J. Cole Shares Inspiration For The Fall-Off

J. Cole is only a few days away from releasing his seventh studio album, The Fall-Off. The project is scheduled to arrive on February 6, and he has already started building excitement by giving listeners insight into the story behind it. In a tweet, he broke down the inspiration for the album while explaining how it connects to his 2007 mixtape, The Come Up.

“Some of the very first verses for The Come Up were written when I was just 19 years old,” he began. “The title of that project, the first one that I would ever release, had a double meaning. There was the obvious one; my ambitions to 'come up' in the rap game. The second was more subtle; my physical change of location to do so.”

Cole continued by describing his younger self as a "delusional teenager” who made the choice to leave home and head to New York City in pursuit of his dreams.

“Towards the end of The Come Up, a couple skits tell a common story for me at that age,” he noted. “Me, driving back home from school on a holiday break, calling my mom to let her know I'm a few hours away, then calling my homeboys, excited to let them know I'm back in town, asking where the party at?"

He added, “The Fall-Off, a double album made with intentions to be my last, brings the concept of my first project full circle. [...] When this album releases please know that you, in some deeper metaphysical type way, are in the music too." He explained that Disc 29 focuses on him making his way back to his hometown of Fayetteville, North Carolina. Disc 39 follows a similar journey home, but from the perspective of him at 39 years old with more life experience.

Cole’s breakdown of The Fall-Off arrived alongside another major preview, which was the project’s tracklist. The lineup includes song titles such as "Legacy," "The Let Out," "Old Dog," "What If," and several others. As of now, featured artists connected to the album have not been announced.