Wednesday, November 10, 2010

What's all the hype about, who is J. Cole?



That's who J. Cole is. If you didn't watch it, you should. I haven't been sold on dude, still not but he is slightly captivating and I'm intrigued. He's coming to town on the 23rd to rock Neumos. While it's his first headlining appearance in town, he was here last October with his boss - Jay-Z.

I didn't catch that set, my roommate at the time did and wasn't impressed. He was the one who told me to listen to The Warm Up but I never did. Until this past week. Today I went back to it again while writing something about him for a friend. He has an interesting story that is unlike many of his peers.

He graduated college in 2007 and quickly put together his first tape. This cat isn't only a college grad, he finished magna cum laude. Since then he has become the first artist signed with Jigga's new Roc Nation label and released one more mixtape, with another scheduled to drop in a couple days although the hype has been minimal and his album has already seen delays.



Regardless of what's happening with his projects, what is out shows an emcee that's talented and smart. He obviously isn't just a book smart kid, and his rhymes reflect both sides of his education. He makes beats and pulls on heavy drums and dusty samples like so many NYC legends, his samples and overall vibe of his music can't escape his heritage in the south however and you hear southern soul seeping out of many of his cuts. He owns the industry beats he takes as well. I guess I do like J. Cole.

Download the Warm Up here.

Listening this morning and learning a bit more about him has made me a bit more a fan, I'm still curious as to where exactly he is going and I'm not convinced he is always really talking about anything. Critiques with answers in time. Right now I'm gonna let "Last Call" replay once again. Check out his tapes and catch him at Neumos on the 23rd.

2 comments:

  1. shit, i thought you were down on him before

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  2. I don't know where I stand, haha. Sounds like Friday Night Lights is hot. The show will sway me one way or another I think. You goin?

    ReplyDelete