Tag: j. cole

Day 76: False Prophets by J Cole

Let me take you back to 2016. In December, J Cole was set to release his fourth studio album, 4 Your Eyez Only, and he then stunned the world with his single (that would not feature on the album, I think to give it the biggest impact and live independently within his discography), False Prophets.

The entire first verse is dissecting the “fall from grace” of a former idol of Cole’s, and it is widely accepted this is Kanye West. Calling himself a genius, his mental health issues, and his appropriation of new, up-and-coming sounds for his own bodies of work are all targets for Cole, though he never explicitly says that Kanye is the subject of his rhymes.

The verses show a little bit of sympathy, but he speaks for a generation of fans to have been betrayed by him. Cole builds upon his criticism of Kanye and discusses the difficulties of fame, and how he is letting go of being restrained by the thoughts of others. Since bursting onto the scene as a rapper with a buzzcut, he has become synonymous with his long dreads, tied into finding satisfaction with his life and work internally, rather than on screens and from strangers.

Having been made to wait hours to give Jay-Z a beat at the Roc The Mic Studios, have Nas tell him he was disappointed with his single Work Out which he released under Jay-Z, and pushing the release date of his 2013 project Born Sinner forward to compete with Kanye’s Yeezus, Cole has famously had troubles with his idols. This song feels like therapy, perhaps not for Cole but for the thoughts he was having at the time of writing. Thoughts of fame, and the decay it causes. Thoughts of mental health and how the two of those can combine in a perfect storm to damage those we held to a higher standard than the mortality of ourselves. Hopefully it was cathartic for Cole, though even if it wasn’t, he’s created a very good track dissecting the taboo subjects that lurk in the shadows of the culture. Maybe even taken a step towards opening them up for conversation.

 

Spotify Playlist Link: https://spoti.fi/2CKuVex

 

 

Day 25: MIDDLE CHILD by J. Cole

Oh boy, new J. Cole is sounding fire on a Friday! Released on Wednesday (it’s new music, let me off the hook please), the title is a reference to where he sees himself in the rap game, citing in the song that he feels like a “little bro and big bro all at once”, referencing working with 21 Savage on his song A Lot and going for lunch with Jay-Z. J. Cole falls into a generation with some esteemed company; the likes of Kendrick Lamar and Drake all rose up in a similar time frame and this is the battle he faces on the track.

The song itself is very well written. Each line feels iconic and reflects J. Cole’s quiet evolution he has gone through as he has matured. From 2014 Forest Hill Drive, to his bold single False Prophets and his complex, textured and downright brilliant 2018 album KOD, the song has a sense of graduation about it. 2019 could be the year that J. Cole finally breaks into the mainstream by rapping his way. There has always been a gulf between chart-topping Drake’s style and J. Cole, with Drake very focused on producing hits whilst J. Cole has always spoken his mind. Kendrick falls in between the two, more towards J. Cole’s end of the spectrum historically (although his Taylor Swift collab followed Drake’s school of thought more).

J. Cole has been very open and honest on his views of the new generation of rappers. The last song on KOD was called 1985 – Intro to “The Fall Off” and detailed his feelings towards these freshmen. He has discussed the career of 6ix9ine with hip-hop and radio royalty Angie Martinez and has released a video discussing the state of rap with Lil Pump. This song is capturing his current views, after the aforementioned 21 Savage studio session, talking with Kodak Black and his recent recording sessions for his collaborative project Revenge of the Dreamers III, chalked for release this year, with a myriad of artists. It is exciting to see a rapper’s views on a subject evolve as time goes by, and to discover it through songs from an artist as expressive as J. Cole makes it all the better.

T-Minus and J. Cole produced, the beat is typical Cole and is the first frame in the J. Cole movie that 2019 is going to be. The dreaded, North Carolina rapper is going from strength to strength, and this year is his to lose.

 

Spotify Playlist Link: https://spoti.fi/2CKuVex