Which Rappers Should J. Cole Choose For A Collab Album?

Hip-hop fans have been looking forward to a possible J. Cole collab for years. The North Carolina-born rapper is widely considered one of contemporary hip-hop’s “Big 3.” That is, he stands side-by-side in the company of luminaries like Kendrick Lamar and Drake. Rumors of a J. Cole collab record began circulating recently after Black Thought revealed the possibility was once on the table. On a recent episode of the This Week in White Supremacy podcast, The Roots co-founder said that J. Cole approached him about collaborating on a full-length record back in 2018. But the potential combination never panned out, leaving the public curious about what might appear down the line.

Fans have been waiting for a proper J. Cole collab LP for years, but he’s never fulfilled their hopes. Of course, Cole has done various collaborations on single joints – like when he and Kendrick did “Forbidden Fruit” together – but what we’ve really been waiting on is a full-length. Speaking of K.Dot, there’s been talk for years about the desire for a J. Cole collaborative album, but more on that later. From Black Thought to André 3000, here’s a list of seven A-list rappers J. Cole could choose for a collab LP.

When J. Cole approached Black Thought back in 2018, the two didn’t know each other too well. Still, Thought was willing to entertain the idea of a J. Cole collab and the pair exchanged beats and feedback. At the time, Thought was interested in taking a more aggressive route with his music. It seemed like Cole was on the opposite end of the spectrum, seeking a more peaceful soundscape. This is essentially why the pair’s paths didn’t match up at that point. Thought was trying to veer away from the familiar sound he’d cultivated with The Roots and felt Cole was simply steering too close to it. It was simply not the right time.

As we mentioned in the introduction, Kendrick Lamar and J. Cole collaborated in the past. Way back in 2013, the pair did the track “Forbidden Fruit” together, which appeared on J. Cole’s sophomore full-length Born Sinner. In terms of a collaborative LP, there’s been on-again, off-again talk about such an effort for years. On Lil Yachty’s A Safe Place podcast back in November 2023, Cole spoke about what’s taken place. It seems that he and Lamar began talking about the possibility early on in their careers and did actually make some real effort toward it as well. A couple of tracks were demo’ed a long time ago. But the collab never came to fruition, mainly because the pair’s schedules became way too hectic—what, with their solo careers, touring, and families. And for it to really happen and be the best product they can put together, the two know it would take substantial investment and time.

J. Cole removed his Kendrick Lamar diss track “7 Minute Drill” from streaming services back in April. According to a writer at The Source, he was allegedly advised by his friend ScHoolboy Q to do so when the two were at the Dreamville Festival. Although it’s unclear what words the pair exchanged, Cole heeded Q’s advice and bowed out of the Kendrick-Drake beef. A full-length J. Cole collab with ScHoolboy Q could be an interesting event in hip-hop, likely producing something very unique.

Dreamville Records dropped their Revenge of the Dreamers III rap camp sessions back in July 2019. JID, J. Cole, and Vince Staples all jumped on a track together for it titled “Rembrandt...Run It Back.” Staples had been chosen as a select few to participate in the rap camp, which he fondly recalled during a Billboard interview: “It was really stress free and free for all fun.” Hearing Staples and Cole exchange verses on that compilation album track brings up the possibility of a future J. Cole collab. It would be interesting, to say the least.

Only a couple of weeks after J. Cole removed “7 Minute Drill” from streaming services, he dropped the collab track “Red Leather” with Future and Metro Boomin. Interestingly, some listeners interpreted his verse on the track to be a diss against Drake, though Cole hasn’t confirmed any of this. It likely had nothing to do with the Toronto-based rapper, based on Cole’s public admission that diss tracks and beef are the “lamest and goofiest s***” at Dreamville Festival. After hearing “Red Leather,” fans are left wanting more from the Atlanta-born Future and Cole. A future full-length could be a genuinely unprecedented mixture of Southern rap energy.

A little over a year ago, J. Cole and Meek Mill appeared on verses on the Drake collaboration track “I Can Never.” This isn’t the first time the pair have spent time together in a studio, either. The mixture of the Philadelphia-born Mill’s battle-rap-bred delivery and Cole’s southern-east hybrid production could prove to be a game changer. If Mill were to ever hop on a J. Cole collab, the results would be electrifying. And the possibility doesn’t seem too far-fetched, either. Previously Mill appeared as a featured artist alongside Cole on Wale’s “Black Grammys.” We can cross our fingers for a combo LP in the future.

J. Cole has sampled André 3000’s tracks with Outkast “SpottieOttieDopalicious” and “Da Art of Storytellin' (Pt. 1)” for his songs “Who Dat” and “Land of the Snakes,” respectively. It’s probably true that no southern hip-hop artists can fully escape Outkast’s influence—these are a couple of Cole’s clear nods to Outkast. Another interesting pairing was when André 3000 did a verse for the album version of Beyonce’s song “Party” and J. Cole replaced his verse with a new one for the video. Fans were eager to start comparing the two versions, which points to the kind of excitement that would swirl around a full-length collab. While André 3000 famously released the new age, ambient jazz album New Blue Sun in November 2023, and seems to be shying away from rap, a future J. Cole collab can still be hoped and wished for by fans.

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