I see parallels between J.Cole and Russell Wilson careers

[Mike the Executioner]

I don't think the comparison makes sense. Before the apology, you could argue Cole was the most beloved of the three. He always had a strong fan base and after he improved technically, he started catching the ear of more casual listeners. There was a time where he was the clear #3, because he wasn't a hit maker like Drake or an album artist like Kendrick. But then Kendrick disappeared for a couple years and Drake started dropping more mediocre work. From 2018-2023, Cole leveled up and turned himself into the feature killer, the guy that could destroy any beat while remaining humble and down-to-earth. The Off-Season run was like a victory lap for him. For the first time, he didn't have the spotlight taken away from him.

Cole is way better now as a rapper than he was ten years ago, but after the apology, he lost his status as a killer. Kendrick took back the #1 spot with extreme prejudice, and Drake exposed himself as a petty loser with borderline MAGA tendencies. The war made people see that Kendrick will always be at the top and the other two, while both successful and iconic, will never have what it takes to be there. Russ is very easy to figure out. He was a great quarterback in 2014-2015, and now, he's not. Can he still throw for over 400 yards? Yes. But age caught up to him, and he's never going to be looked at in the conversation of great QBs ever again. Cole just needs to drop great music and he can regain his status.

 

[TheRtist]

Both folded when it mattered most

why does this not have 5 million likes reps??? thats it right there, end thread

 

[TheRtist]

russel Wilson has a ring

Trent Dilfer has a ring too, but the legacy is what separates lucky from great. Thats what OP is saying.

 

[TheRtist]

Day 1 Cole fans would tell u his albums has gotten worse

His mixtapes and first few albums was the best work he did.

He just got more mainstream attention and appeal but that dnt mean better.

Day 1 Jay Z fans would say the same in the 90s

 

[King Poetic]

Cole reminds me of nate dogg

They can kill every feature they own

But they solo projects had/have u like

 

[TheRtist]

Cole reminds me of nate dogg

They can kill every feature they own

But they solo projects had/have u like

Nate Dogg had 1.5 hits on his own

J.Cole has like 5 undeniables

 

[Westbama Heartthrob]

Cole reminds me of nate dogg

They can kill every feature they own

But they solo projects had/have u like

G funk classics vol 1 & 2 good to this day. fukk you mean breh

 

[TheRtist]

I don't think the comparison makes sense. Before the apology, you could argue Cole was the most beloved of the three. He always had a strong fan base and after he improved technically, he started catching the ear of more casual listeners. There was a time where he was the clear #3, because he wasn't a hit maker like Drake or an album artist like Kendrick. But then Kendrick disappeared for a couple years and Drake started dropping more mediocre work. From 2018-2023, Cole leveled up and turned himself into the feature killer, the guy that could destroy any beat while remaining humble and down-to-earth. The Off-Season run was like a victory lap for him. For the first time, he didn't have the spotlight taken away from him.

Cole is way better now as a rapper than he was ten years ago, but after the apology, he lost his status as a killer. Kendrick took back the #1 spot with extreme prejudice, and Drake exposed himself as a petty loser with borderline MAGA tendencies. The war made people see that Kendrick will always be at the top and the other two, while both successful and iconic, will never have what it takes to be there. Russ is very easy to figure out. He was a great quarterback in 2014-2015, and now, he's not. Can he still throw for over 400 yards? Yes. But age caught up to him, and he's never going to be looked at in the conversation of great QBs ever again. Cole just needs to drop great music and he can regain his status.

This is any artist. But the point of the matter is, he hasn't. Thats where it happens. We give rappers credit for what they could do, not what they are doing.

Cole is Russ status right now and its going to take a hell of a run to fix things. Otherwise, he is #3 not because he owns the spot but because we live in a time where the bar is not that high. Think of Cam/Mase/Freeway/50, hell even Cassidy at one point. Everyone had what it took to get into the GOAT discussion. Below J.Cole being #3 who else has the skill set to become a GOAT? no one.

