KOD (album)
KOD is the fifth studio album by American rapper J. Cole. It was released on April 20, 2018, through Dreamville Records, Roc Nation and Interscope Records.
The majority of the album's production was handled by Cole himself, along with others such as T-Minus, Mark Pelli, BLVK and Ron Gilmore. The album incorporates elements of jazz rap and trap. Cole has stated that the production and rhyme schemes used throughout the album were inspired by SoundCloud rap. The album explores a variety of topics including drug abuse, addiction, depression, greed, African-American culture, and taxation in the United States.
The album was supported by two singles: "KOD" and "ATM", both of which debuted in the top 10 on the US Billboard Hot 100. In August 2018, Cole embarked on the KOD Tour to promote the album.
KOD received positive reviews from critics and debuted atop the US Billboard 200, selling 397,000 album-equivalent units in its first week, earning Cole his fifth consecutive number-one album in the country. It also broke several streaming records. The album has since been certified Platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America. The album also debuted at number one in Australia, Canada, Ireland, and New Zealand. KOD appeared on several music publications' mid-year and year-end lists. HipHopDX, HotNewHipHop and Uproxx named it the best hip-hop album of 2018.
Background and recording
In an interview with Vulture, Cole said that the seed for KOD was planted at rapper Kendrick Lamar's concert in Detroit for his Damn Tour in 2017. He said watching Lamar's performance reminded him of 2014 Forest Hills Drive. Cole further explained saying: "Kendrick's show gave me chills because I got to see what it was like to have a hit album performed, and it set off a desire, it was a recognition — like, oh, I’ll take that again. Like looking at a menu, I’ll have that again." The majority of the album was initially recorded over a span of two weeks while Cole was on the 4 Your Eyez Only Tour and while on vacation in Italy and Tanzania, Cole recorded three songs while on tour, and another six while on vacation. According to Cole, he went back to the drawing board to perfect the final three songs. The final version of the album took an additional 6 months. Before recording KOD, Cole was working on an album titled The Fall Off, which he plans to release in the future. He released The Off-Season in 2021, and plans to release The Fall Off later on.Artwork and title
Cole revealed the album's cover art on April 18, 2018. The cover art was done by Detroit artist Kamau Haroon, known artistically as Sixmau. Cole discovered Sixmau through singer and producer Childish Major, for whom he was doing art. Sixmau told Vibe magazine: "I can't talk much about his vision. You're going to have to listen to the album. It all ties in together. It was definitely a collaboration. It was a marriage of art and music. He told me what direction he was going in and then he gave me freedom to portray it how I wanted."The album's title carries three different meanings: Kids on Drugs, King OverDosed, and Kill Our Demons. On April 19, 2018, Cole released the album's trailer. In the trailer, Cole broke down the meaning of the album title, he explained:
Composition
KOD has been characterized as conscious hip-hop with elements of jazz rap and trap. Cole has stated that the production and rhyme schemes used throughout the album was inspired by SoundCloud rappers. He said: "If you listen to the flows and the patterns and the production, it's like... these dudes inspired that form, that's the form I took to get this message off on this album."Release and promotion
On April 16, 2018, Cole sparked speculation of a new album after he cleared his Instagram account and changed his social media profile pictures to a plain purple background. Later that day, Cole took to Twitter to announce a surprise event for fans at the Gramercy Theatre in New York City. The event was free of charge, on a first-come, first-served basis. The event turned out to be a surprise listening session for the album. Later that night, he took to Twitter again to announce the album. Cole held a second listening session in London the next day. On April 18, 2018, Cole revealed the track listing for KOD.In order to promote the album, Cole announced the KOD Tour on May 8, 2018. The tour included 34 North American dates, starting in Miami on August 9 and concluded in Boston on October 10, 2018. Young Thug, Jaden Smith, EarthGang and Cole's alter ego kiLL edward served as supporting acts on the tour.
On May 16, 2018, Cole released a 94-minute interview with radio personality Angie Martinez. During the interview, Cole discussed a variety of topics including the album. The interview was conducted in Miami at producer Salaam Remi's house before Cole headlined the 2018 Rolling Loud Festival. The interview was Cole's first on camera interview since 2015. On May 25, 2018, Cole released another hour long interview with rapper Lil Pump where they asked each other questions. It was recorded at Cole's recording studio, the Sheltuh, in North Carolina. The song "1985" was allegedly aimed at Lil Pump.
