Rapper J. Cole performed live at the Electric Factory in downtown Philadelphia on Wednesday, Oct. 12. Cole is an up-and-coming artist signed with Jay-Z’s label Roc Nation. Cole is considered to be a “freshman” rapper, but many people disagree, believing that he is arguably one of the top five current rappers out there right now.
Everything that Cole raps about has a purpose and some sort of inspirational meaning. He has only been in the business for about three years.
In 2007, Cole released his first mixtape, “The Come Up,” with little success. Following this debut, he released two more mixtapes, “The Warm Up” and “Friday Night Lights,” that were more successful.
Earlier this summer, Cole announced his nationwide “Cole World” tour.
Cole performed around 10 songs in about two hours. In between every couple of songs, he gave words of wisdom to the audience, which were mainly directed to college students who were facing issues or crises in their lives.
His debut album “Cole World: The Sideline Story,” which released on Sept. 27, 2011, debuted at No. 1 on the US Billboard 200, selling 218,000 copies in it’s first week. As of Oct. 19, the album sold 305,000 copies in the United States.
After opening with “Cole World,” he performed songs that included “You Got It,” “Blow Up,” “In The Morning,” “Cost Me A Lot,” “Farewell,” “Looking For Trouble,” “Lights Please,” “Dollar & A Dream Pt. III,” “Can’t Get Enough,” “Mr. Nice Watch,” “Nobody’s Perfect,” “Rise & Shine” and “Work Out.”
The crowd was hyped up and got the place rocking.
At the end of the show, Cole proceeded to perform “Farewell” and after several minutes of rapping, he did something unexpected. Cole went on for about 20 minutes of pointing out fans in the crowd that were wearing something flashy.
For example, a fan with a Phillies hat, Cole would rap, “Hey you, in the Phillies hat…. Farewell!” By doing this, he got the crowd involved and really excited his fans. It showed that Cole appreciated his fans and wasn’t scared to thank them, which he did a number of times throughout the show.
Without a doubt, J. Cole sounded just as good in person as he does on his mixtapes and CD.
I promise it will be one of the best experiences of your life.
