J. Cole - 2014 Forest Hills Drive

J. Cole - 2014 Forest Hills Drive

A Review by Patrick Krupa

The real is back
— J. Cole (@JColeNC) December 16, 2014

In a year that was arguably poor for the larger hip-hop industry, the real was most definitely back. J. Cole snuck into 2014 with a tale wove with connections, social constructs, and self-actualization told through very personal reflections of his past. Everything about this album, including his actions surrounding it, come with a very raw feeling. That rawness, however, is contrasted by a near perfect execution. It serves to give the overall impression of constant impulse decisions that lined up perfectly, maybe karma is thanking him for remembering the little people? More likely is Cole's dedication to his art in creating something he could be proud of. Well you can relax now Jermaine, sit back and be proud.

The most important thing to look at concerning this album is the intent that drives it. In an interview with Complex, Cole said "It’s crazy that I chose to record it in Hollywood because it’s such a 'fuck Hollywood' album. Being out there maybe contributed to [me thinking], 'I’m bugging. There’s some shit that’s way more important than how many albums I sell and if I’m the best.'" Cole wasn't looking to create a Billboard top 10, he doesn't give a damn about a Grammy (well, he might have some ill feelings toward it), he wasn't looking to clog the radio stations, and he most certainly wasn't trying to please anybody. By all appearances, he really made this album to do one thing: express. Express his feelings toward his family, his past friends, his new acquaintances, his relationships, his nostalgia, his happiness, his regret, his disappointment, and shit even his humor.

Now with all that said, I want to break down an interesting thing about this album that is separate from the content. The sales numbers. "But Patrick, album sales don't reliably show the quality within!" Well now reader, I would say you're right. But stick with me.

Sales Figures

(or: popularity contest)

J. Cole's album had a first week sales number of 351,538 physical copies, his personal highest. Prior to December and the return of  the real, the highest first week hip-hop sales belonged to Rick Ross's Mastermind with 179,000 copies sold.(link) While this is a big gap, the weakness of 2014's mainstream hip-hop industry makes this a little less impressive. What does make it impressive is how Cole accomplished these numbers. 2014 Forest Hills Drive was announced less than a month before its release. On November 16th, Cole announced it via twitter and this video:

The album was also released with zero pre-release singles, meaning no promotional radio time. To give you a scope of how crazy that is, Mastermind was announced more than a year before its release and had 2 official radio singles as well as 2 promotional singles all before release. Another relative comparison is Cole's last album, Born Sinner, which sold 297,000 copies on the first week. It was released on June 18, 2013 but had been announced on November 5th of the previous year.

So what does that mean? It means Forest Hills Drive was pushed completely by his fans and online music publications (ie. blogs and magazine sites). It was pushed in a rapid amount of time. It was pushed with nothing more than a small nudge from its creator. This may be one of those cases where the content just speaks for itself.

The Album

Okay enough about numbers, let's finally get into it! 

 2014 Forest Hills Drive plays almost like the twisted picture of a memoir. That is, while each song might not tell a whole story and the stories might not have any obvious connections, they overall give a sequential picture of his life. At the same time every song is a reflection on those past stories and contain just as much information about who he is now.  Similar sections of the album contain productions that maintain an atmosphere from one song to the next; they even seem to have subtle transitions making each song attach to the one just before and after it, but wouldn't necessarily flow into a song 3 down the track list. I am going to break down the sections to the best of my ability as follows.

Intro

"Do you wanna, do you wanna be, happy"

Track 1 (titled Intro): A little obvious, but it doesn't fit into the timeline. This is more of  a setup of his current feelings and place in life. It is an important distinction from the timeline as it sum up a basic lesson of the album: learn how to be happy, learn how to be free, and learn what that means. It's a nice sentiment but by the rest of the album you can tell he is the first to point out the difficulties against it.

 Early Life

"Things change, rearrange and so do I

it ain't always for the better, dawg, I can't lie"

Tracks 2-4: The first section has some tales from his early life including hiding the nervousness of losing his virginity on "Wet Dreamz" and course correcting inspiration from a drug dealing friend on "'03 Adolescence." Even "January 28th" while not really telling any early life stories, still fits the scheme. In it he talks a lot about who he is and where he is from, in addition to being named after his birthday (it is the first track after Intro). Additionally, the sample sets a sort of melancholy theme to start his life story, which goes along with the confidence problems he has talked about dealing with at a prime in this time of his life.
 

The Come Up

"Last night I had a bad dream
That I was trapped in this city
Then I asked is that really such a bad thing?"

Tracks 5-8: The main stories contained in this section are about his entry into living on his own and his life while starting in the rap game. However, this section is also where he starts to really get serious and political with his undertones. Starting off with "A Tale of Two Citiez" after the famous Charles Dickens novel, he weaves a tale between the differences of his hometown and New York. At the same time he gets in the head of both sides of criminals and victims in low-income areas and how easy it is to end up on either side. It is also worth noting that while the material in "Fire Squad" fits the section, the energy is a lot different than the surrounding songs; Cole brings a more direct and aggressive tone to get that point across.

Reflection

"No such thing as a life that's better than yours"

Tracks 9-12: The final portion of his story leading up to who he now is. This section is definitely the most emotional. You can actually feel the start of it about halfway into G.O.M.D. when he starts to talk about his experience with love. It also includes into the heartbreak of "Hello", the apology "Apparently", and the ever positive message of "Love Yourz." While The mid story may have contained socially critical messages, this section focuses on introspection.

Outro

"I've got a feeling that there's somethin' more
Something that holds us together
Something that holds us together
The strangest feeling but I can't be sure
Something that's old as forever"

Track 13: Now the song in this track is actually very short, but then he uses the other 11 minutes to perform the duties of the credits vocally because as he says during the shoutouts, he missed the deadline for the physical album credits. It isn't necessary listening to the album, but the entire thing is like a cool behind the scenes equivalent where you get to just hear him talking. Talking about others in the industry, his MOMMAAAAAAAAAAAAA OH, and even creating a big inside joke that lived on.

 

 Final Verdict: If I seem a bit biased at all, sue me I'm a sucker for a positive message and great lyrics. I can wholeheartedly promote this album as a new age hip hop classic on the level of good kid, m.A.A.d city. If you are a fan of hip hop at all, or just great music, I highly recommend 2014 Forest Hills Drive.

-Patrick

The #'s are humbling. It's a win for all artists and fans and a clear message to the industry. No singles no features. Stop serving trash
— J. Cole (@JColeNC) December 17, 2014