man, don’t faze me
‘Cause it’s safety first
We buckled up
If you fuck with us, we’ll fuck you up
We ride or die, get high and try
To let our feelings out
One-by-one, we take a puff
Now the eldest son
He taught me how to create what I wanted to
Never thought rappin’ is the thing that I would do
But here I am
And thanks to him, I’m the man
Who’s proud of the path I took
And lookin’ past the present
Priscilla is blessin’ the family
With the first of the next generation
I’m proud of the baby that she’s raisin’
And the way she’s doin’ it
She’s come a long way, movin’ up top
You should be glad of the mom that you’ve become
Elva has you to whom she’d look up
Yeah, I got love for all of my cousins
And you ain’t messin’ with us
‘Cause we are rollin’ squad deep
Like we all are a bunch of homies
Iziquiel was my first best friend
I learned to always rely on him
To protect his cousin ‘cause I’m a shrimp
And I’d get picked on ‘til I was ten
He’d keep the wolves off with his bare fists
He’d pummel them, and I’d just sit in the back watchin’
He suffered all consequences
And I got shit
I thank him for it
Can’t afford to rest
Tryin’ to impress my lil cousin
Brother Jaime
Teach him about the things I love in hopes he’d care
I’d share my shit like my baseball mitt
But he outgrew that glove
But shit outta luck was Precious
‘Cause she had no one to share hers with
She’s the youngest of the bunch
She’d throw a punch, play bloody knuckles for self defense
She’s the toughest lil chick that I do know
I’m glad that she, she broke that mold
She’s been through a lot but remains so strong
She jots her wrongs in a song like this
She writes poetic, and if she wants some shit, she goes and gets it
7 year gap, and another birth happened
2008, December 5, Amaris was brought to the world
I saw that kid grow from an infant to the age of ten
Now she’s big, but she’ll always be that little baby in my heart
Thinner maybe, but still so short
She serves as the mentor to her little cousin
Who is just two years younger and is named Hans Ecatzin
And Hans, to me, is like a mini me
So I be teachin’ him everything
That I know now and I’ve ever seen
Just tryna be a good role model in his life
Do for him what Josh did in mine
I got love for all of my cousins
And you ain’t messin’ with us
‘Cause we are rollin’ squad deep
Like we all are a bunch of homies
Yeah, I got love for all of my cousins
And you ain’t messin’ with us
‘Cause we are rollin’ squad deep

Like we all are a bunch of homies
Beat

Overall Meaning

The lyrics to "For My Brother" by Jr Jr celebrate the strong bond and love the artist has for his cousins. The song highlights the unity and support they offer each other, describing how they stick together as a tight-knit group. They navigate through life's challenges, always looking out for one another.

The first verse mentions their collective strength and unity, indicating that no one can mess with their squad. They ride together, even in a crowded car, emphasizing their loyalty and commitment to each other's safety. The lyrics also express how the artist's older brother played a significant role in shaping his life. He taught the artist to follow his dreams and pursue a career in rap music, ultimately helping him become the person he is today.

The second verse pays tribute to various cousins and their unique qualities. It mentions Iziquiel, the artist's first best friend, who protected him from bullies and faced the consequences on his behalf. Brother Jaime is also mentioned, emphasizing the artist's desire to share his passions and interests, hoping that Jaime would care as much as he does. Precious, the youngest cousin, is portrayed as a tough and resilient individual, who faced challenges but stayed strong. The artist appreciates her strength and how she breaks societal expectations. The verse further mentions the arrival of Amaris, the artist witnessing her growth from infancy to age ten, highlighting the bond they share. Lastly, there's Hans Ecatzin, the artist's younger cousin, whom he loves and considers teaching as a role model.

The overall message of the song is the deep love and connection the artist feels towards his cousins. Through their shared experiences and support, they have formed a strong and unbreakable bond, resembling a tight group of homies.

