Jermaine Lamarr Cole, the king of rap.

On Friday, September 24, J. Cole started his tour called The Off-Season in Miami. I didn’t have the opportunity to attend, while my sister did (she spent the whole night bragging while there were tears in my eyes).

For me to know that J. Cole was less than an hour away from me was dreadful. I called my friend to express my sadness and she simply didn’t understand what the big deal was.

Then it hit me.

Not everyone is as obsessed with J. Cole as I am, so I’m here to explain all the reasons why J. Cole is simply the greatest artist of all time.

J. Cole has a flow that simply follows him everywhere, even when he features in other artists’ songs. This flow will have you wanting to run across the country in less than 5 seconds.

In his song, “Fire Squad,” became a very conversational topic because people believe J. Cole was trying to give himself the title of king of rap, and many didn’t like that. But to me, he didn’t sound like he was trying to say that.

His lyrics almost seem satirical, referencing how other artists portray themselves in their lyrics. Towards the end of the song, he sums everything up by trying to negate this whole “rap king” crown that everyone is always seeking to get.

He goes on to says there is no crown. All of these rappers and artists are money and power-hungry, so they seek the crown because they’re insecure about their own life and think the title will stop that. They seek this crown over the hearts and minds of their fans because they want to be remembered as a legacy.

My favorite song by J. Cole is “Love Youz.” My favorite line is, “Don’t be sleeping on your level, there’s beauty in the struggle.” I interpret this line as better is not always better. When in hard times, try your best to look at whats it’s teaching you. Allow yourself to learn and grow from it.