J. Cole hits the vibe with a his new album. If this is his off-season, I don't know if I dare see his on-season.
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| Cover art for The Off-Season |
I could sit here and try to explain his thought process to you, but along with releasing the album he actually released a documentary that goes with it. I can 100 % recommend watching it, if you haven't already.
The album is great mix of energetic and slower tracks. The common denominator is the great lyrics and fantastic flow there is throughout the whole album.
Cole is for sure a pioneer of newer hip hop music, which he displays multiple times on the album. He constantly tries to implement new things to his genre of music.
He is a mastermind when it comes to writing lyrics and on every single track, he displays references, illustrations and double meanings to accomplish his goal, which is portraying the topic of the track.
Rating:
Vibe: 7/10
J. Cole is vibe in himself, because of the approach and views he has on life itself. The album however is more rough around the edges than we usually see from Cole, bringing more of a hard feeling than a vibe. He does maintain to incorporate mellow bars and beats on some of the tracks, but keep in mind that a non-vibe track from Cole is like the most vibe track for many artists.
Lyrics - 9/10.
J. Cole is a genius on the mic, and he displays it with superiority on this album. On every single track his word-plays and different ways of illustrations are on point.
Flow - 9/10.
Cole's truly one of the greatest on the mic, and he proves it his flow almost fits the music perfectly every time. On every track he has a new flow and a new rhyme scheme. It's amazing.
Music - 6,5/10.
The beats are sustainable throughout the whole album and contributes positively to the big picture. However the album is in no way focused on the musical part, but way more on the lyrics and feeling Cole wants to bring the world.
Overall - 8,5/10.
As said before The Off-Season might be the a l b u m . o f . t h e . y e a r .
Tracklist:
95. s o u t h - 7,5/10
"95. s o u t h" is the first track of the album. It finds him expressing his opinions on the rap game in general, along with his thoughts on his life, experiences and career.
The title references going south on Interstate 95. It goes from New York, which is Cole's second home. All the way down to his home state, North Carolina.
Throughout the track Cole delivers multiple well-thought references. Cole keeps it real and delivers a solid track with well-explaining, clever lyricism and a current flow, which seals the track as a banger.
a m a r i - 7/10.
On "a m a r i" Cole speaks about his up-coming in the rap game. The track features a way more confident and arrogant Cole.
The lyrics are spectacular on this one. Almost every single line is double entendre, a reference or an illustration of what he actually means. This is highly skilled lyricism, and it's what Cole does best.
Cole brings a singing vocal to the chorus, which he rarely does. It's great to see Cole stepping more out of his comfort zone, but I think the higher pitches of his voice are unnecessary.
m y. l i f e (with 21 Savage and Murray) - 8/10
On "m y. l i f e" Cole recruits Murray and 21 Savage on an energetic track, where they speak about how their lives would have been if they didn't make it in the rap game, along with speaking on their come-up in general.
21's verse is the first rap verse to be featured on a solo J. Cole album since he released Born Sinner in 2013.
Cole comes in hot with a hard a flow to build up his never-ending meaningful lyricism, on this energetic track Cole still manages to implement his inner thoughts and his vulnerability on the track.
21 comes in with his signature flow and reminisces about the things he's been through and what would have happened if he didn't make it out the hood. A reflective, thinking 21 we don't usually see, but it works superb with Cole.
Cole and 21 previously collaborated on "A Lot" from 2018
a p p l y i n g . p r e s s u r e - 8/10
On this hard track Cole applies pressure in two ways.
- He exposes rappers especially new generation rappers for showing off way more wealth than they actually have
- He demonstrates his tremendous mic skills with a well-thought and dense verse
Cole delivers a one verse, self-produced track and it goes hard as hell. He illustrates his big brother spot to the new generation rap game. And he definitely has something relevant to say.
Definitely an add to the playlist!
p u n c h i n ' . t h e . c l o c k - 6/10
On the shortest track of the album Cole speaks about all the hours he has spent working or "punching the clock".
The intro samples Damian Lillard's post-game interview after a 61-point game. Explaining the connection between this and the album, Cole has said:
"The Off-Season symbolizes the work that it takes to get to the highest height. The Off-Season represents the many hours and months and years it took to get to top form... The Off-Season is where the magic really happens"
1 0 0 . m i l ' (with Bas) - 7,5/10
This is one of track, which really cements Cole's spot as a GOAT of the rap game.
Even though he is successful enough all ready, Cole speaks on how he will continue to master his craft, improving his lyricism, production and sound regardless of what he has already accomplished.
Speaking on reaching your full potential, Cole said this:
"If this is as high as you ever got... from a skill level, like, have you wrote your best song? Did you leave no stone unturned, creatively? And when I thought about that feeling, I was like, 'Nah, I'm not cool with that"
Like he says on the chorus:
"One hundred mil' and I'm still on the grind"
A perfect addition the album, after speaking on his come-up, now he speaks on his aftermath.
p r i d e . i s . t h e . d e v i l (with Lil Baby) - 8/10
On the seventh track of the album Cole speaks about on the deadly sins, pride. He illustrates, how it drives the behavior of both himself and those around him. He's really humble throughout the track, reflecting over how fortunate he was to get where he is.
On Lil Baby's verse we see him discuss his wealth, former life of drugs and responsibility to the people he grew up with. This thinking, reflecting Lil Baby, we don't usually see. It's great tho and I think he has a lot to say. This marks the first collaboration between the two, but I would love to see more from them in the future.
A fast track, where they both discuss very relevant topics using well-thought, meaningful lyrics.
l e t . g o . m y . h a n d (with Bas and 6LACK) - 8/10
Cole goes provides an analysis of his life of career, bringing a tremendous amount of detailing to the doubts he has had over the years and the fear of being a father of two black sons, who grow up in a world filled with racism and violence.
A full-on vibe track throughout the whole thing. Cole goes softer and it's exactly the thing I've been missing from the album so far.
A heartfelt track with eye opening lyricism. Cole is really reflected and brings multiple perspectives to his life on just one track.
i n t e r l u d e - 7/10
Of course I had listened to i n t e r l u d e prior to the album release. I still find it to be a good song with the classic voice of Cole.
Cole delivers just one verse about his come-up and current presence in the rap game, along with darker topics like personal trauma and the pain of loss to death.
The one verse is delivered to perfection rapping wise and features well-thought, reflective lyricism.
t h e . c l i m b . b a c k - 9/10
"t h e . c l i m b . b a c k" was actually released almost a whole year before the album release. Cole mostly speaks about rediscovering his love and passion for rap, along with some of his personal trauma, which contributed to his love for rap.
Cole goes "soft" again, bringing a superb mellow vibe on the track.
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| "t h e . c l i m b . b a c k" was released on July 22, 2020 along with "Lion King On Ice" on his two track project Lewis Street |
c l o s e - 8/10
On the second last track of the album Cole reminisces about his friend, who fell in to the temptations of drugs and the gang-life.
A really sensitive track, where Cole becomes as real as it gets. The way he displays the loss of his friend with it ending with his friend being killed it's extraordinary. He uses rap as an art form and as a speaker for important and relevant topics.
h u n g e r . o n . h i l l s i d e (with Bas) - 8/10.
Cole explains how no matter his success he will still stay the same.
A track, which brings a enjoyable vibe, along with mellow bars all the way through. A great way of ending the album, bringing the classic and loved, signature vibe of J. Cole
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