Track 1. "Intro" Cole keeps it simple here by reminiscing on the day he first got signed & spits a lil freestyle.
Track 2. "Dollar & A Dream III" Here Cole is going nuts as he continues to spit about his journey on finally get'n to this point in his career. Cole sounds hungry as if this is his first album.....Wait a minute, it is LOL.
Track 3. "Can't Get Enough" I like this track, but I can't help but hearing traces of Kanye Swagg-Gu all over this one. I mean if ya gonna go & sound like Yeezy why not just feature the dude? I mean Ye & Jigga are boys right? I'm sure Jay could've made the collab happen.
Track 4. "Lights Please" 4 tracks in & Cole is staying very consistent which is great thing. Cole's story telling ability comes out in a major way on this track as he tells a story about a girl who he met that he seems to want to actually give her some positive life advice (imagine dat from a guy lol) but all she wants to do is sex Mr. Cole down like Color Me Badd LOL. Thanks for trying Cole but she wasn't trynna hear ya lol daaamn.
Track 5. "Interlude" Umm yeah, just a Interlude *Rapper Shrug*
Track 6. "Sideline Story" "I put my heart & soul into this game I'm feeling drained" is the opening lines & I feel him on this 100%. Your basically as good as your next song so fans (& writters, bloggers) can be a lil hard on artist without knowing what it really takes to stay above water in this crazy music biz. & Cole also addresses those who may have thought him & Jigga were bumping heads (pause) cause Jay never shouts him out by saying "WHO GIVES A F*CK" haha works for me.
Track 7. "Nice Watch" ft. Jay-Z. LOL so much for the not get'n along with Jigga nonsense. This "Watch The Throne" reject beat had to grow on me; still not a big fan of this beat but Jigga & Cole killed it as Jay-Z spits "I got a Hublot I call Tebow, I strap that bitch with a gator band, Y'all niggas ball halftime, y'all niggas play like the gator band".....#SICK
Track 8. "Cold World" (scratching my head) Is it just me or does Cole sound a tad bit like Kanye at times? I know I mentioned it before but it's kinda weird cause it's like a dead on imitation of Ye O_O I dunno, maybe it's just me. Anyways this song was aiiiggghhtt nothing groundbreaking.
Track 9. "In The Morning" ft. Drake. I'm loving this collabo with Drizzy. It actually sounds like it could've been the other way around i.e Drake ft. J. Cole. I can def see the ladies going ape sh*t over this song at a live show. I can see it now, Drake comes from behind the curtain on his verse & the crowd goz BONKERS!!
Track 10. "Lost Ones". Def not to be confused with Lauryn Hill's classic song of the same title, but Cole does a great job at pouring out his emotions over this track as the hook goes "And I'm not to proud to tell ya that I cry sometimes, I cry sometimes about it". A very heartfelt song speaking on deadbeat baby daddies & abortion...very nicely done & one of my favorite tracks on the album.
Track 11. "Nobody's Perfect" ft. Missy Elliott. I think Missy's hook made this song. Don't get it twisted, Cole did his thing, but Missy's harmony brought that extra uummmppph to it. As a matter of fact ummm Missy has been kinda MIA lately hmmm. A new mixtape, album, video would be nice any time now Missy....thanks in advance :)
Track 12. "Never Told". Another great display of how Cole can paint a picture through music. Speaking as a young'n who witness his dads cheating ways but never told his moms what he saw. I imagine a many kids may go through this, not me personally, but I can recall a few older relative giving me the old "Hey don't tell anybody what you saw today" smh.
Track 13. "Rise & Shine" "I'm feeling on top like when Pac fucked Madonna". I always feel like that myself lol. This is J. Cole spit'n crazy bars line after lines demanding his respect & his spot in the game. And I agree, this dude is a straight BEAST!!! No surprise to many, but I'm very impressed with the way my man puts words together #Dope
Track 14. "God's Gift". Off top the beat is dope & Cole rides it well (pause). Kinda your typical God must love me cause I'm special song, but with Cole's skills & ability to add substance to a otherwise just OK song, Cole can get away with things that lesser emcees below his level would prolly get kicked in the head for.
Track. 15. "Breakdown". J. Cole let'n his emotions go once again. Telling the story about his pops wasn't around as a youth & how his mom became addicted to drugs. Now you may say "Yeah yeah yeah I've heard all before" & I don't blame you, but J. Cole has a very honest and believable quality about him that makes him and the song enjoyable even though your favorite rappers rapper has prolly covered those topics a million times.
Track. 16. "Work Out". Funny that Cole would end his album with a club type track, but since it knocks I'm not mad at him at all. The beat sounds kinda west coast-ish which is not a bad thing & orders the women to drop it low (which is never a bad thing) especially if they comply lol. The only wack part of the song is then end when he jacks a line from Paula Abdul's old school hit song "Straight Up" smh. Oh well sh* t happens...I guess O_O
Final Analysis: With a lot riding on if J. Cole could deliver a hot album or not I would have to say Mr. Cole delivered a slam dunk his first time out. Is it a CLASSIC? Def not, but how many times does that happen the first time out in any artist's career? It happens but not a lot. Cole is def heading in the right direction because this album is very solid in lyrics and production. Nothing super over the top or super gimmicky, just straight nice quality music with thought provoking concepts. And with that I give this album a very SOLID 4 outta 5 SLAPS!! Do you agree or disagree? Leave your comments below #Deuces
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