Cole has admitted it himself: "Middle Child" is one-off opportunity born out of utter spontaneity. He and producer T-Minus crafted the song in a single tireless recording session. After T-Minus had procured the sample and chopped it up, the onus was on J. Cole to conjure up enough inspo to match the triumvirate horns. Within a day, "Middle Child" was complete - they possessed a monumental record with no assigned purpose but to upend the established order of hip-hop Today.
T-Minus' part in the creative process, was as fortuitous as it was accidental. The "Middle Child" syndrome speaks to the feeling of becoming the social pariah, not by choice, but due to social conditioning. That's why J. Cole's decision to come out with "Middle Child" merch is puzzling, to say the least - if not completely ironic. But there's a marked difference between Cole envisioning a Brave New World without "hypebeastiality" and the notion of a short little capsule collection.
The Dreamville shop was offering Cole fans a "Middle Child" hoodie and t-shirt for purchase until the link got jammed with overuse. So Cole relocated his pop-up to his personal website here. As you'll see, the T-Shirt retails at $40, the Hoodie goes for $60, shipping not included.