J. Cole on How Relationship Dynamic With Kendrick, Drake Has Changed
Written by SOURCE on May 15, 2021
J Cole says he’s had a change of heart when it comes to competition.
During the latest episode of Kevin Durant’s The ETCS podcast, co-host Eddie Gonzalez asked Cole about his relationship with other “top dogs” like Drake and Kendrick Lamar—rappers to whom he’s frequently compared. The Dreamville boss admitted that at the beginning of his career he was all about the competition, and never tried to connect with his contemporaries because he felt as though they were all fighting for the top spot; however, Cole says his time in the business has completely changed his perspective.
“I would assume it’s just like basketball in a sense. It’s like, man, these are the guys that push you, and you gotta push them. You know what I mean?” he said. “… I’ve never been a reach-out [person], especially because when there’s competition involved … It’s almost like working out together. I guess in the NBA, in the past, that was unheard of. Like, ‘Why would I work out with this n***a? … I’m trying to destroy this n***a.’ That was kind of my mentality early on. But as I’ve gotten older, I realize … no one is truly my peer or can relate to what’s going on in my life better than these people right here—just in terms of whatever pressures there might be … nobody can really relate to that like these dudes, and I really genuinely fuck with these dudes.”
Cole went on to say that he is now trying to “strip competition” from his approach to music, and is now more interested in forming relationships with those who some consider to be his rivals.
“I also see a time when I’m not doing this. That seems very realistic to me,” he said. “And in the time when I’m not doing this, I don’t wanna be like, ‘Damn, we never kicked it, we never really did nothing.’”
You can listen to the episode via Spotify now. The men also speak on Cole’s family life, getting into professional basketball, and of course his newly released album, The Off-Season.