Line by Line Meaning

I got love for all of my cousins
I have deep affection for all of my relatives

And you ain’t messin’ with us
You will not disrupt or harm our group

‘Cause we are rollin’ squad deep
Because we are a large, tight-knit group

Like we all are a bunch of homies
Like we are all close friends

See, but we are
But in reality, we are

We in the car
We are inside the car

Drivin’ down the Boulevard
Traveling along the Boulevard

10 people in an 8-seat
10 individuals sitting in a car with 8 seats

But what you say, man, don’t faze me
But your words, man, do not bother or affect me

‘Cause it’s safety first
Because our priority is safety

We buckled up
We fastened our seat belts

If you fuck with us, we’ll fuck you up
If you provoke us, we will retaliate aggressively

We ride or die, get high and try
We are extremely loyal, enjoy life, and attempt new things

To let our feelings out
To express our emotions

One-by-one, we take a puff
Individually, we smoke a substance

Now the eldest son
Now the oldest male child

He taught me how to create what I wanted to
He taught me how to pursue and achieve my desires

Never thought rappin’ is the thing that I would do
I never expected that I would become a rapper

But here I am
But now I am in this position

And thanks to him, I’m the man
And because of him, I have become a capable individual

Who’s proud of the path I took
Who is pleased with the choices I made

And lookin’ past the present
And focusing on the future

Priscilla is blessin’ the family
Priscilla is bringing joy to the family

With the first of the next generation
With the first child of the new generation

I’m proud of the baby that she’s raisin’
I am proud of the child she is raising

And the way she’s doin’ it
And the manner in which she is raising her child

She’s come a long way, movin’ up top
She has made significant progress and achieved success

You should be glad of the mom that you’ve become
You should be grateful for the mother you have become

Elva has you to whom she’d look up
Elva has you as a role model

Yeah, I got love for all of my cousins
Yes, I have deep affection for all of my relatives

Iziquiel was my first best friend
Iziquiel was my initial closest companion

I learned to always rely on him
I learned to always depend on him

To protect his cousin ‘cause I’m a shrimp
To defend me, his cousin, because I am small

And I’d get picked on ‘til I was ten
And I would be teased until I reached the age of ten

He’d keep the wolves off with his bare fists
He would fend off the attackers using only his hands

He’d pummel them, and I’d just sit in the back watchin’
He would beat them mercilessly, and I would simply observe from the sidelines

He suffered all consequences
He endured all the negative outcomes

And I got shit
And I received nothing

I thank him for it
I express gratitude to him for it

Can’t afford to rest
Cannot afford to relax or take a break

Tryin’ to impress my lil cousin
Attempting to make a good impression on my younger cousin

Brother Jaime
My brother named Jaime

Teach him about the things I love in hopes he’d care
Educate him about my interests with the hope that he would also find them meaningful

I’d share my shit like my baseball mitt
I would share my possessions, like my baseball glove

But he outgrew that glove
But he became too old for that glove

But shit outta luck was Precious
But Precious had no luck

‘Cause she had no one to share hers with
Because she had no one to share her things with

She’s the youngest of the bunch
She is the youngest of the group

She’d throw a punch, play bloody knuckles for self-defense
She would fight back and engage in risky activities to protect herself

She’s the toughest lil chick that I do know
She is the most resilient young girl that I know

I’m glad that she, she broke that mold
I am pleased that she has defied expectations

She’s been through a lot but remains so strong
She has faced numerous challenges but continues to be resilient

She jots her wrongs in a song like this
She expresses her hardships through a song like this

She writes poetic, and if she wants some shit, she goes and gets it
She writes poetically, and if she desires something, she takes action to obtain it

7 year gap, and another birth happened
There is a 7-year age difference, and another child was born

2008, December 5, Amaris was brought to the world
On December 5, 2008, Amaris was born

I saw that kid grow from an infant to the age of ten
I witnessed that child's growth from infancy to ten years old

Now she’s big, but she’ll always be that little baby in my heart
Now she is older, but she will forever be the little baby in my heart

Thinner maybe, but still so short
She may be thinner now, but she is still quite short

She serves as the mentor to her little cousin
She acts as a mentor to her younger cousin

Who is just two years younger and is named Hans Ecatzin
Her cousin, who is two years younger, is named Hans Ecatzin

And Hans, to me, is like a mini me
And to me, Hans is like a younger version of myself

So I be teachin’ him everything
So I am teaching him everything

That I know now and I’ve ever seen
That I currently know and have witnessed

Just tryna be a good role model in his life
Simply attempting to be a positive influence in his life

Do for him what Josh did in mine
Provide for him what Josh provided for me