the off-season — Home — What’s Cool?

Fayetteville, North Carolina native J. Cole has established himself as one of the strongest rappers in the genre’s modern era. The self-described “middle child” of hip-hop, Cole embodies the aesthetics of modern styles while staying true to the roots of rap. The result of this dedication is a philosophical, lyrically talented artist with well-produced beats and a contemporary delivery. In the lead-up to The Off-Season, Cole released two singles and a viral freestyle on LA Leakers, along with a mini-documentary that captured the recording process for this newest project. These teasers had fans excited, expecting Cole to return to form and to deliver one of his strongest albums yet. Luckily, that is exactly what we received, as this 12 track offering clearly demonstrates Cole’s maturation and growth as an artist with many great songs to choose from.

Cole wastes no time setting the stage for things to come with the project’s opening track “9 5 . s o u t h”, which features lyrical accompaniments from Cam’ron and Lil Jon. A hard-hitting bass pairs well with Cole as he spits bar after bar, introducing the audience to his newly refined and intricate skills. The one-liners are strong right off the bat, with “Krispy Kreme dreams, sometimes my dogs wanna kill 12” standing out. “a m a r i” is a strong second song, featuring more of a modern and casual delivery style from Cole who still comes off as hungry. Again, we see him switch things up with autotuned and sung sections throughout. “m y . l i f e (with 21 Savage & Morray)” is one of my favorites on the album, utilizing its features incredibly well. The instrumental here reminds me of 21 Savage’s “a lot”, and goes very smoothly with his verse. Each artist discusses the benefits of persevering through hardship, which is something both of them have had to do throughout their careers and lives.

“a p p l y i n g . p r e s s u r e” sees Cole reflecting on the insincerity of rappers who tout false wealth through material goods without having the funds to justify them. The instrumental is somewhat one-dimensional here for me, so I’m glad this track is less than 3 minutes long. “p u n c h i n ‘ . t h e . c l o c k” is another short track that lets Cole discuss the many hours he has put into his craft, featuring an audio soundbite of a Damian Lillard interview, which is one of the many basketball references found throughout the album. This makes sense considering that Cole is now playing basketball professionally in Africa. “1 0 0 . m i. l ‘ (with Bas)” features Cole reflecting on how far his music has come despite his previous successes, which haven’t discouraged him from still always refining what he does best.

“p r i d e . i s . t h e . d e v i l . (with Lil Baby)” is one of my favorite songs on the album, featuring the same instrumental as Aminé’s “Can’t Decide”. As the title suggests, this song discusses the damaging nature of pride in different social environments. The transitional handoff to Lil Baby’s feature is seamless and thoroughly impressive, as he becomes one of my favorite feature artists as of late. “l e t . g o . m y . h a n d . (with Bas & 6LACK) is one of the most substantively mature songs on the project, echoing the themes of “4 Your Eyez Only”. Cole reflects on his doubts and fears, and what it’s like to be the father of a Black son in America. This is another great track.

We heard the next two songs before the album’s release, and luckily “i n t e r l u d e” and “t h e . c l i m b . b a c k” still hold up well in the project’s tracklisting. “c l o s e” reflects on a friend who fell into the pitfalls of drugs, but unfortunately this track is less than memorable to me for some reason - something’s missing on the penultimate song. Finally, the closer “h u n g e r . o n . h i l l s i d e (with Bas)” ties up any loose ends wonderfully. Here, Cole declares that he will always be the same person no matter how far his artistic career takes him. Bas closes the project with fantastic contributions, and Cole’s hard work proves paid off.

The Off-Season is a lot of what I wanted from a new J. Cole project. He has clearly reflected on what works for him as an artist, refining and practicing his craft to produce introspective, hard-hitting songs with lyrical depth and complexity and mass appeal, but there is still room to grow. It seems that he will soon be dedicating more of his time to pursuing other forms of expression besides rap, but I don’t think this is Cole’s final project. I highly suggest that you check this album out, as it’s my favorite of his since 2014 Forrest Hills Drive.

Favorite tracks: “9 5 . s o u t h”, “a m a r i”, “m y . l i f e (with 21 Savage & Morray)”, “a p p l y i n g . p r e s s u r e”, “1 0 0 . m i l ‘ (with Bas)”, “p r i d e . i s . t h e . d e v i l (with Lil Baby)”, “l e t . g o . m y . h a n d (with Bas & 6LACK)”, “i n t e r l u d e”, “h u n g e r . o n . h i l l s i d e (with Bas)”

SCORE: 7/10