Definitely his best album. being in the age of albums with 13 features on a 15 track album this is a breathe of fresh air.
Cole did his thing by himself. at no point did I feel he could've used someone else point of view.
he stepped his pen game up and he is better on the boards but I have to look at the credits.
even if he didn't make the beats he still was able to get to expand his sound outside of the sometimes monotonous and identical production. and that's what I felt was holding him back was staying in the pocket and not trying to explore different sounds.
there were no cringe worthy bars on this shit. he left that "out fart me" shit in the past. instead we got shit like
"Cole is the hypnotist, control the game whenever he snap" or
"So ahead of my time
Even when I rhyme about the future I be reminiscing"
he seems more confident on this album than the previous two. you can tell that he views himself as one of the leaders of this rap shit. whether you agree or not doesn't matter but its good for him to be confident. it seem like he found himself on this album like he realized the type of artist he is.
only song I really wasn't feeling was "Hello" everything else shit you want to hear from Cole. I thought I hated "St. Tropez" but I listened again and that shit is smooth. I love the violins and the sax. I can do without his singing but its tolerable. i fux with his flow heavy. imo he might have the best flow out his peers.
he fucked me up on "GOMD". I was like this shit riding! i'm about to blast this shit in the whip. then the beat switched (usmarine) and I was like this some bullshit but I kept listening and he crafted a dope song. might be my favorite track.
"Apparently" is my shit. that hook catchy as fuck and probably the only track where his singing is a plus. also the production on that is hitting.
Although the quip on "Firing Squad" about white people stealing our shit is a highlight however it overshadowed the fact that Cole was spitting on that joint. "January 28th" is another track where he spitting. Cole showed that he can be lyrical. punchlines have been his weakness but he had a few that stood out.
if there was going to be a single it would definitely be "No Role Modelz" don't save her she don't want to be saved. "A Tale of 2 Cities" is a banger and usually you'd never hear that about Cole, that wasn't his lane. but this is a cut you can play in the whip without feeling ashamed (for you niggas that do that).
Wet Dreamz is relateable as hell. who can't relate to finally smashing? 03 Adolescence is Cole opening up and to me is one of the standout tracks.
In my opinion this is Cole at his best so far in his short discography.
niggas can't say he's boring the mic presence is there.
Cole stands out because he just an everyday nigga and that's kinda missing in rap. everybody wanna be seen but not heard.