A Crooked Smile is More Appealing

Emotions and clever melodies that can play a visual, mental story that everyone can relate to, female or male, is what makes a great musician to me. Receiving all the recent buzz and radio play from his 3rd studio album, Forest Hills Drive, respectively titled after his hometown street name exemplifies J. Cole’s humble attitude and lyrics.

Born to a military family in Germany and raised by his mother in North Carolina, Jermaine Cole received an academic scholarship to St John’s University, where he graduated Magna Cum Laude, being part of the second highest ranked GPA of his graduating class. While a student in New York, Jermaine never gave up on his music and took advantage of his location waiting outside Jay Z’s studio to hand the man a mix tape or even exchange a few words. After many failed attempts and even Jay shunning the young Cole, his determination paid off when he eventually became a member of the Roc Nation label in 2009.

All of his tracks, mostly self-produced and self-written range from being caught up on a Power Trip love to Blowing Up as an up and coming rapper to ain’t nothing wrong with having flaws like a Crooked Smile. His videos even tap more into the meaning of his deep lyrics that provoke your inner thoughts and emotions. For example, "She Knows" directed by Nabil Elderkin who has worked with Cole on other videos, has a great cinematic story that even has me begging for this video be made into a movie. Watch it just for the cliffhanger at the end of the video.

J Cole has always been a humble rapper with a big star presence which is what his fans love him for. His “A Dollar and a Dream Tour”, for example, which he has held twice, touring across the country for a dollar concert you could have been in the same small intimate setting as J Cole brings on guest appearances like Drake and Kendrick Lamar. Only a number of limited shows though is what drives this small, intimate tour to be sold out in a moments notice.

Luckily for me, I treated myself to J Cole’s Forest Hills Drive Tour at THE SOLD OUT STAPLES CENTER in Downtown Los Angeles. The building where the Lakers’ 16 championship banners grace their presence, the site where every February the most musically talented artists gather and are honored and where Jermaine, the crooked smile rapper, wearing nothing but a plain outfit, no jewelry, no fancy stage props but a stool and a mic had the whole building on their feet rapping to every single rhyme, radio hit or not. Every attendee felt Cole’s blasted energy through that mic.