J. Cole announced the release date for his new album, Born Sinner, recently. The title of this upcoming album sounds like a departure from Cole's last albums, in-and-of itself. While his debut album title, Cole World: The Sideline Story, took the basketball theme of his mixtapes before it, J. Cole is taking his second album in a different direction.
The rapper recently explained to MTV News how this new album ushers in a new era for him. "It was just time for something new. I wouldn't have minded doing it again but I felt that I closed that story," Cole said of the new title. "That metaphor and that storyline had really ended. Metaphorically I was just a kid working to get on this basketball team, got cut — that was The Come Up, then The Warm Up was like, alright I made the team, I'm on the team, now what? I'm not in the game, I'll just ride the end of the bench. Then Friday Night Lights was like 'come on man, you're still not gonna put me in the game? What I gotta do? Here, I'm gonna kill it in practice.' "
He continued to explain how The Sideline Story ended the cycle, "Sideline Story was like, 'Wow, I really am starting now,' and I feel like I ended that chapter when it's all said and done. Plus, this new theme is really more reflective of where I'm at and where I've been at for the past two years, so it was just perfect to move on."
J. Cole also says not to expect a religious or church-themed album, as the original video announcement may have given fans that idea, since it features an altar boy at church. "It's not necessarily a church theme and it's not really about church," he explained. "I like my album themes to be metaphors because it gives me the freedom to speak about something else that's going on in my life, so the Born Sinner thing is not about church, it's not even about religion. It's using that as canvas to get other messages across and that's what the album will be."
Look out for Born Sinner on June 25th.