J. Cole comes for Kanye West, Drake, and Wale in 'False Prophets'
But don't let that distract you from the fact that he went platinum with no features
Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.J. Cole has a lot on his mind.
On Thursday, the 31-year-old North Carolina rapper dropped his highly-anticipated, 40-minute documentary, Eyez. The Tidal exclusive features upcoming tracks from his fourth studio album, 4 Your Eyez Only, where he apparently shares his thoughts on some of the best rappers in the game including Kanye West, Drake, and Wale.
In "False Prophets," he seems to be calling out Kanye—without name-checking him—and feeding critics and fans who say Yeezy’s best days are behind him.
Ego in charge of every move, he's a star/And we can't look away/Due to the days that he caught our hearts/He's fallin' apart, but we deny it/Justifying that half-ass sh*t he dropped, we always buy it/When he tell us he a genius but it's clearer lately/It's been hard for him to look into the mirror lately/There was a time when this n***a was my hero, maybe
That's the reason why his fall from grace is hard to take/'Cause I believed him when he said his sh*t was purer and he/The type of n***a swear he real but all around him's fake/The women, the d**k riders, you know, the yes men/Nobody with the balls to say somethin' to contest him/So he grows out of control/Into the person that he truly was all along, it's startin' to show/Damn, wonder what happened
It also looks like he's coming for Drake, who’s often considered the chief culture vulture in the rap game by preying on younger rapper's styles in exchange for cosigns on Instagram.
Maybe it's my fault for idolizing n***as based off the words they be rapping / Come to find out these n***as don't even write they sh*t / Hear some new style bubbling up then they bite that sh*t.
And I know he so bitter he can’t see his own blessings/Goddamn, n***a, you too blind to see you got fans, n***a/ And a platform to make a classic rap song/ To change a n***a life, but you too anxious living’ life/Always worried ‘bout the critics who ain’t ever f**kin’ did it/I write what’s in my heart, don’t give a f**k who f**kin’ with it/ But in a sense I can relate, the need to be great/ Turns into an obsession keeps a n***a up late.
Last but not least, he seems to address his fellow rapper and friend Wale, who came up roughly the same year as Cole back in 2007.
I got a homie, he a rapper and he wanna win bad/He want the fame, the acclaim, the respect that's been had/ By all the legends, so every time I see him, he stressin'/ Talkin' 'bout, n****as don't f**k with him, the sh*t is depressin'/ And I know he so bitter he can't see his own blessings/ Goddamn, n***a, you too blind to see you got fans, n***a/ And a platform to make a classic rap song/ To change a n***a's life, but you too anxious livin' life/ Always worried 'bout the critics who ain't ever f**kin' did it
Listen to J. Cole's new track "False Prophets" below and watch the entire Tidal documentary Eyez here.