Stop Sleepin: J.Cole

If you’re just now hearing about Jermaine Cole, aka J.Cole, please do yourself a favor and spend the next 2 hours (give or take a few minutes) educating yourself on what promises to be one of the best new Hip Hop artists of 2009. After you are done listening to J.Cole’s now classic Mixtapes “The Come Up” & “The Warm Up” please continue reading…

As you now know, J.Cole has a unique voice and approach to Hip Hop which like so many other Hip Hop greats will allow him to quickly gain momentum and fans. Needless to say, being the first artist signed to Jay-z’s Roc Nation label couldn’t hurt much either. As the story goes, Jay-z contacted and signed J.Cole after hearing his track “Lights Please.” (Sometimes I listen to that track and pretend that I’m Jay-z discovering new talent…)

J.Cole especially excels in the story telling aspect of Hip Hop. Listening to J.Cole speak about trial and tribulations in his life is as much therapy for those of us who have had similar experiences as it is entertaining for those who could barely imagine being in a New City with only a “Dollar and a Dream.” (Which is exactly where J.Cole found himself after leaving North Carolina to attend St. John’s University in hopes of pursuing his music career while in the big city)

Speaking of which, “Dollar and a Dream” is my favorite track on “The Come Up” where J.Cole recounts what it was like coming up in Fayetteville, North Carolina. He even finishes the song with the line, “A journalist nigga, call me the Fayetteville observer.” J.Cole does a great job describing the hustle and obstacles of coming up in the hood. Minus a few references to the south, this song could easily describe coming up in any hood across America, which is exactly why J.Cole appeals to so many fans of Hip Hop.

Not to much surprise, “Dollar and a Dream 2” is my favorite track from “The Warm Up.” This remake is less gritty than the original and features a smoother beat, but is still a hustler’s anthem. My favorite line from “Dollar and a Dream 2” is, “They say I’m the future, but yet I’m giving niggas flashbacks.” That line sums up how I feel about J.Cole as an artist. He stands within the small group of great new MCs (Kid Cudi, Mickey Factz, B.o.B., Curren$y, etc) who are feeling extreme pressure to create the future of Hip Hop, but at the same time his style and flow reminds me of great past Hip Hop MCs such as Nas (a major influence on J.Cole’s music.)

Take a look at the video for J.Cole’s Hit single “Simba” from his “The Come Up” Mixtape:

If that video left you wanting more, here is the trailer for J.Cole’s latest Mixtape “The Warm Up”: