J Cole Research Paper

I have selected the rap artist and record producer Jermaine Lamarr Cole, or better known as his stage name J. Cole, for this assignment. The reason I chose to do this assignment on J. Cole is because he is constantly challenging the ideas of mainstream rap and has always followed his own path. His songs typically have messages behind them that speak out about social injustices, such as police brutality, and bring awareness to poverty stricken cities. Since he came out into the hip hop scene, he has challenged the ideals of hip hop culture and been a very successful artists and producer, all by the age of 32. Cole came from a simple middle class background, his father was African American and his mother was white, making him biracial. Cole grew up with just his mother in North Carolina, since …show more content…
Cole is neither attractive or unattractive, he looks and dresses like a normal person, even though the success that he has gained in the last few years has allowed him to dress in name brand clothing and stick to his roots.
The cultural category that J. Cole challenges the most is social class. He grew up in a low/middle class family and did not have much growing up. Now that he is older and has his own career, and is a platinum rap artists of high class, he still chooses to stick to his roots, he even moved back to his hometown in North Carolina. He is quoted saying, “‘The other side, it’s what we grow up believing that we need and want. It’s everybody’s dream,’ …. ‘Who doesn’t want the pick of the litter on this, that and the third? Money, women, cars. And beyond all of that — which I really wasn’t into — praise.’” (Caramanica, 2017). Him choosing to live a simple lifestyle is unlike many of the other rap artists and celebrities of his