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As of March 2026, I can confidently say this is the only LP of which I could sing every single lyric. For 87 minutes, a 25 year old J. Cole is able to effortlessly showcase his insatiable desire to become one of the greats. In his "Inevitable" podcast first released in 2022, he introduced the album as if it was a "hobby" and that it was not consuming a majority of his focus as all eyes were on his upcoming studio album with a mandatory hit single. The lesson from the ... read more

The large divide between the highs and lows of this album are very indicative of where Cole stood as an artist at this point in his career: trying to overextend himself into a persona that was not true to himself. Songs made early in the album's creation process such as Lost Ones, Lights Please, and Breakdown lead the way for the major highlights of this project. However, songs such as "Cole World," "Mr. Nice Watch," and "Dollar and a Dream III" still stand as ... read more