VIBE: Everyone knows how important first singles are. Why was “Who Dat” the one?
J. Cole: First it was all feeling, just the sound and excitement behind it. Instead of shooting for an obviously commercial song, I love [“Who Dat”] because it’s really about the beat and the raps and not much more. It’s an introduction to those that were unfamiliar and also something for my fans to brag about as opposed to hearing it on the radio and being like ‘Ehhh.’ I also thought it was real ill, that I’m rapping on that the way I used to always rap… raw, aggressive. Those used to be the only raps I wrote, but as I get older, I barely do those anymore. It’s kind of interesting because the rest of my album is so far from that. That’s probably one of the only braggadocios raps, maybe one more. Everything else is conceptual storytelling with substance and meaning. Putting that out first, kind of reflects my growth as an artist.
This is also the first song from you where all the blog comments weren’t immediately positive—they were a bit polarizing. Were you surprised?
I kind of knew. Just from seeing other people, not even necessarily people from the blog era, you kind have to pick your strategy and go with it. People automatically look at the word ‘single’ different, especially ‘first single’. But I don’t pay attention because I understand that that’s going to happen for the rest of my career. As much as I would love to have everybody in agreement like ‘J. Cole’s the truth, everything he’s doing is perfect,’ I totally understand that that’s not realistic. No rapper in the world from Jay-Z to Tupac to Biggie has 100 percent love on everything they do. These people’s opinions for the most part are valid, but I don’t stress it. I just do what’s in my heart.
True life. Are you shooting the video soon?
Next week, [me and BB Gun are] going to Fayetteville to shoot it. I have to stay loyal.
Nice. Is this something where you’re having a bunch of locals involved?
Yeah. I want it to be a surprise for the city.
What were Jay’s words when he first heard the single?
He liked it a lot, said the beat reminds him of a Biggie's "Hypnotize." I believe him. That’s why they call him Hov [laughs].
When I first interviewed you last year, you said your conversations with him were limited. Has that relationship changed?
Now it’s more… I think his brain is in the same boat as mine. He’s really in executive mode like, ‘How can we take this kid to the next level. What do I need to be doing as Jay-Z to help this kid.’ I can see that all in his moves.
Is an August release really what it’s looking like?
I haven’t been given a date, but that’s what it seems like. It could be September, who knows. I just throw that out there because of the way this single is going.
Do you have an album title?
Yeah, but it may change next week so I don’t want to put it out there yet. Fans keep saying, Cole World and The Blow Up, but neither of those are it. Four months ago I was sold on one, but it restricted me a little bit. And I was smart about it because I didn’t go shout out the title as soon as I had it. I know how the game works and people don’t really understand that I have the right to change my mind.
You’ve been on a lot of other people’s tracks, but it’s usually not the reverse. Is that changing for your debut?
Right now there’s really no big features on my album and I plan on keeping it like that. I kinda like the idea of having an album that’s all me. If I do a feature, I want to do it because I really love it, not because they’re what’s hot now. I want to do a track with Rich Boy, even though his last single to blow was a couple years ago. But I still want to work with him because he has an incredible rap style. I could be like Jeezy’s on fire, let me get him, but that’s not how I operate. If I do a feature it really has to make sense, not that I don’t want to work with Jeezy, because I would love that, but you know
[laughs].
About a month ago, Drake mentioned the possibility of you jumping on a Thank Me Later bonus cut. Fact?
Man, me and Drake have been trying to get something done. Actually, if he reads this, tell him to send the shit he supposed to send. [Laughs] I understand we both busy and we spoke about doing some shit, but I guess schedule wise it hasn’t worked out. That would be ill, but as of now it’s not done.
What’s an actual conversation like between you guys? Is it past a ‘What’s good’ and ‘Congrats’?
It’s not that type of relationship yet. Right now, it’s a mutual respect, like I see what you’re doing, you’re killing the game, I’m a fan or whatever the case is. We’re both young and even though he’s more established and has hits, he still doesn’t have an album out. He still has to prep for that. So we’re not in the position to be best friends. We can save that for when we’re both laid up and chilling, but right now we both have work to do. There’s not many rappers who I feel I really know. I think Wale is one of the few that I have a real friendship with. Not saying that won’t happen with Drake because you never know, but right now it starts with respect.
