It’s clear J. Cole is attempting to lift a weight from his spirit, and in doing so he’s elected to enter the kingdom of the most-high to unleash his deeply vulnerable lyrical confessions in a freestyle over Drake’s “Pipe Down.”
In an Instagram post on Tuesday (September 21), the official Dreamville account shared a clip of the Simon Chasalow-directed video featuring views of the squad private jet with a sleepy Bas onboard, in addition to footage of Cole roaming the Las Vegas strip looking like a spiritual profit in crocs.
Although “Heaven’s EP” clocks in just under three minutes, it’s one of the more intense loose releases from the “My Life” MC, who touches on themes of social media exploitation, his relevance and characteristic similarities to a young Ice Cube post-N.W.A and more.
However, his most potent flows are centered around his place within the ongoing debate of the top three rappers in the game right — which include himself, Drake and Kendrick Lamar.
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In somewhat of a veiled compliment, Cole starts off by championing his own efforts, above all, before taking a bite of humble pie while acknowledging the stature of his competitors.
“Success is in the effort/So if a n-gga tried his hardest/I’m at peace knowing God ain’t deal it in this group of cards for me/Some people say I’m running third/They threw the bronze at me/Behind Drake and Dot/Yeah them n-ggas is superstars to me,” Cole raps over Drizzy’s Certified Lover Boy instrumental.
Cole continues to drop lyrical bombs fluidly as he delves into the angst that’s rooted in his celebrity.
“Maybe deep down I’m afraid of my luminosity,” he raps. “So when you see me on red carpets I’m moving awkwardly/Posing all nervous afraid of the judgment/And the thought of showing too much of my day is repugnant.”
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Given the degree of his forthcoming verses, it’s only right he allows his competitiveness to take over as he delivers a would-be sneak diss, asserting his dominance as the true G.O.A.T.
“The tale’s official/The best n-gga breathing it just failed to hit you/You couldn’t tell because you fell for the bells and whistles,” he professes.
Though J. Cole made clear his intentions to have The Off-Season album serve as his final project, he’s also clearly a slave to his passion, per his own words.
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“I’m kicking my feet up while I’m writing this somewhere tropical/Supposed to be relaxing this passion makes that impossible,” he says.
Up through this point, J. Cole is the only rapper to try his hand at a freestyle over the 6 God’s CLB “Pipe Down,” track, but multiple have gone ahead and shared new iterations of the “Champagne Poetry” album intro, including 2020 HipHopDX Awards Album of the Year winner Freddie Gibbs and Chicago vet Lupe Fiasco.
Watch the full “Heaven’s EP” video below.
Below you can listen to our DX Daily Podcast (a daily Hip Hop News Podcast) hosts react to the song as well. If you don’t have time right now but want to check it out later, here is a link to subscribe on the platform of your choice.
