J Cole has done an exemplary job of getting his legacy in order. The rapper has been recounting his mixtapes and albums via the podcast Inevitable. Cole has treated fans to previews of unreleased songs, but the most compelling piece of information from the latest episode has to do with a project that never materialized. J Cole told listeners that he was in a creative groove with Meek Mill and Big Sean during the sessions for 2013's Born Sinner. Such a groove, in fact, that he considered dropping a collaborative EP.
This was an astonishing revelation. J Cole had never mentioned plans for a hypothetical EP prior to the podcast, which makes it sound like a what if scenario from a blog era fan. It turns out that the EP nearly came to fruition, though, as all three artists were collaborating with each other throughout 2012-13. J Cole appeared on "24K of Gold" from Big Sean's 2012 mixtape Detroit. Sean appeared on "Burn" from Meek Mill's 2012 mixtape, Dreamchasers 2. The latter collab is especially notable, after listening to the Inevitable podcast episode.
J Cole Was Supposed To Be On Meek Mill's "Burn"
J Cole told listeners that he was originally supposed to be on "Burn" alongside Sean and Meek. Things didn't work out, and the song would up with the lone Sean feature. Cole was working on Born Sinner at the same time Detroit and Dreamchasers 2 were being made. The rapper claims that all three stars linked up at the home of No ID. The producer worked with Big Sean and J Cole numerous times over the years. It stands to reason he would have been involved in the collab EP. In the same podcast episode, J Cole admitted that he was pushed to hone his craft further by the albums that his peers were dropping at the time.
Kendrick Lamar's debut album was chief among these. "When 'Kendrick’s] album dropped, the journey got harder, the mountain got steeper," Cole explained. "It was a feeling of surpassment... It was a clear feeling that he did exactly what I wanted to do [with The Sideline Story]." Cole's candor continues to be one of the best parts of the Inevitable podcast. Especially when it comes to revelations about what could have been.