The much-anticipated album from J. Cole has finally come. I have been a fan of this guy since Grown Simba and Friday Night Lights. If you follow his music you can rally hear where he evolves into a pretty dope Lyrist. I have already heard mixed reviews from its over rated and wack to this could be one of his best albums. Let’s see if I can help clear some things up for you guys. As you know I have a playlist for everything, no song on this ten-track album will be on my party mixes or turn ups. This whole album however could easily be on my “chill mix” or “writing mix”. There is no commercial fluff for radio play, just raw life of J. Cole. This album is a story that is told very well in my opinion. My only negative critique is that it was too short. I wish there were a few more tracks. This album cover a few deep subject such as mass incarceration, fatherhood, drugs and relationships.
It almost gives you Gil Scott Heron feel with “For Whom the Bell Tolls” which is the first track. This album would make, a good vinyl. I say this because I didn’t skip a song at all and honestly with 10 tracks I shouldn’t need to. Looks like he went for quality over quantity to tell this story. I do however feel like he tapped into a young Nas with this album. The overall approach is something that we need right now. Its cool to turn up and pop bottles but its good to also be aware of whats going on in our world. It’s good to know that when the party is over there is a reality that no party could mask.
I do see where the mixed reviews come from. From listening to this album, I feel that if you like skinny jean rap where in my opinion, noise mixed with random punch lines that won’t make sense, this would feel that it’s slow and boring. There are no “dope beats” to mask the gibberish being thrown at you. You can’t blast this album speeding down the street from your factory stereo that you blew out six months after you go it. There is no dance that goes with this you don’t have to be high on whatever is killing your brain cells to understand this. You are just forced to sit still and listen. However, on the other side of things if you like to hear lyrics and versus that make sense then this is the album for you. When you are stuck in a certain era of Hip-Hop like I am then you would appreciate this album. I am only 31 this month but when I listen to some “rap” now I feel like I’m 85 because I don’t understand anything these kids are saying. It’s refreshing to know that people can still form complete sentences and make a song or two without a bunch of sirens and adlibs. This is also yet another album with no features.
This album is not for the lazy listener it paints a picture much like he describes when he would listen to Nas. Normally when I listen to some albums it’s a movie. Drugs violence and cash flying everywhere. Yes, these are entertaining and I still love those types of albums but this album is different. It’s more like a documentary and Cole has a hand-held camera taking us through this story he wants us to know. One of my favorite tracks is “Neighbors”. This is pretty much about black folks living in the suburbs and they look “suspicious” to their neighbors. The song starts by explaining that he spent a lot of money on building this house to kick back in and be creative. He describes that he has a lot of folks in and out. There are cars out front but not like your average celebrity type cars. Just something to get around in. The house gets a visit by the police and the chorus kicks off with the line “Okay I think the neighbors think Im sellin dope.” I don’t want to spoil the rest of the song or the album but just a glimpse of the type of album this is. If you haven’t already you should take a listen. If you are into Hip-Hop that tell a story and paint a picture. This is the album you want in your collection. If you think your favorite skinny jean rapper is the dopest MC, you should take a listen to this article to see why I beg to differ. This is an overall good album from beginning to end. The product is great and I don’t believe he didn’t let Nas down with this one.
