Cole World: The Sideline Story [2 LP]

by J. Cole

Overview

Anyone who encountered his numerous mixtapes can tell you that before his official debut landed, rapper/producer J. Cole had spent some time bringing the whole Drake, Wale, and Big Sean style to a more street level. It's worth mentioning because Cole World: The Sideline Story has little of that debut desire to cross over, and while the multi-talented Cole is a skilled, interesting beat-maker in his own right, a superstar production would have certainly made this album more approachable. Instead, No I.D. -- the biggest behind-the-boards name here -- turns in a sluggy, druggy construction for "Never Told," Cole's deep, rich study of father/son confidence. Cole handles most of the rest on his own, turning in B+ stabs at dubstep ("Mr. Nice Watch" with guest and label boss Jay-Z), indie-hop ("Cole World" or "flossin' with a laptop"), and his own humbler version of the Roc-A-Fella sound (the great single "Lights Please"). Add an "Intro" and then a part III -- the first two parts to be found on earlier mixtapes -- and you're practically telling the aboveground crowd they're stale from the start, but the tradeoff is a talent that has matured in the underground and is free of any forced outside influence. Cole's fantastic style shoots off bold punch lines one minute ("I blow brains, Cobain-style") and then goes deep the next, with equal skill and all while stringing together eye-level, real-life stories that have that classic flow. The reservation count is high and the flaw count is zero, and in this case, that's the proper formula for a rich hip-hop album. Take a couple listens, let it sink in, and then discover that Cole World is one hell of a debut. ~ David Jeffries

Product Details

Release Date:	09/27/2023
Label:	Interscope / Universal
UPC:	0602455093646
Rank:	18656

Tracks

Disc 1

1. Intro
2. Dollar And A Dream III
3. Can't Get Enough
4. Lights Please
5. Interlude
6. Sideline Story
7. Mr. Nice Watch
8. Cole World
9. In The Morning

Disc 2

10. Lost Ones
11. Nobody's Perfect
12. Never Told
13. Rise and Shine
14. God's Gift
15. Breakdown
16. Work Out

Album Credits

Performance Credits

J. Cole   Primary Artist
Trey Songz   Featured Artist
Jay-Z   Featured Artist
Missy Elliott   Featured Artist
Kevin Randolph   Vocals,Keyboards
Bosko   Talk Box
Steve Wyreman   Guitar
Chris Bautista   Trumpet
Canei Finch   Keyboards
Larrance Dopson   Music Direction
Drake   Featured Artist
Andrew Lippman   Trombone
Nate Jones   Bass
Yolanda Renee   Vocals
David Linaburg   Guitar
No I.D.   Vocals
1500 or Nothin Orchestra   Strings
Dante Thomas   Sax (Alto)
Kim Fox   Vocals
Reginald Paul   Sax (Tenor)
Ron Gilmore   Keyboards
Jasmisha   Vocals

Technical Credits

Curtis Mayfield   Composer
Elliot Wolff   Composer
Eero Koivistoinen   Composer
Kanye West   Composer
Ousmane Kouyate   Composer
Milton Nascimento   Composer
Miri Ben-Ari   Composer
Rob Kinelski   Engineer
Carter Administration   Executive Producer
Andre Benjamin   Composer
Kevin Randolph   Composer
Ernest Wilson   Composer
Brian Kidd   Producer
Steve Wyreman   Composer
Canei Finch   Additional Production
Emile Soumah   Composer
Ibrahima Kouyate   Composer
Tom Coyne   Mastering
Aubrey Graham   Composer
Juro "Mez" Davis   Mixing,Engineer,Producer
Leann Mueller   Photography
J. Cole   Composer,Producer,Executive Producer
Liz Hausle   Marketing
Shawn Carter   Composer
John Stephens   Composer
Patrick Brown   Composer
Mark Pitts   Executive Producer
Greg Dykes   Composer
Antwan Patton   Composer
Bosko Kante   Composer
Alex Haldi   Art Direction,Graphic Design
Kouyate Sory Kandia   Composer
Suzanne Swan   Composer
Damien Alexander   A&R
Rich Kleiman   A&R
Chaka Pilgrim   Marketing
Jermaine Cole   Composer
No I.D.   Additional Production
The University   Producer
1500 or Nothin Orchestra   Instrumentation
Natalya Davis   Marketing
Ibriham Hammad   A&R
Jana Fleishman   Publicity
Sharde Simpson   A&R
Sukmeke Rainey   Composer
Ron Gilmore   Additional Production
Julius Garcia   A&R
Kingsley Swan   Composer
Bosco A. Kante   Composer
Anthony Cruz   Assistant Engineer