Cole remains a technically strong rapper but often gives the impression he's reading directly out of a notebook. His verses on "Run a Train" sound like they were designed for one of those videos mapping out MF DOOM rhyme schemes in different colors of highlighter. Strange concepts, like the FaceTime call through time on "Bombs in the Ville/Hit the Gas" and the necromantic Tupac and Biggie dialogue on " What If," aren't any smarter or better executed than his straightforward raps; they're just overwrought.
J. Cole continues to be the preeminent face of a specific microgenre I like to call Podcast Rap, the general idea being that you don't have to listen to these songs more than once, but they'll give a roundtable of dinguses something to chew on for a week. "What If," off Cole's new album The Fall-Off, is an instant Podcast Rap classic.
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