Albums : J. Cole : Born Sinner
Albums : J. Cole : Born Sinner
Listen To J. Cole : Born Sinner
After a series of setbacks, J. Cole’s sophomore album finally hit stores this week, going toe-to-toe with Kanye West’s highly anticipated Yeezus.
The 28-year-old rapper skyrocketed to prominence in 2009 after signing with Jay-Z’s label, Roc Nation. Cole’s 2011 album debuted to positive reviews and hit No. 1 on the Billboard 200. The follow-up, Cole World: The Sideline, further cemented his place as one of rap's premiere MCs.
In Born Sinner, Cole, through self-examination, takes listeners on a personal journey of his last two years. The North Carolina native addresses infidelity, the music industry and the struggle to remain true to his own artistic vision. Critics agree that the rapper is not afraid to show his own insecurities. (Read More)
Born Sinner Review
Similar to critique aimed at his contemporary competitor Drake, J. Cole has been subject to accusations of coasting and falling short of high quality in an age of lowered standards and expectations. The butt of running jokes surrounding a supposed inability to captivate, he finds himself at odds attempting to please not only a crowd clamoring for the passion found on his former mixtapes but an industry model only considerate of polished hit makers. As this persistent inner conflict pulls him in multiple directions at once, Born Sinner has J. Cole entertaining under the pressure of an identity complex which clashes with his best intentions.
Working to prevent the fabled sophomore curse from coming to pass, Born Sinner is a decidedly edgier follow up to J. Cole’s 2011 debut Cole World: The Sideline Story. The project succeeds in tying its theme of spiritual crisis amidst stardom to an analogy for the struggle to satisfy purists, but the overall results for this concept are fairly lackluster. Glaring missteps arise from “Forbidden Fruit” and “Land Of The Snakes,” which rehash the melodies of A Tribe Called Quest’s “Electric Relaxation” and OutKast’s “Da Art of Storytellin’ (Part 1)” respectively, as Cole banks on nostalgia to carry his load. Also likely to make a bad impression, he sounds fairly static at times, the otherwise ambitious “Rich Niggaz” standing out in this regard.
J. Cole is determined to earn the continued approval of his hometown Fayetteville, NC and the Rap legends to come before him. On the opening track “Villuminati" he repeats the phrase, “Sometimes I brag like Hov” before launching into verbal onslaught, perhaps setting out to convince listeners that he should one day be held in comparison to his iconic boss. Arguably the most honest moment of introspection on Born Sinner arrives with “Let Nas Down,” a brave yet awkward tale of how the QB veteran shunned Cole’s prior measures taken in the pursuit of success. He looks back with regret, pleading, “I couldn’t help but that think that maybe I had made a mistake / I mean you made ‘You Owe Me’ dog, I thought that you could relate,” reflecting his greatest strength and weakness in a vulnerability that risks backfiring.
Contact J Cole
Website | Twitter | Facebook | MySpace
Contact The Hollywood Reporter
Website | Twitter | Facebook | LinkedIn | Pinterest | Email
Contact HipHop DX
Website | Twitter | Facebook | MySpace
Sources : J. Cole Photo | Listen To Born Sinner | J. Cole Article | Born Sinner Review
Purchase : iTunes (Deluxe Version) | iTunes | Amazon (Deluxe Edition) | Walmart (Edited) | Best Buy CD
Listen To J. Cole : Born Sinner
After a series of setbacks, J. Cole’s sophomore album finally hit stores this week, going toe-to-toe with Kanye West’s highly anticipated Yeezus.
The 28-year-old rapper skyrocketed to prominence in 2009 after signing with Jay-Z’s label, Roc Nation. Cole’s 2011 album debuted to positive reviews and hit No. 1 on the Billboard 200. The follow-up, Cole World: The Sideline, further cemented his place as one of rap's premiere MCs.
In Born Sinner, Cole, through self-examination, takes listeners on a personal journey of his last two years. The North Carolina native addresses infidelity, the music industry and the struggle to remain true to his own artistic vision. Critics agree that the rapper is not afraid to show his own insecurities. (Read More)
Born Sinner Review
Similar to critique aimed at his contemporary competitor Drake, J. Cole has been subject to accusations of coasting and falling short of high quality in an age of lowered standards and expectations. The butt of running jokes surrounding a supposed inability to captivate, he finds himself at odds attempting to please not only a crowd clamoring for the passion found on his former mixtapes but an industry model only considerate of polished hit makers. As this persistent inner conflict pulls him in multiple directions at once, Born Sinner has J. Cole entertaining under the pressure of an identity complex which clashes with his best intentions.
Working to prevent the fabled sophomore curse from coming to pass, Born Sinner is a decidedly edgier follow up to J. Cole’s 2011 debut Cole World: The Sideline Story. The project succeeds in tying its theme of spiritual crisis amidst stardom to an analogy for the struggle to satisfy purists, but the overall results for this concept are fairly lackluster. Glaring missteps arise from “Forbidden Fruit” and “Land Of The Snakes,” which rehash the melodies of A Tribe Called Quest’s “Electric Relaxation” and OutKast’s “Da Art of Storytellin’ (Part 1)” respectively, as Cole banks on nostalgia to carry his load. Also likely to make a bad impression, he sounds fairly static at times, the otherwise ambitious “Rich Niggaz” standing out in this regard.
J. Cole is determined to earn the continued approval of his hometown Fayetteville, NC and the Rap legends to come before him. On the opening track “Villuminati" he repeats the phrase, “Sometimes I brag like Hov” before launching into verbal onslaught, perhaps setting out to convince listeners that he should one day be held in comparison to his iconic boss. Arguably the most honest moment of introspection on Born Sinner arrives with “Let Nas Down,” a brave yet awkward tale of how the QB veteran shunned Cole’s prior measures taken in the pursuit of success. He looks back with regret, pleading, “I couldn’t help but that think that maybe I had made a mistake / I mean you made ‘You Owe Me’ dog, I thought that you could relate,” reflecting his greatest strength and weakness in a vulnerability that risks backfiring.
Contact J Cole
Website | Twitter | Facebook | MySpace
Contact The Hollywood Reporter
Website | Twitter | Facebook | LinkedIn | Pinterest | Email
Contact HipHop DX
Website | Twitter | Facebook | MySpace
Sources : J. Cole Photo | Listen To Born Sinner | J. Cole Article | Born Sinner Review
Purchase : iTunes (Deluxe Version) | iTunes | Amazon (Deluxe Edition) | Walmart (Edited) | Best Buy CD
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