 Genius Meanings
|
|
J. Cole – Intro (2014 Forest Hills Drive)
|
|
Immediately Cole delves into the elements of the album: freedom, happiness and love.
https://twitter.com/JColeNC/status/539848835485696000
When moving back to his hometown of
|
|
J. Cole – Intro (KOD)
|
|
J. Cole sets the stage for his 5th studio album in this opening track.
He briefly explained on Twitter that there isn’t an obvious or completely logical explanation or meaning of
|
|
|
J. Cole – 1985
|
|
“1985” is representative of the year J. Cole was born. When combined with 2014 Forest Hills Drive’s “January 28th,” Cole’s entire birthday is in his discography.
The song is a
|
|
J. Cole – Intro (The Come Up Vol. 1)
|
|
For the introduction of The Come Up, J. Cole unravels his project by thanking his listeners. While it’s uncommon to open up with a thank you letter, Cole is very appreciative.
|
|
J. Cole (Ft. Amber Coffman & Cults) – She Knows
|
|
Born Sinner’s third single features Dirty Projectors’ Amber Coffman (Cole had previously sampled her on his remix of Major Lazer’s “Get Free”), also heavily sampling the Cult’s
|
|
|
J. Cole – BRACKETS
|
|
On “BRACKETS” Cole details his journey climbing up the ‘tax brackets,’ describing how taxpayers should have more agency in how their money is being spent in the 21st Century. Cole
|
|
J. Cole – Intro (The Warm Up)
|
|
On “Intro,” North Carolina rapper J. Cole prepares his audience for his second official mixtape The Warm Up. On the track, Cole speaks about his prerogative on line and shares his
|
|
J. Cole – Friday Night Lights (Intro)
|
|
[Intro] / Yeah / Almost, almost / Hm, damn / Hey / [Verse] / So here we are / So here we are / So here we are / It's funny how so close can seem so far / Seem so far / Seem so far
|
|
J. Cole – Runaway
|
|
On the lush “Runaway,” Cole talks about his relationship troubles, which, underneath the moral struggles and spiritual dichotomies hinted at by the album title, is another topic he
|
|
J. Cole – p u n c h i n ’ . t h e . c l o c k
|
|
On the album’s briefest track, J. Cole raps about the hours he’s spent working—or “punching the clock.”
The intro samples NBA star Damian Lillard’s August 11, 2020, post-game
|
|
J. Cole – 9 5 . s o u t h
|
|
J. Cole begins The Off-Season with “9 5 . s o u t h,” a commanding track that finds him expressing his opinions on the rap game and boasting about his life, experiences, and career
|
|
|
J. Cole – Too Deep for the Intro
|
|
Over a sped up, soulful sample of Erykah Badu’s “Didn’t Cha Know”, Cole begins Friday Night Lights with a personal and motivational cut on never giving up on your dreams. In his
|
|
|
J. Cole – Love Yourz
|
|
Cole draws back to the intro and its main themes as he comes full circle back to present day. A much wiser Cole reflects on the most important things in life, such as love and
|
|
Dreamville, J. Cole & Lute (Ft. DaBaby) – Under the Sun
|
|
“Under the Sun” serves as the opening track to Revenge of the Dreamers III and first official collaboration between North Carolina artists J. Cole, Lute, and DaBaby. The rappers
|
|
|
J. Cole – Once an Addict (Interlude)
|
|
J. Cole uses “Once an Addict” to detail the development of his feelings concerning his mother’s relationship with alcoholism. Cole uses this interlude to show that he also deals
|
|
|
J. Cole – Villuminati
|
|
Cole sets the mood for Born Sinner, which is also an ongoing theme, by wittingly announcing this body of work “way darker this time” – the previous time being his debut album.
“
|
|
|
J. Cole – G.O.M.D.
|
|
Cole is starting to lose himself in Hollywood; becoming arrogant and making typical commercial music.
His first doubts about his new lifestyle come in the second verse—he starts
|
|
|
J. Cole (Ft. kiLL edward) – FRIENDS
|
|
Although there is a feature on “FRIENDS,” it is speculated to be Cole himself in the form of an alter-ego. This is integral in understanding the yin-yang theme in play.
