J.Cole

'''Jermaine Lamarr Cole''' (born January 28, 1985), better known by his [[stage name]] '''J. Cole''', is an American [[Hip hop music|hip hop]] [[recording artist]], [[songwriter]] and [[record producer]] from [[Fayetteville, North Carolina]]. Cole first received recognition in 2007, following the release of his debut [[mixtape]] ''The Come Up''. Shortly after the release of ''The Come Up'', Cole was contacted by American rapper [[Jay-Z]] and subsequently signed to his record label [[Roc Nation]], in 2009. In that same year, Cole released his second mixtape, ''[[The Warm Up]]'', which was itself followed by Cole's third mixtape, ''[[Friday Night Lights (mixtape)|Friday Night Lights]]'', in 2010.

His debut album, ''[[Cole World: The Sideline Story]]'', was released on September 27, 2011. The album debuted at number one on the [[Billboard 200|US ''Billboard'' 200]], [[R&B/Hip-Hop Albums|Top R&B Albums]] and [[Top Rap Albums]] chart, selling more than 218,000 in its first week. He received a nomination for [[Best New Artist]] at the [[54th Grammy Awards]]. Cole's second album, ''[[Born Sinner]]'', was released on June 18, 2013. The album debuted at number two on the [[Billboard 200|''Billboard'' 200]], however, ''Born Sinner'' later rose to number one, giving Cole his second number one on the chart. His third album, ''[[2014 Forest Hills Drive]]'', was released on December 9, 2014 and also debuted at number one on the ''Billboard'' 200, giving Cole his third number one album.

==Early life==

On his [[mixed-race]] background, Cole indicated in an October 2011 issue of the hip-hop magazine ''[[XXL (magazine)|XXL]]'':

==Musical career==

===2005–08: Career beginnings===

===2009–10: Mixtapes and Roc Nation signing===

{{main|The Warm Up|Friday Night Lights (mixtape)}}

===2010–11: ''Cole World: The Sideline Story''===

{{main|Cole World: The Sideline Story}}

===2011–13: ''Born Sinner''===

{{main|Born Sinner}}

On October 24, 2011, during an interview with Hot 106’s Rise & Grind morning show, Cole revealed he had begun working on his second studio album, with hopes of releasing it in June 2012. He had also stated that the album would consist of songs that failed to make his debut: "I don’t know how many, but I got songs that didn't make the last album that are automatically going to make this one,” he said, revealing the release date. “June. End of June, maybe June."<ref>Steven J. Horowitz, [http://www.hiphopdx.com/index/news/id.17358/title.j-cole-says-his-sophomore-album-will-arrive-in-june-2012 J. Cole Says His Sophomore Album Will Arrive In June 2012]. hiphopdx.com. 24 October 2011.</ref> On November 6, 7 and 8, Cole was the supporting act for [[Tinie Tempah]], appearing at [[Bournemouth International Centre]]; [[Liverpool Echo Arena]], [[Motorpoint Arena Cardiff]], [[Cardiff]], [[Wales]]; [[LG Arena (Birmingham)|LG Arena]], [[Birmingham]], [[England]]; [[SECC Arena]], [[Glasgow]], Scotland; and [[MEN Arena]], [[Manchester]]. J. Cole was nominated for Best New Artist at the 2012 Grammys but lost to [[Bon Iver]].

===2014–present: ''2014 Forest Hills Drive'' ===

{{main|2014 Forest Hills Drive}}

==Musical style==

In 2011, Cole has cited [[Tupac Shakur]], [[Nas]], [[Canibus]], and [[Eminem]] as his influences and calls Tupac his favorite rapper.<ref>http://www.hiphopdx.com/index/news/id.15889/title.j-cole-talks-storytelling-working-with-jay-z-kendrick-lamar</ref><ref>http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5CvED0F5LAw</ref> Since his success, Cole has been compared to Nas on numerous occasions.<ref>http://www.hiphopdx.com/index/news/id.25037/title.nas-j-cole-address-comparisons-to-each-other-lyricism-in-2013</ref> J. Cole has addressed this comparison in his song [[Let Nas Down]], where he states that Nas is his idol and that the comparison came from his third mixtape Friday Night Lights.<ref>http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bLF39513uwM</ref>

== Discography ==

{{Main|J. Cole discography|J. Cole production discography}}

===Studio albums===

\* ''[[Cole World: The Sideline Story]]'' (2011)

\* ''[[Born Sinner]]'' (2013)

\* ''[[2014 Forest Hills Drive]]'' (2014)

===Collaboration albums===

\* TBA <small>(with [[Kendrick Lamar]])</small> (2015)<ref>http://www.bet.com/news/music/2013/03/01/j-cole-joint-album-with-kendrick-lamar-still-happening.html</ref>

==Awards and nominations==

===[[American Music Awards of 2012|American Music Awards]]===

\* 2012: Best Rap/Hip Hop Album "[[Cole World: The Sideline Story]]" (Nominated)<ref name=2012AMANomineelist />

===[[BET Awards]]===

* [[BET Awards 2012|2012]]: Best Hip Hop Artist (Nominated){{citation needed|date=June 2013}}

* 2012: Best Collaboration: "[[Party (Beyoncé song)|Party]] (Remix)" (Nominated){{citation needed|date=June 2013}}

===[[BET Hip Hop Awards]]===

The [[BET Hip Hop Awards]] are hosted annually by BET for [[hip hop]] performers, producers and [[music video]] directors. J. Cole has won  awards from  nominations.

{{awards table}}

===[[Grammy Awards]]===

\* [[54th Grammy Awards|2012]]: Best New Artist (nominated)

\* [[56th Grammy Awards|2014]]: Best Rap/Sung Collaboration: "[[Power Trip (song)|Power Trip]]" featuring [[Miguel (singer)|Miguel]] (nominated)

===[[MTV Video Music Awards]]===

\* 2014: Best Video with a Social Message: "Crooked Smile" featuring [[TLC (group)|TLC]] (Nominated)

===[[mtvU|mtvU Woodie Awards]]===

===[[Soul Train Music Awards]]===

\* 2013: Best Hip-Hop Song of the Year: "Power Trip" featuring [[Miguel (singer)|Miguel]] (Nominated)

\* 2013: The Ashford and Simpson Songwriter's Award: "[[Crooked Smile (song)|Crooked Smile]]" featuring [[TLC (group)|TLC]] (Nominated)

\* 2013: Best Collaboration: "Power Trip" featuring [[Miguel (singer)|Miguel]] (Nominated)

===[[World Music Awards]]===

\* 2014: Worlds Best Song: "Power Trip" featuring [[Miguel (singer)|Miguel]]  (Nominated)

\* 2014: Worlds Best Album: "[[Born Sinner]]"  (Nominated)

\* 2014: Worlds Best Video: "Power Trip" featuring [[Miguel (singer)|Miguel]]  (Nominated)

\* 2014: Worlds Best Male Artist  (Nominated)

\* 2014: Worlds Best Live Act  (Nominated)

\* 2014: Worlds Best Entertainer of the Year (Nominated)

===[[Billboard Music Awards]]===

\* 2014: Top Rap Album: "[[Born Sinner]]" (Nominated)

\* 2015: Top Rap Artist: (Pending)

\* 2015: Top Rap Album: "[[2014 Forest Hills Drive]]" (Pending)

==Tours==

\* "[[Forest Hills Drive Tour]]" (2015