J. Cole - KOD (Discussion Thread)

[Pinyapplesuckas]

im not a j cole fan

i think its a pretty good album. not sure if i will get the urge to listen to it for years to come but we'll see. only heard it twice but i really wanna hear Brackets again.

 

[gluvnast]

He goes in detail on Let Nas Down. It was more than just one song, it was plenty of songs prior to that one where he was just reaching to get a release date.

Now y'all want to have revisionist history.

And even tho Born Sinner is my fav album from him, even that had Crooked Smile on it.

To respond to your earlier comment. Yes, Kendrick Lamar has a lot of creative freedom in his albums, and he has more freedom now since he recently been promoted as part executive of TDE. That said, everything he done thus far STILL have to get the okay by Top Dawg and Punch. So even though he is musically creative, it not total freedom. It just so happens that basically ALL of TDE have that quality sound to begin with and Kendrick is more artistically creative. Someone like Ab-Soul has as much so-called "freedom" creatively. But they all so have to await approval by their bosses. J. Cole doesn't. He has his own label, he no longer need to get the okay by anyone. Interscope does the distribution, RocNation sorta does the promotion and marketing despite really, J. Cole ignores the promo shyt to begin with and drops it whenever he feels like it.

This brings your current point of so-called revisionist history. No it is not. You are CONFUSING TWO DIFFERENT DEALS. J. Cole when he first got signed, he was signed to COLUMBIA RECORDS. He did not have creative control during that period at all. In fact, he was on a 360 deal to which they had all control over him creatively. This was why there was so many issues with the Sideline Story. This was why he went into detail about those issues with Let Nas Down. This is also why his first two official albums did have this and that feature, that more than likely not his idea, but Columbia's. Even when he dropped 2014FHD, Columbia was hesitant due the then unorthodox way he was rolling it out unannounced (it was two weeks prior at that period). But it was his last record to fulfill his contract obligations and he was free. Interscope gave him a distribution deal with Dreamville, so now he runs his OWN label, has his OWN artists to which are under distribution with Interscope.

You understand now? Kendrick is not the head of TDE, TDE has the same exact distribution deal as DREAMVILLE to which J. Cole is indeed the head of.

 

[gluvnast]

@gluvnast made a claim that Kendrick has less creative freedom than Cole, and I'm saying based off of the content they've dropped, I don't agree.

These was never based on content. Don't get creative freedom and freedom of expression confused. Nobody stated that Kendrick was ever censored by the label. Just that he has bosses to speak to.

 

[re'up]

I respect the craft, content, and intent, but I am just not feeling the production after a quick run through. Needs more hooks, 90's samples, something, it just feels flat.

Needs to be edgier, darker, more pronounced, I think he was going for stripped down, but it felt lifeless.

 

[Xerces]

Boring album. However I do like " Kevin's heart" and " 1985"


@ the unenthusiastic skrrtts in kevin's heart

 

[KravenMorehead™]

I'm not really one for turn up music, I gotta be in the right mood for it.

But I gotta be in the mood for turn down music too.

This is turn down music. Vibe -wise. It's cool for what it is. And it matches the theme of the album.

I love chill music, but this is different. It's too lethargic to be my main album of the year

and lyrically he's straightforward. Flow impeccable. Great everyman rap for the youth. I don't think he's aiming any further than that.

 

[Versa]

ATM music video is phenomenal.

This album grows on me more with every listen. Really starting to feel it's topped Born Sinner and Forrest Hills Drive as J. Cole's best work.

 

[Ineedmoney504]

My point is that when we're talking about "creative freedom" from J. Cole and Kendrick, it's evident that Cole's has made more compromises in his catalog in comparison. I didn't even list shyt like Crooked Smile and Wet Dreamz which are just cringeworthy for me.



@gluvnast made a claim that Kendrick has less creative freedom than Cole, and I'm saying based off of the content they've dropped, I don't agree.

U dudes are fukking nuts. What’s wrong with a song like crooked smile or wet dreams. Those are songs he been making his whole career. Not sure why people say that?

