Dear J. Cole (re: 'Disgusting')

Don't let the hype exceed the actual product.

I say it all the time in my tweets, and frequently on this blog, but it bears repeating: Novelty, quantity, exclusivity, and hype should never exceed quality, hype especially. These days, however, in our 'I want it now' / 'Did you hear that new' / 'World exclusive' media world, we tend to give credence and the benefit of the doubt to whatever is in front of our faces in that very moment. Whether it be Twitter, blog posts, news stories, that 'bad' joint you saw across the street, or those 'fresh' sneakers in the window display, people will always love the last supposedly hot thing they lay eyes on, regardless of how the quality pales in comparison to what they already know. It's not wrong. It's just human nature. Music, especially today, benefits from that phenomena, with the 'latest offering' getting all types of acclaim. This phenomena usually results in songs being bumped into the ground for 14 minutes and 59 seconds, before the next 'big thing' hits the Interwebs.

I suppose that's why I was so disappointed with your latest offering, J. Cole. Your habitual absence from the Twitterverse was interrupted by a flurry of hyped-up, happy-go-lucky tweets, usually reserved for bad mixtape DJs and shameless promotion. I'll admit, I fell victim to the hype, waiting impatiently for you to drop your new single. As fate would have it, you were on Obama-time with your release of 'Disgusting'... But also, as fate and my lately dead-on intuition would have it, 'Disgusting' was an apt title for one of the worst songs I've heard you put out.


J. Cole - Disgusting

Filled with punchlines and wordplay that Mack Maine would deem Rhodes Scholar-worthy, 'Disgusting' was more a reason for people to keep your name in their mouths. From 'disgusting' fecal matter lines to even more 'disgusting' sight gags of metaphors, the beat might have been the only thing that saved this track. Lines like "Yes, her ass clapping / so that's a round of applause" made me cringe. Really, Cole? You used more curses than thoughts and seemed more content to talk about ejaculation than anything note-worthy. Put simply, there was little if any replay-value, and after the 5th listen, the Recycle Bin had a new entry.

Cole, this was in stark contrast to the first time I heard you, on 'The Warm Up'. Today, still reeling in my disappointment, I cued up that tape and was blessed to hear a hunger and cleverness that was missing on 'Disgusting'. On the track 'Dollar and a Dream II', I was surprised to catch a metaphor that had missed me in over 2 years of bumping the tape:

Aye Sallie, I know I ain't been answering your calls / but shit, let me explain - It's because / times been hard... been runnin around trynna find a job / I hear my phone ringing in the morning, 9 o'clock / And it's you, can't even front I press ignore / I still got your letters laying in my dresser draw / You telling me about all the things you did for me / When I was broke, you sent me dough and that was big for me / See you was there every year when I needed you / And you were so quick to give, I had to be with you / Remember when I used to call you on your phone line / I knew it was official when my momma cosigned / But in no time, a nigga graduated / I hit the real world, baby girl, I'm sad to say it / But I was using you, you gave a nigga major stacks / And I know one day in my heart that I'm gonna pay you back.

Cole, I had NO IDEA that this verse was about college loans. NONE. I've never been so sad to say that a verse flew over my head than today, and it was all because of one word: Sallie. (Readers, if you don't get it, just keep reading/listening until you get the Sallie Mae metaphor) It was a mind-blower to say the least. That you went from 'nigga, rewind that!' verses like that to 'Disgusting' is a let-down. Yes, 'Disgusting' was a b-side and according to most sources won't make the album, but if this is a throwaway track, then what's the rest of the album going to sound like? I'm pretty concerned. I suppose only time will tell.

At the end of the day, I guess 'Disgusting' served its purpose: to get the naysayers about your constant album pushbacks off your back temporarily, but at what expense? Even now, looking at your Twitter page, it's obvious you won't be back on for a while. You were the one who said famously 'Get back to rapping, you niggas tweeting too much'. Having been a firm proponent of killing the hype in favor of an exceptional product, you took a hit in my eyes. Maybe I'm a harsh critic. Maybe Cole World will blow my mind as it should. Maybe it won't, and we'll be talking about another formerly underground rapper who failed to live up to expectations and hype. Few do. At the same time, we can always see it coming. We saw Drake's commercialization from a mile away, and if this is any indication of your future, let me be the first to say it was nice knowing you, Jermaine.