No other industry friends you confide in?
Nah man. Even Wale… I don’t want to get that twisted like we have deep conversations about life. I just feel like I know him better than the others. I keep to myself by nature.
I bet the groupies don’t like that. How are you handling them?
[Laughs] I haven’t figured it out, but it’s not like that for me. I can’t tell you crazy groupie tales. I mean they scream and go crazy as if I’m Drake. [Laughs] The craziest thing that’s happened so far is girls just asking me to sign their breasts, but there hasn’t been any wild backstage stories. I truly believe that your mentality attracts certain things. It’s almost like [groupies] can feel the energy I give off, like it’s probably not going to go down. I mean, I notice them, but that energy stops them in their tracks. That must be what’s happening.
"Nas actually quoted one of my lines. I was like ‘Man, don’t quote me'... I used to type Nas lyrics just to put up on my wall"
Safe to assume you’re still with your girlfriend?
[Laughs] Yes, we’re still together.
It’s easy to count blessings right now, but what do you think has been your biggest mistake thus far?
Hmm, I don’t feel like I have any big mistakes. I have missteps, but those all led me to something greater. It wasn’t a harsh lesson, but I learned to be careful with who you let onto your team. Because these people at the end of the day are going to reflect you. If you’ve got a bunch of assholes around you, people might look at you in that light. I don’t want to go into specifics, but I learned that early.
On a lighter note, who are some well-known folks you were surprised to learn are J. Cole fans?
LeBron! I met LeBron at a show in Cleveland and his homeboy tells me, ‘Yo I ‘m loving the mixtape, especially that one joint, that turn off the lights joint.’ Then LeBron jumps in the conversation—mind you I hadn’t even spoken to him and this nigga got a deep-ass voice—singing “Lights Please.” I was like ‘What you know about that? Please don’t tell me LeBron James listens to my mixtape!’
What was your reaction to the Nas cosign?
I don’t remain cool when I meet these people, I’m like a little kid. Actually, when I met Nas… this was before he gave me any props on video, probably like a month or two ago, he actually quoted one of my lines from the Kweli song. I was like ‘Man, don’t quote one of my lines. You don’t understand man.’ I was so genuinely appreciative. I fucking used to type Nas lyrics just to put up on my wall.
It’s good to know he’s keeping up with this new generation.
Exactly. And I respect him even more because that’s obvious from interviews. He’s the one who said hip-hop was dead, so it would be easy for him to be a bitter legend. But he’s receptive to the new school. It means we’re doing better quality music and he’s not afraid to point that out.
Going back to your album, you mentioned it being a lot of storytelling, what are some of those tales?
If you could imagine a town called Dreamville, which is really to me, a mixture of my hometown Fayetteville and the city of dreams, New York. So it’s like this fictional town where the story takes place and within this setting there’s all these different aspects of life. Whether it’s the main character’s issues, family issues, relationship issues and then there’s this whole other issue of him trying to accomplish his goals. Prison issues, family members locked up. I see it like a movie.
Is this a concept that runs throughout the entire album?
Yeah, for the most part, but it’s not a literal concept album. It’s kinda like The Warm Up, but a little deeper. A continuation of that concept.
Is the album just about finished?
I could be done tomorrow if they said that’s the deadline. I have too many songs. That’s the problem at this point.
Does too many songs mean we would get a mixtape before the album?
Probably not. I don’t have throwaway joints. So if I put out a mixtape it’s going to be better than somebody’s album. If I’m serving you a meal, I don’t want to give you an appetizer that’s just as filling as the meal. I’d rather give you a banging-ass meal and then possibly come with some good-ass dessert.
So what you’re saying, is you’d like to starve us a bit?
[Laughs] Exactly. And I guarantee people are going to appreciate it, maybe without even knowing it. They’re going to appreciate that I didn’t stuff them and over do it.
Vibe.com
