J Cole will never be considered a great, because he embodies the stereotypical "great rapper"

[REdefinition]

But here's the thing: Cole seems like a character a bunch of 50 year old white movie executives would invent to make a movie about (read in a movie-narrator voice)"the underdog rapper who's 'sideline story' took him to stardom, all while keeping it real, being a good example to the kids, and learning a bit about himself along the way".

 

[Piff Perkins]

I agree with the OP. I enjoyed Cole when he first came out, I thought his mixtapes were great, and FNL was amazing. But to me Cole hasn't grown as an artist because he's essentially a fan. When I listen to him, I get the impression he's strictly following a blueprint that worked for other rappers. Lyrically you can tell he understood the technical merits of rappers like Nas and Jay, while missing the qualities that separate great rappers (Jay) from great lyricists (Nas). Everything is straight and to the point, as the OP said. He rarely dabbles in metaphor, and when he does it's very obvious or stale.

To be honest Cole is like a backpack version of Game: someone who constantly reminds you of classic artists due to his flow and name drops, but in the end you can't really explain "who is The Game" or "who is J Cole." I get it, he's a young nikka from a mixed race background who went to college. We've heard that over and over and over again. Yet I can't honestly say Cole has really touched me with his story, or with anyone else's.

This is where Kendrick is head and shoulders above his peers. His metaphors are great and he does a great job of expressing emotion on record. He's also a great storyteller and can really make you feel for whoever he's talking about. Whereas with Cole he seems like a kid who watches a Tarantino movie and then wants to make Tarantino movies. You can imitate the dialogue and eventually come up with some witty shyt, but ultimately you're going to miss the "essence" whenever you try to imitate others.

 

[Jhoon]

People just don't like Cole because he's a regular cat. I guess that's the gift and the curse because that's one of the main things that attracted people to him in the first place.

Its all marketing. since the world is filled with fabulous rappers, being a regular joe schmo rapper is an eazy pass lane. throughout rap history there have been regular working joe rappers.

 

[stealthbomber]

That's the point. He's not bad. In theory he's very good but in reality held up to the light he's almost counterfeit.

what does that even mean

yall can just admit u dont like him, i dont get why try and hide behind this stupid reasoning

 

[LionofJudah]

Its all marketing. since the world is filled with fabulous rappers, being a regular joe schmo rapper is an eazy pass lane. throughout rap history there have been regular working joe rappers.

I wouldn't say it's an eazy pass. Cole catches more hate than nikkas like Chief Keef who mumble some bullshyt on the mic and gets away with it.

 

[The Coochie Assassin]

J Cole overachieved IMO and for that I applaud him...there's 1 million more J Coles in America that never made it but he came out on top and got signed.

 

[Edi]

you don't like J. Cole gotcha

 

[ISO]

As a J. Cole fan, I can say that while I enjoy a lot of Cole's music...he's not nearly as good at anything as he thinks he is. He thinks that he's an elite lyricist, but he's not. He's limited lyrically, but in an era where people don't rap he looks like an ill lyricist. J. Cole was looked at as that guy was going to fill the void that Kanye West had left open by moving on from what he used to do, but he's only slightly more lyrical and not the same atmosphere as a producer. On his mixtapes, on songs like "I Get Up" he was able to put together very good songs and channel the underdog role to a tee. But he's not nearly as charismatic as Kanye and he doesn't have the mic presence of other great emcees so he's prone to coming across very boring at times regardless of what he's rapping about. If the beat is bland, then you can count on Cole being forgettable. He's a better storyteller than he is a straight spitter, and at times he compensates for it by rapping aggressively like on "Looking for Trouble." But he's strong-willed and doesn't respond well to criticism as you can see by his response to people saying he's boring basically being that people aren't smart enough.

To quote Talib Kweli, "I speak in schools a lot because they say I'm intelligent, no it's because I'm dope. If I was wack, I'd be irrelevant." Speaking on issues does not in and of itself make you a dope emcee from a lyrical or technical standpoint. BUT if you're relatable, people will feel you regardless and that is Cole's appeal. He's the "relatable" rapper and he raps well enough and produces well enough to appease people who feel what he's saying. But if you're someone who isn't caught up in that, you step back and look at him after FNL and every after it is just not quite as good as what you think he's capable of. None of it is bad, but it's not "great" either. It's entirely possible to listen to a J. Cole song 5 times in a row and not take away any bars from it. I don't think he'll ever be "great," and I've accepted that. @LionofJudah

I agree Cole isn't as good as he thinks he is, he's not this elite lyricist that he's made to be and in that regard he's regressed since his classic mixtapes.

A lot of you hit the nail on the head with your analysis

 

[SuburbanPimp]

I can appreciate J. Cole
No gimmicks, No fake beef, No bullshyt,
Just beats and raps...
I know thats pretty boring this day and age but it's just what it is..

I'm surprised he actually has had the level of success he has without doing all that extra shyt...

Just like Kendrick Lamar nobody disliked J. Cole until he started having success and the worst thing people who dislike him can say is he is boring...

 

[2manyFCKNrappers]

what does that even mean

yall can just admit u dont like him, i dont get why try and hide behind this stupid reasoning

I was rooting for cole like a lot of people but then I realized he rhymes well but his creativity is forced. All of cole's shyt has an obvious structure. He's forcing you to get it like he can't trust what's not said. Structure is okay for putting an entire project together but for every song it's corny. With art period you have to give the viewer or listener some autonomy, which cole doesn't do.

 

[MooseMouthMthafuga]

He's a good rapper


He's too vanilla and lacks any fire, though

But when I listen to him, my brain tells me

He's a good rapper

 

[No1]

I wouldn't say it's an eazy pass. Cole catches more hate than nikkas like Chief Keef who mumble some bullshyt on the mic and gets away with it.

You get more criticism when people expect more out of you.

 

[KeysT]

J.cole is just that off brand version of frosted flakes from target.

Yeah it may not be name brand but it taste close enough.

 

[Flawdaboi]

J Cole overachieved IMO and for that I applaud him...there's 1 million more J Coles in America that never made it but he came out on top and got signed.

You nikka I swear!
So a there's a million other Cole types but ONLY he made it? Mmmmkay so if he's not that special/ just okay, what does that say about the other million that didn't make it? Lol smh

 

[LionofJudah]

You get more criticism when people expect more out of you.

I'm convinced there's nothing Cole can do to make the majority of people like him. He's got his solid fanbase, and that will probably be it.