 

[Mike the Executioner]

This is any artist. But the point of the matter is, he hasn't. Thats where it happens. We give rappers credit for what they could do, not what they are doing.

Cole is Russ status right now and its going to take a hell of a run to fix things. Otherwise, he is #3 not because he owns the spot but because we live in a time where the bar is not that high. Think of Cam/Mase/Freeway/50, hell even Cassidy at one point. Everyone had what it took to get into the GOAT discussion. Below J.Cole being #3 who else has the skill set to become a GOAT? no one.

Cole never fell off musically or lyrically. He's not Russ status. You can see a significant decline in Russ' skills over time. Cole dropped a decent diss track and denounced it, which made him look like a punk. The diss track was also the weakest song on the album.

The Fall Off will most likely be a great album and it will restore people's faith in Cole. He didn't get wrapped up in a scandal and he didn't lose anything skillwise. He just has to remind people of his talent and that's it.

 

[maxamusa]

Trent Dilfer has a ring too, but the legacy is what separates lucky from great. Thats what OP is saying.

Since you got OP's dikk down your throat; can you break down what accolades Fold has

 

[2ATMsYouSteppinOrWhat]

russel Wilson has a ring

I’m tryna be funny on the coli bro chill

 

[FlimFlam]

cole never got recieved by the general public as "corny"

you see how that white boy shyt got flung at and stuck with drake and not cole? theres a reason for that

Russell wilson would be the one subjected to that...

 

[Ziggiy]

This is an overall bad comparison.

Cole wasn’t ever looked at as “corny”. The knock on him was that he was “boring” but that was mostly internet Coli talk. His album sales and tour sellouts proved differently.

Cole also got better and more acclaimed with every album, the exact reverse of Russell Wilson; who truly fell from top 5 to not even mentioned at all.

Cole is also beloved by his crew, it seems like everyone on that Seahawks OG team hates Wilson for one reason for the other. It may be jealousy, it may sour grapes, but Cole has NEVER experienced the amount of disrespect from his peers that Wilson has. Even after all the bullshyt and Cole going out like a hypocritical punk his crew backed him and other rappers defended him.


Cole should have NEVER apologized. Its a stain on his career that I doubt he’ll ever truly recover from in the eyes of the culture, but it won’t erase all of his accomplishments and he’s got one of the strongest fanbases of any rapper whose ever lived. People genuinely LOVE J.Cole in a way that most artists, no matter the genre, would kill to have. The man sold out The Garden dolo with no opening acts performing a ten year old album. And this was post apology-gate. Russell Wilson, despite all accounts of him being a genuinely nice guy who never bothers anybody, has never gotten that type of love from anybody.

 

[Rasille]

The analogy doesn’t work imo. I’m sure there is a better example but I can’t think of any right now.

 

[Big Boss]

I don't think the comparison makes sense. Before the apology, you could argue Cole was the most beloved of the three. He always had a strong fan base and after he improved technically, he started catching the ear of more casual listeners. There was a time where he was the clear #3, because he wasn't a hit maker like Drake or an album artist like Kendrick. But then Kendrick disappeared for a couple years and Drake started dropping more mediocre work. From 2018-2023, Cole leveled up and turned himself into the feature killer, the guy that could destroy any beat while remaining humble and down-to-earth. The Off-Season run was like a victory lap for him. For the first time, he didn't have the spotlight taken away from him.

Cole is way better now as a rapper than he was ten years ago, but after the apology, he lost his status as a killer. Kendrick took back the #1 spot with extreme prejudice, and Drake exposed himself as a petty loser with borderline MAGA tendencies. The war made people see that Kendrick will always be at the top and the other two, while both successful and iconic, will never have what it takes to be there. Russ is very easy to figure out. He was a great quarterback in 2014-2015, and now, he's not. Can he still throw for over 400 yards? Yes. But age caught up to him, and he's never going to be looked at in the conversation of great QBs ever again. Cole just needs to drop great music and he can regain his status.