Crooked smile is a song Cole would make for sure, and if u a Cole fan I cant see how u can hate it, unless u just tired of hearing it. And crooked smile not a creative story? It is to me, it’s a light hearted song with a twist at the end, I didn’t think It would be big as a single, or even pushed as a single, but the people loved it. At the forest hill drive tour, the smaller one he did(it was at a HOB it was all black and that song had people rapping word for word.

A Cole doing great opened the door for Kendrick Lamar to have the creative freedom that he had to start his career. As Cole said on “let Nas Down” he open the door for that lane to not have to compromise. Somebody had to be that person

And u can claim “I love my self”(which is pretty much in the same vein as “crooked smile” but got way more push but didn’t have organic love) and “poetic justice” is Kendrick compromising for the mainstream also


But now I do have Cole have more creative freedom, I don’t think nobody tell him nothin which might not be the best thing sometimes

 

[GoldenGlove]

To respond to your earlier comment. Yes, Kendrick Lamar has a lot of creative freedom in his albums, and he has more freedom now since he recently been promoted as part executive of TDE. That said, everything he done thus far STILL have to get the okay by Top Dawg and Punch. So even though he is musically creative, it not total freedom. It just so happens that basically ALL of TDE have that quality sound to begin with and Kendrick is more artistically creative. Someone like Ab-Soul has as much so-called "freedom" creatively. But they all so have to await approval by their bosses. J. Cole doesn't. He has his own label, he no longer need to get the okay by anyone. Interscope does the distribution, RocNation sorta does the promotion and marketing despite really, J. Cole ignores the promo shyt to begin with and drops it whenever he feels like it.

This brings your current point of so-called revisionist history. No it is not. You are CONFUSING TWO DIFFERENT DEALS. J. Cole when he first got signed, he was signed to COLUMBIA RECORDS. He did not have creative control during that period at all. In fact, he was on a 360 deal to which they had all control over him creatively. This was why there was so many issues with the Sideline Story. This was why he went into detail about those issues with Let Nas Down. This is also why his first two official albums did have this and that feature, that more than likely not his idea, but Columbia's. Even when he dropped 2014FHD, Columbia was hesitant due the then unorthodox way he was rolling it out unannounced (it was two weeks prior at that period). But it was his last record to fulfill his contract obligations and he was free. Interscope gave him a distribution deal with Dreamville, so now he runs his OWN label, has his OWN artists to which are under distribution with Interscope.

You understand now? Kendrick is not the head of TDE, TDE has the same exact distribution deal as DREAMVILLE to which J. Cole is indeed the head of.

These was never based on content. Don't get creative freedom and freedom of expression confused. Nobody stated that Kendrick was ever censored by the label. Just that he has bosses to speak to.

This is what you said fam

Kendrick's creative freedom goes as far as Top Dawg allows it.

What isn't Top Dawg allowing Kendrick to do exactly? TPAB isn't exactly a record execs ideal hiphop album release, Damn... he's talking about being an Isrealite throughout the album. That kind of content is far from safe coming from a guy who's the face of hiphop at Interscope right now.

I don't even know why you're painting your argument as a "creative" one to begin with. They both have creative freedom and control over what goes on their records NOW. That wasn't always the case, which was my point. You're talking about management. Cole is his own boss, and can drop whenever, ok and?

Kendrick's team got him the executive producer role for fukking Black Panther Soundtrack, so really I fail to see how you are trying to tell me Cole's doing more simply because he has his own label.

 

[gluvnast]

This is what you said fam



What isn't Top Dawg allowing Kendrick to do exactly? TPAB isn't exactly a record execs ideal hiphop album release, Damn... he's talking about being an Isrealite throughout the album. That kind of content is far from safe coming from a guy who's the face of hiphop at Interscope right now.

I don't even know why you're painting your argument as a "creative" one to begin with. They both have creative freedom and control over what goes on their records NOW. That wasn't always the case, which was my point. You're talking about management. Cole is his own boss, and can drop whenever, ok and?

