Rating: NNNN
Since becoming the first signee to Jay-Z’s Roc Nation label, J Cole has been positioned as feisty protege of the elder MC. That dynamic is felt all over his debut album – in the confidence and passion the 26-year-old brings to his music, but also in blunt between-song dialogue chronicling the setbacks he endured along the way.
Major label politics aside, the more interesting theme is the responsibilities that come with relationships. Cole’s best when relating complex familial situations – as son, boyfriend and future father – and he takes pains to consider all sides, even rapping from the female POV on Lost Ones, about a couple arguing about an abortion.
This weighty material is balanced by romantic raps, a few bangers and largely relaxed production that underscores Cole’s emotive lyrics with warm harmonies, pretty instrumental flourishes and well-placed features. (A Supa Dupa Fly-sounding Missy Elliott on Nobody’s Perfect is a nice surprise.) At times, the mid-tempo brooding gets a bit monotonous, but Cole is an engaging enough character to make this a solid debut.
Top track: Lost Ones
