J. Ivy has been played on NTS shows including Midnight Marauders w/ Marshmello, with Hustle first played on 5 August 2013.

J. Ivy (born March 3, 1976 as James Ivy Richardson II) is an American performance poet, spoken word artist, recording artist, and author. He is a three-time HBO Def Poet and has earned a Grammy Award for his performance on Kanye West’s debut album The College Dropout. His full-length solo album, Here I Am, was released in late 2010 on his co-owned entertainment company Ivyous Entertainment.

In 2012, J. Ivy followed up his album "HERE I AM" with the release of his book "HERE I AM: Then & Now," a compilation of the album's lyrics, stories regarding the inspiration for the album, and additional poetry. In January 2014 J. Ivy inked a book deal with Beyond Words Publishing, an imprint of Atria Books & Simon & Schuster, for the January 2015 release of his new book "Dear Father: Breaking the Cycle of Pain", which is based on J. Ivy's poem "Dear Father" (as seen on HBO Def Poetry).