Kendrick's team got him the executive producer role for fukking Black Panther, so really I fail to see how you are trying to tell me Cole's doing more simply because he has his own label.

And it does. He have to get approval by Top Dawg and Punch for everything he wants to put out. POINT BLANK PERIOD. Who do J. Cole need approval from?

 

[gluvnast]

@GoldenGlove

It's not my fault you do not know the definition of CREATIVE FREEDOM. Kendrick can do what he wants creatively, and that's only because he's fortunate to be on a label that ALLOWS him to be creative. But it still has a limit. He cannot put out anything he wants just because he CAN. Every project he has have to be approved. For everything he has released, best BELIEVE there's tons of music that was kicked back by Punch or Top Dawg himself. Only recently he got executive credit. But overall he still merely an ARTIST. He doesn't even own his own shyt. J. Cole, on the other hand is his own BOSS. Nobody can tell him what he can or cannot create or put out when when to put it out. That's the FREEDOM that we are talking about.

 

[King Sun]

Sounds like an cage album to me

 

[TheObserver]

@GoldenGlove

It's not my fault you do not know the definition of CREATIVE FREEDOM. Kendrick can do what he wants creatively, and that's only because he's fortunate to be on a label that ALLOWS him to be creative. But it still has a limit. He cannot put out anything he wants just because he CAN. Every project he has have to be approved. For everything he has released, best BELIEVE there's tons of music that was kicked back by Punch or Top Dawg himself. Only recently he got executive credit. But overall he still merely an ARTIST. He doesn't even own his own shyt. J. Cole, on the other hand is his own BOSS. Nobody can tell him what he can or cannot create or put out when when to put it out. That's the FREEDOM that we are talking about.

Great Point...

 

[GoldenGlove]

U dudes are fukking nuts. What’s wrong with a song like crooked smile or wet dreams. Those are songs he been making his whole career. Not sure why people say that?

Crooked smile is a song Cole would make for sure, and if u a Cole fan I cant see how u can hate it, unless u just tired of hearing it. And crooked smile not a creative story? It is to me, it’s a light hearted song with a twist at the end, I didn’t think It would be big as a single, or even pushed as a single, but the people loved it. At the forest hill drive tour, the smaller one he did(it was at a HOB it was all black and that song had people rapping word for word.

A Cole doing great opened the door for Kendrick Lamar to have the creative freedom that he had to start his career. As Cole said on “let Nas Down” he open the door for that lane to not have to compromise. Somebody had to be that person

And u can claim “I love my self”(which is pretty much in the same vein as “crooked smile” but got way more push but didn’t have organic love) and “poetic justice” is Kendrick compromising for the mainstream also


But now I do have Cole have more creative freedom, I don’t think nobody tell him nothin which might not be the best thing sometimes

I said those songs were cringeworthy to me, and I didn't even list them in my post initially. I just don't fukk with them, they corny and auto skips whenever they come on. Sorry

 

[GoldenGlove]

@GoldenGlove

It's not my fault you do not know the definition of CREATIVE FREEDOM. Kendrick can do what he wants creatively, and that's only because he's fortunate to be on a label that ALLOWS him to be creative. But it still has a limit. He cannot put out anything he wants just because he CAN. Every project he has have to be approved. For everything he has released, best BELIEVE there's tons of music that was kicked back by Punch or Top Dawg himself. Only recently he got executive credit. But overall he still merely an ARTIST. He doesn't even own his own shyt. J. Cole, on the other hand is his own BOSS. Nobody can tell him what he can or cannot create or put out when when to put it out. That's the FREEDOM that we are talking about.

It's not my fault that you think that matters when we have content and music to judge them by.

J. Cole's body of work isn't touching Kendrick's so even with your argument being that Cole calls his own number and releases whatever, whenever... it hasn't resulted in him putting out superior projects than Kendrick. So maybe, Cole should have somebody else's input on his projects other than his own.