J. Cole Reflects on 'Life and Times'

Roc Nation rap rookie J. Cole is preparing to release his debut album, Cole World: The Sideline Story, any day now. Before the album release, Cole spoke to Life + Times about the upcoming album, his anticipated success and road from underground to above ground star. “I’ve grown as a producer, I’ve grown as a rapper, an artist, my understanding of the industry has grown so much,” he said in the documentary. “I didn’t know nothing back then. I just knew I could rap good and I could make good beats.”

As a college student, the young beatmaker fancied producers like Kanye West as one of his influences back in the day, even playing “Late Registration” for a roommate. These days, he is closer than ever to his fellow producer, signing to Jay-Z’s imprint label after the 2007 release of his mixtape, “The Come Up.”

As for J. Cole’s official album, he said in another interview to Idolator.com that it will cover a plethora of musical and emotional ranges. “An emotional rollercoaster,” said Cole of the album’s theme. “Strong emotions. I wanted to do things the best. So if I had a super emotional record that’s supposed to touch your heart, I wanted to do the things to really make you cry when you hear it. Or if I was doing a party song or a fun song, I really wanted to do it the best and really have you feel like you’re really jamming for real. Or, you know, if I was riding in the car, doing a rap record, I really wanted to go hard and do everything to the fullest extent.”

“I don’t wanna have anything half-ass on the album.”

With mentors like No I.D., Danja, Kanye West and Jigga himself, mediocrity seems like a non-issue. All the newly minted rapper, who admits that he just bought a sofa for his home, has to concern himself with is his continued ascension through hip-hop’s ranks. “I’ve already come to grips with the fact this is my life, and it’s cool. I want more.”