KOD (studio album) by J. Cole

Very solid album, it's safe but still fresh enough to not feel stale.
Vibes well.

Nothing particularly bad on here, it's just boring

Not awful, but not great. Cole is improving, IMO.

I thought Cole had a lot of potential back in 2012 with some unreleased songs he did such as "Simba" or "The Cure" but this is a very mediocre turnout. I have no idea how people can put him and Kendrick in the same category. The last four songs are the strongest though, they are by far better than the preceding nine and I would recommend just listening to those.

Can't understand the hype behind this album. The beats are over-simplistic. There is some moments with good verses but it gets boring as it is filled with slow instrumentals.

Damn. I’m really not feeling this album. Relatively slow and in some areas Cole sounds like he’s trying to imitate Kendrick. Still worth a listen though.

Fav Track: KOD

From tgarritsen 04/24/2018 13:54

Fine album but not anything near to outstanding. Musically J. Cole played it very safe. Except for a few bangers like ATM and KOD, it´s mostly all mundane, pretty boring melodic rap songs with some of that awfull slow singing that he does. The thing is that he takes just so few risks. Conceptually it´s feels unfinsished, jumping around scratching the surface without giving any big insights or anything. Oh and those Kill Edward features are god awfwull and add nothing to the album´s music nor idea´s.
The thing with J. Cole´s last two albums is not that his music is bad, it´s allright with some occasional great songs. It´s just nothing compared to what I think his potential is. J. Cole is seen by his fans as the new messiah and I feel like this makes him think that every single thing he drops is just an incomprehensible wisdom or profound truth. While in actually his message is pretty standard and more importantly his music brings nothing new to the table. Just because he is a conscious rapper doesn't make him amazing.

I don't understand how people can give this album less than 70. This album has similar content to DAMN if not at times possess content even deeper then the content on DAMN. To say Cole's albums are boring but praising Kendrick's albums is a contradiction. I will disclose that I am huge Cole fan, but also love Kendrick. Stop comparing this album to TPaB or other projects and analyse the project for what it is. Follow this process:
0. Erase all your preconceived notions of J. Cole. Drop your expectations. Stop comparing him to Kendrick or other rappers.
1. Look at the album cover. Extremely unique, colorful, stands out.
2. Look at the current rap environment. Mainly trap, no focus on lyricism, issues with drug abuse.
3. Notice what Cole is trying to do. Releases album on 420. Production contains trap beats with repetitive lines which mimics trap rappers. However, within each song he subliminally throws lines about the reason why the drug abuse is happening.

My score of 100 is probably to high which is a fair observation but it's all subjective at the end of the day so who cares. Can someone with a different perspective explain how Kendrick is miles ahead of Cole?

From Anti 04/23/2018 15:15

Starts off really boring, but there is a breath of life during the final tracks. I really wish J Cole reached his expected potential, but it always feels like he falls short. I appreciate the topics covered on this album, depression and drug addiction is a serious problem where I'm from so I really dig these lyrics, but J Cole is too reserved. I wish he could release an album as maximalist, creative, and explosive as TPAB, but it always feels like he is holding back.

I want to love this guy. I really want to.