Cole performed "Intro" and "Friends" at the 2018 BET Awards on June 24, 2018. Singer Daniel Caesar performed part of "Intro" and the chorus to "Friends". Rapper Wale was also part of the set. Writing for Billboard, Nerisha Penrose declared it the best performance of the night, writing: "Instead of opting for the bouncy standout cuts like “Motiv8” or “ATM” from his newest album KOD, Cole reached for the heartfelt song “Friends” for his captivating performance." The performance was Cole's first at the award show since 2013.
Singles
"KOD" was serviced to American mainstream urban radio as the album's first single on May 8, 2018. The song broke Spotify opening day record. It was streamed 4.2 million times, a record Taylor Swift previously held for "Look What You Made Me Do". The song debuted at number 10 on the US Billboard Hot 100. "ATM" impacted US rhythmic contemporary radio on July 31, 2018, as the album's second single. The music video was released on April 20, 2018, upon release of the album. "ATM" debuted at number six on the US Billboard Hot 100. With the release of "ATM", Cole became the first musician to simultaneously debut three new songs inside the top 10 of the US Billboard Hot 100, with "ATM", "Kevin's Heart", and "KOD". Cole managed pass the record high of nine simultaneous Top 40 hit songs in North America held by Cardi B, Drake and Kendrick Lamar. He ties with The Beatles for having six positions in the top 20 on the Hot 100 chart, a record that the rock band had previously held for fifty-four years.Other songs
The music video for the song, "Kevin's Heart", was released on April 24, 2018. The video features actor and comedian Kevin Hart. The song debuted at number eight on the US Billboard Hot 100. Producer DJ Premier released a remix of "1985", titled "DJ Premier 1966 Remix" on May 29, 2018.Critical reception
KOD received positive reviews from critics. On Metacritic, which assigns a normalized rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream publications, the album received an average score of 73, based on 14 reviews, indicating "generally favorable reviews".Alexis Petridis of The Guardian praised the album, calling Cole "the conscience of mainstream hip-hop". He continued saying: "The goofy, self-deprecating humour of his 2014 single "Wet Dreamz" and the warm contentment of "Foldin Clothes" are both conspicuous by their absence. Instead, we find Cole repeatedly raising a concerned eyebrow at drug use in the world of Xanax-fuelled rap and probing hip-hop's obsession with money. It's the kind of thing that could come off a little preachy but it doesn't here, largely because Cole is always quick to implicate himself." Writing for The Ringer, Justin Charity called the album "a rebuke to the druggy concerns of a younger generation of rappers." He commented further saying, "KOD is a curious treatise on how hip-hop might revise its principles in light of the genre's growing discomfort with the personal darkness that some very recent rap stars, proud addicts and abusers, have wrought." Trent Clark of HipHopDX praised the album, calling it "one of the most important rap albums ever". He wrote: "J. Cole has a gift in turning tears into teaching tools and KOD is a concise, leather-bound audiobook of invaluable life direction goals."
In a positive review, Lawrence Burney of Vice deemed the album Cole's "best effort yet", saying "yes, there are times when he seems a bit out of touch on KOD, but what translates most successfully here is compassion and concern, not contempt." Briana Younger, writing for Spin stated: "KOD is a stark reminder that some of life's most destructive elements don't always come with a warning label." Sam Moore of NME called the album "powerful". He said: "Cole has emerged this decade as one of the US' finest rappers. He's a confident lyricist with an ear for a hip-pop hook, a willingness to address difficult subjects and an ability to weave compelling stories through his music." Scott Glaysher of Now said "Cole doesn't sacrifice any inch of rhythm or melody while detailing his cautionary tales. It's clear he's mastered the art of hiding medicine in candy." Mitch Findlay of HotNewHipHop gave the album a 90% rating saying, "KOD is a trip worth taking". The album got an 85% audience rating based on over 400 user votes. In a mixed review, Jon Caramanica of The New York Times said the album "has the feel of a casual placeholder between bigger ideas--it has neither the grim purpose or intense emotional acuity of his 2016 LP 4 Your Eyez Only, nor the cohesion of the prior one, 2014 Forest Hills Drive Mr. Cole is an empathetic rapper, but he can be a mean moralist, too." Former HipHopDX writer Justin Hunte called KOD 2018's most important album. He deemed it "a time-piece album for the year" saying, "KOD is my album of the year because it targets a generational crisis, and it's not afraid to take an audience to therapy precisely when it needs it most. Is there anyone else in hip-hop willing to sacrifice their cool points to play therapist? If not J. Cole, then who?"