Edward is
|
|
J. Cole – Lost Ones
|
|
“Lost Ones” is a dialogue between a young couple who’ve just discovered the girl is pregnant. Exploring the whirlwind of thoughts and emotion that follow this revelation, Cole adds
|
|
|
J. Cole – ATM
|
|
“ATM” is an introspective yet energetic track that highlights Cole’s relationship with money. He confirmed in a tweet that the song title is an abbreviation for “Addicted To Money
|
|
|
J. Cole – Fire Squad
|
|
J. Cole attempts to restore the balance in hip hop as he criticizes white privilege and white appropriation of the culture—namely, Macklemore’s The Heist winning the 2013 Grammy
|
|
|
J. Cole – Rise and Shine
|
|
[Intro: Jay-Z] / There's a nigga right now somewhere / He at the table with a bowl of Apple Jacks / And he's reading the back of the cereal / And in between eating the Apple Jacks
|
|
|
J. Cole (Ft. James Fauntleroy) – Born Sinner
|
|
This is both the title track and the last song on the standard issue of J. Cole’s sophomore LP, Born Sinner. In true Cole fashion, he closes the album with an emotional, cinematic
|
|
|
J. Cole, 21 Savage & Morray – m y . l i f e
|
|
On “m y . l i f e,” Cole recruits 21 Savage and Morray for a track on which they discuss the struggles of their respective come-ups and the benefits of their perseverance. They
|
|
J. Cole – Intro (Live)
|
|
[Verse] / Do you wanna, do you wanna be / Do you wanna, do you wanna be (Hey) / Do you wanna, do you wanna be, happy / Do you wanna, do you wanna be, happy / Do you wanna be / Do
|
|
|
J. Cole – Window Pain (Outro)
|
|
This song starts with a narrative of a little girl who discusses the story of her cousin getting shot.
For the duration of this song, Cole is self-reflective and contemplative as
|
|
|
J. Cole – January 28th
|
|
January 28 happens to be J. Cole’s birthday. With an album named after his childhood home, he begins taking us on a tour through his life starting with his earliest years.
Since
|
|
|
J. Cole – Wet Dreamz
|
|
On the third single from Forest Hills Drive, Cole reminisces about his first time with a girl. He puts on the typical play-it-cool attitude when in reality all he knows about are
|
|
J. Cole On Which Rapper He’s Targeting With “1985": ”It’s Really A ‘Shoe Fits’ Situation”
|
|
He had praise for XXXTentacion, Lil Baby, & Trippie Redd, too.
|
|
|
J. Cole – Cole World
|
|
[Intro] / I think it's gonna be a hell of a night, a hell of a night / So we could do whatever you like (Like, like, like...) / Hey, hey! / [Verse 1] / It took me all day to find
|
|
|
J. Cole – a m a r i
|
|
On “a m a r i,” Cole details his ascent to greatness in the hip-hop industry beginning in his hometown of Fayetteville, North Carolina. The lyrics capture a confident and
|
|
J. Cole – Work Out
|
|
After “Who Dat” failed to become a chart topper, J. Cole released “Work Out” as the second single off his debut album three months prior to its release, on June 5th, 2011, the
|
|
J. Cole – 4 Your Eyez Only
|
|
“4 Your Eyez Only” serves as a message to James McMillian, Jr.’s newborn daughter, recounting memories. James McMillian, Jr. is a friend whom Cole speaks of throughout the album.
|
|
|
J. Cole – A Tale of 2 Citiez
|
|
A Tale of Two Cities is a novel by Charles Dickens, set in London and Paris before and during the French Revolution. Some of its major themes–rebellion, conflict between rich and
|
|
|
J. Cole – 03' Adolescence
|
|
In 2003, Cole turned 18 and graduated from Terry Sanford High School. Later that year he moved to New York City to attend St. Johns University on an academic scholarship.
The song
|
|
Drake (Ft. J. Cole) – First Person Shooter
|
|
[Part I] / [Intro: J. Cole & Adonis] / (Pew, pew-pew) / First-person shooter mode, we turnin' your song to a funeral / To them niggas that say they wan' off us, you better be
|
|
|
Dreamville, EARTHGANG & J. Cole (Ft. Saba & Smino) – Sacrifices
|
|
“Sacrifices” features Midwest rappers Smino and Saba in their first collaboration with Dreamville’s J. Cole and EARTHGANG. On the track, which closes out ROTD3, each artist
|
|
J. Cole & Bas – Tribe
|
|
“Tribe” is the ninth official collaboration between J. Cole and his Dreamville Records signee Bas. It was released as the second official single from Milky Way two days before the
|
