A little over a week ago, Lil Durk and J. Cole previewed their new collaborative single, "All My Life." Interestingly enough, some felt it could potentially be Lil Durk's first number-one hit. At the time, the two rappers revealed they had also recently filmed a music video for the upcoming song. From there, Lil Durk took to Instagram and posted a snippet of the song from the video shoot, where Cole rapped along to his verse while holding the camera, surrounded by a group of children. As expected, "All My Life" is included on Durk's new album, Almost Healed.
Surprisingly, the single was produced by legendary pop producer, Dr. Luke. In the song, Lil Durk reflects on his journey to fame and how he is determined to change the public's perception of him. "It’s just a rap that’s just showing you what I been going through. What I been doing lately. Trying to change how I am," Durk said in an interview with XXL. Furthermore, the rapper went on to talk about the struggle of finding the right person to feature. "Dr. Luke produced it. We were just trying to figure out like what’s the right person to put on it," Durk said. "‘Cause it’s one of those songs where if it’s not the right person to do the second verse… I feel like Cole can bring the energy that I’m looking for to it."
Lil Durk Gets Introspective
To say that "All My Life" is introspective or deep would be an understatement. In fact, it seems that Lil Durk is pivoting to take a route that prioritizes things like social change and community. On the track, Lil Durk talks about all manner of things from drugs to child support to children wanting to hurt themselves. The rapper goes on to speak about what he's personally been doing to try and change the world for the better.
"I decided that I have to finish/But the media call me a menace/I done sat down with the mayor and politicians, I'm tryin' to change up the image," he raps over the melancholic but hopeful instrumental. Indeed, it does seem like Lil Durk has been on an upward trajectory recently, as far as his mental health and outlook on life go. Recently, he revealed that therapy has changed his mentality for the better. What do you think of Durk and J. Cole's emotional new track? Let us know in the comments!
Quotable Lyrics:
All my life, they've been trying to keep me down
All this time, never thought I would make it out
They couldn't break me, they couldn't break me
They couldn't take me, They couldn't take me
All my life they've been trying to keep me down