J. Cole, I n t e r l u d e | Track Review 🎵

J. Cole brings the heat with “I n t e r l u d e,” a short but totally sweet advance single from his sixth studio album, The Off-Season.

“I be comin’ in peace but fuck me / Best beware of the others / This shit deep, undercovers creep / This southern heat make unbearable summers / Just last week, seen yo’ mama weep!” Woo! It is safe to say that 🏆 Grammy-winning rapper 🎙 J. Cole is among the most respected in the game. Every time a new album is announced, well, it’s not ‘kind of a big deal,’ IT IS A BIG F$%#ING DEAL.  Cole announced he’ll release his sixth album, 💿 The Off-Season, on May 14, 2021, and of course, there’s plenty of speculation.  The two-minute-and change track, 🎵 “I n t e r l u d e”, gives us a sneak peek into what The Off-Season has to offer.

There’s plenty to like about this short but sweet single.  The production, by J. Cole, 🎛 T-Minus, and 🎛 Tommy Parker is fire.  The backdrop is incredibly soulful, featuring awesome drum programming.  The sound is perfect fuel for the fire for Cole, who serves up a more melodic performance.  Even with some pitch behind his rhymes, Cole remains fiery to the nth degree: he’s aggressive, rhythmic, and incredibly tough and hard-nosed.  As always, the flow and the rhymes themselves, over the course of one verse, are what make “I n t e r l u d e” so phenomenal.

“Block hot, niggas burnin’ up the street
Shots poppin’ and we heard it up the street
It’s a war, niggas runnin’ up the score
Jesus said that you should turn the other cheek
Was his niggas gettin’ murdered every week?”

WOO, WOO, WOO!

Final Thoughts 💭 

Few people could make an ‘interlude’ pop, but J. Cole manages to do just that on “I n t e r l u d e.” All boxes are checked off with the most important being sheer fire from Cole himself.  Nothing should be the least bit ‘off’ about The Off-Season.

🎙 J. Cole • 💿 The Off-Season • 🏷 Dreamville / Roc Nation • 🗓 5.14.21

[📷: Dreamville / Roc Nation]