J. Cole Says He Was Sick Of Rapping About Himself After "2014 Forest Hills Drive"

J. Cole talks about the creative process.

BYAron A.
Link Copied to Clipboard!
9.3K Views
Tabatha Fireman/Getty Images

J. Cole fans have always appreciated him for his authenticity in telling his own truth. As a rapper, he's given fans an insight into his own trials and tribulations in his life as he relates that to the average person. However, it appears as though there was a time in his life when he was sick of talking about himself. 

Leon Bennett/Getty Images

Cole recently joined Marshawn Lynch and Ryan Coogler in Harlem for the MLK Now Panel. Over the course of the conversation, which got into some very deep topics, Cole explained a point in his career where he was simply tired of speaking of his own life in the rap game. "The time, it was after the Forest Hill Drive album, at a time in my life where I was just tired of like, rapping about myself," he explained. "So much of my art was storytelling from my own perspective. I'd always give you branches of someone else's perspective but so much of it was like my personal journey, my personal growth, my personal flaws, this, that and the third. And it was a time period when I was like that was not interesting to me."

After moving back to North Carolina from New York, he explained that he had a "whole different perspective of the landscape." 

"That tour was a product of that album which was a product of that book and just a desire to like, 'okay, let me use this platform to tell these stories,'" he said. Peep the clip below.

  • Link Copied to Clipboard!
About The Author
Aron A. is a features editor for HotNewHipHop. Beginning his tenure at HotNewHipHop in July 2017, he has comprehensively documented the biggest stories in the culture over the past few years. Throughout his time, Aron’s helped introduce a number of buzzing up-and-coming artists to our audience, identifying regional trends and highlighting hip-hop from across the globe. As a Canadian-based music journalist, he has also made a concerted effort to put spotlights on artists hailing from North of the border as part of Rise & Grind, the weekly interview series that he created and launched in 2021. Aron also broke a number of stories through his extensive interviews with beloved figures in the culture. These include industry vets (Quality Control co-founder Kevin "Coach K" Lee, Wayno Clark), definitive producers (DJ Paul, Hit-Boy, Zaytoven), cultural disruptors (Soulja Boy), lyrical heavyweights (Pusha T, Styles P, Danny Brown), cultural pioneers (Dapper Dan, Big Daddy Kane), and the next generation of stars (Lil Durk, Latto, Fivio Foreign, Denzel Curry). Aron also penned cover stories with the likes of Rick Ross, Central Cee, Moneybagg Yo, Vince Staples, and Bobby Shmurda.