Tracing J.Cole's Millennial Journey

J. Cole's most recent album, KOD, arrived at an interesting point in pop music: Lil' Pump and the other lil's are dominating the headphones of teenagers, filling in a cultural void with blue hair, Xanax, learn, and generally ignorant behavior. Such is the long-told story of youth. 50 years ago the Beatles were wearing their mops, smoking marijuana, and perfecting the devils music. They said they were bigger than Jesus. People burned their records. Old timers complained about the hippies. Those hippies grew up, and complained about the gen-X kids who were fed a steady diet of malaise, Beavis and Butthead, punk rock, and Mad Magazine. Those kids grew up and had millennial's- a generation of spoiled, but poor kids who whiz through life on apps, killed the traditional music business, elected Obama, and deferred their student loans.

J. Cole, born in 1985, is a millennial, and perfectly typifies the general experience of a millennial in many ways. His first album, (which was proceeded  by numerous mixtapes that Cole cut while he was a student at St. Johns in NYC) Cole World: The Sideline Story, released in 2011, sounds very much like other mainstream hip-hop album from, say, 1994-2012-ish. Still, its a damn good record. In it, he's pushing for the hits ("Work Out"), showing off his technical skills- playing for the label, if you will. 2011 might of been one of the last years that having a radio-friendly banger was a big deal. Still, Cole was always doing his best Pac impersonation (see the abortion story in "Lost Ones"). You could tell that this dude idolized storytelling rap, a tendency that was somewhat squashed in Cole World. 

Enter 2013's Born Sinner, which marks yet another step in Cole's evolution towards a more fully realized artist. In it, Cole acknowledges regret over the too-radio friendly Cole World and rededicates his craft to the true story-tellin' ways of Nas, Outkast, and the like ("Let Nas Down", "Land of the Snakes"). In fact, "Land of the Snakes" goes as far as sampling Outkast's "Da Art of Storytelling". Cole also addresses the politics of race and class over introspective, spacey beats, an artistic motif that would show up with more prevalence in his later work ("Rich Niggaz"). 

It wasn't until Cole released his album 2014 Forrest Hills Drive that he cemented his place in a larger cultural context. The album is a document of his life journey, akin to Kendrick Lamar's Good Kid (but not quite as genius or well executed). Sure, there are some duds, from the tacky "No Role Modelz" to the cliche feel-good, yet shallow "Love Yourz". The real treasure is found under the hood of some emotionally resonant tracks- "03 Adolescence", "Wet Dreamz", "GOMD", "Fire Squad", and "St. Tropez" are all infused with the stuff of life, the stuff of Cole- instantly relational, heart-on-sleeve raps over an array of beats perfectly suited for the emotional tone of each song. Here, "Wet Dreamz" rolls along while "03 Adolescence is filled with melodrama, "Fire Squad" and "GOMD" are fast n' furious, and "St. Tropez" is a faded sunset of drones and strings. Oh, and he raps about laundry and almond milk in "Foldin' Clothes". 

To a casual observer such as myself, around the time of Forrest Hills Drive, Cole encountered a spiritual awakening of sorts. He cut a documentary for HBO for his new album, 4 Your Eyes Only, replete with scenes of Cole chatting with locals in his hometown of Fayetteville, NC. He also visits Furgeson, MO- the sight of the Michael Brown shooting- lending visual and artistic commitment to the Black Lives Matter movement. Cole began his 4 Your Eyes Only tour with a new look: gone were the gold watches and fancy shoes- and in were the beat up, dirty sneakers and grown out hair. Cole began pushing a message of hope- urging meditation and peace over drinking, fighting, and despair. He seemed done with the trappings of fame. For more context, check out this excellent interview, in which Cole fully explains his thoughtful, considerate heart. The HBO release for 4 Your Eyes can be viewed here. 

Outside of the external shifts that took place with Cole, 4 Your Eyes Only is his best album to date. Fully produced by Cole himself and noticeably absent of guest spots (same deal with Forrest Hills and KOD), 4 Your Eyes floats in a world of its own, and touches on the contemporary black experience in the United States, partially through the lens of one of Cole's childhood friends. Here, we emphatically seep into the mindset of the characters- tracks like "Immortal" and "Vile Mentality" trace personal histories with vivid detail. "Neighbors" tells the story of a police raid on Cole's house over a dramatic, dreamy beat (his suburban neighbors assumed he was a drug dealer, indicating that no amount of success and money can insulate an individual from deeply rooted racism). "Neighbors" contrasts sharply with the suburban, domestic bliss featured on "Foldin' Clothes", off of his previous album. Things are getting deeper. Things are getting serious. 

KOD, released in 2018, is best understood in light of Cole's career arc. Ever the millennial, Cole appears to express his concern over the drug abuse and "ignorance" of gen Z rappers like little pump (who he interviewed after the album- Cole wanted to make sure the lil's knew he intentions were legit). Finger waving as it is, Cole's heart always seems to be pure. He mirrors the beats and flow of mumble rappers on tracks like "ATM" and "Kevin's Heart", ultimately calling for a framework of life that looks for something deeper than the shallow trappings of money, fame, and sexual allure. Cole has explained that "KOD" stands for both "Kids on Drugs" and "Kill Our Demons". Accordingly, much of the album documents psychological pain. "Once an Addict" is a powerful account of his mothers alcoholism, while "Window Pain" reflects on the toll of violence. 

2019 featured Cole rocking the NBA all star game, releasing a banger of a single in "Middle Child" (where he lets us know his sneakers are still dirty, and he is right in the middle of gen Z and the older storytelling rappers like Nas), and guesting on excellent songs like Bas' "Tribe". In "Middle Child", the horns nearly cry out, as Cole struts in like a royal, announcing his intentions for the future. Millennial's hold the keys to how things will look down the line- Let's hope that road is filled with folks like Cole, honoring the gift of life with a generous, thoughtful approach.