Deeply personal and conceptual album from North Carolina's J. Cole. It's no wonder that people have been singing the praises for 2014 Forest Hills Drive like they have. Named after J. Cole's childhood home, the album finds Cole examining the pursuit of his dreams. The main focus becomes the challenges and struggles he faced on the way to finding success within the music industry. He takes time to look back at his childhood before delivering an incisive critique of the music industry. The beats are handled by Cole along with contributions from !llmind, Vinylz, Phonix Beats and Willie B. 2014 Forest Hills Drive is a compelling look at what it's like to come up in the world of hip hop. Check out "January 28th," "A Tale of 2 Citiez," and "St. Tropez" for starters.

• forest green colored double vinyl pressing (please note: vinyl color is very dark, may appear black under normal lighting)
• limited edition
• original release year: 2014
• music label: Dreamville 2024

reviewed by Kool Moby 04/2015