J Cole and Drake have a strained relationship at this point. At least, professionally. The two rappers spent most of 2023 in buddy mode, with multiple collabs and tour dates under their belt. Then, Kendrick Lamar showed up and caused a rift. Drake went to war the the good kid, and Cole decided to bow out and flip sides. J Cole’s list of collaborators since the whole “Big Three” battle went down is notable. Most have been rappers who were anti-Drake during the battle. ASAP Rocky, Future and Metro Boomin, and now, Daylyt.
J Cole and Daylyt linked up for the excellent song “A Plate of Collard Greens” on September 23. The song sees both emcees dropping stellar wordplay, per usual. J Cole’s verse, however, seemingly has multiple references to Drizzy. The Dreamville founder goes on an extended riff about the King of Pop, Michael Jackson. An artist that Drake has compared himself to multiple times over the years, with the most notable example being on his J Cole collab, “First Person Shooter.” The hit even allowed him to tie MJ for most number one singles by a male solo artist.
J Cole Lyrically Riffs On Drake’s MJ Obsession
“Dangerous as the king of pop, how well they spin your block,” J Cole spits. “No moves, minimal, smooth criminals.” The rapper has boasted about his status as the greatest in the past, but he’s never tipped his hat to MJ in particular. The next line also applies to Drake. “The whole gang doin’ insane amount of lean,” he raps. “This ain’t prescribed ’cause there’s no doc’ for pain they harboring.” Drake and Lil Durk have a new song on the way in which the former talks about quitting lean. The collab, which was played by Adin Ross on September 4, is titled “Discontinuing Wokhardt.” “Discontinuing Wokhardt,” Drake sings during the chorus. “But still do I pop now.”
Cole spends the rest of his “A Plate of Collard Greens” verse talking about those who fein truth in their verses. No names are mentioned, but the specificity of his references shouldn’t be ignored. The rapper doesn’t choose his words carelessly. Trae tha Truth also confirmed that J Cole’s upcoming album, The Fall Off, is on its way. We can only imagine how many possible subliminals will be littered throughout.
About The Author
Elias is a music writer at HotNewHipHop. He joined the site in 2024, and covers a wide range of topics, including pop culture, film, sports, and of course, hip-hop. You can find him publishing work for HNHH from Monday to Friday, especially when it comes to the coverage of new albums and singles. His favorite artists are Andre 3000, MF Doom, pre-808s Kanye West and Tyler, The Creator. He loves L.A. hip-hop but not L.A. sports teams. The first album he ever bought was Big Willie Style by Will Smith, which he maintains is still a pretty good listen.
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