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Billboard Women in Music 2025
Ye, who was formerly known as Kanye West, made headlines recently for his outspoken criticism of J. Cole during a series of posts on X. Remarkably, this outburst occurred on April 1, leaving many to ponder whether it was an elaborate April Fools’ Day prank—but it became clear that it was anything but playful.
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In a candid declaration, West expressed his disdain for J. Cole’s music, bluntly stating, “I hate J Cole music so much.” He continued, suggesting that had industry insiders encouraged Cole to create a diss track aimed at Drake, fans would have been inundated with promotional material, including a hypothetical Super Bowl commercial devoid of features from artists like SZA.
The controversial artist didn’t hold back in his critique of Cole’s musical style, indicating he believes it resonates primarily with younger, inexperienced listeners. “No one listens to J Cole after losing their virginity,” he claimed, underlining his perspective on Cole’s appeal.
West also reminisced about discussions from the 2021 era surrounding his album Donda, where he conveyed to Drake that elevating J. Cole’s profile within hip-hop was detrimental to the genre. “When I met up with Drake during Donda, most of the convo was me telling him he was hurting hip hop by giving J Cole a platform,” he shared, while also emphasizing his admiration for Future’s artistry.
This is not the first time Ye has publicly criticized J. Cole. Last year, he included a verse in the remix of “Like That” where he positioned Cole unfavorably, rapping, “Play J.Cole get the p—y dry.”
The dynamic between Ye and Cole has long been marked by tension; Cole has vocalized his critiques of West on several occasions, pointing out that he respects West’s contribution to music while asserting that he feels West has not lived up to expectations. Notable examples include jabs in tracks like “False Prophets” and “Middle Child,” where Cole articulates his discontent regarding West’s current trajectory.
Recently, West has found himself at the center of significant controversy, with his unpredictable rants on X drawing attention. His statements have included a troubling embrace of antisemitic ideas and provocative admiration for figures like Hitler, all while making appearances in clothing adorned with controversial symbols.
In a lengthy conversation with DJ Akademiks last week, West provided insights into his recent thoughts and interactions, discussing various figures from the music industry including Kendrick Lamar, Drake, and Kim Kardashian, while maintaining his unpredictable public persona.
Below are direct quotes from Ye’s recent comments aimed at J. Cole:
I hate J Cole music so much. It’s like between Kendrick and J Cole. I bet you industry plants asked J Cole to diss Drake then we would have been accosted with a J Cole Super Bowl commercial with no SZA song to save it https://t.co/djbn491rpv
— ye (@kanyewest) April 2, 2025
When I met up with Drake during Donda most of the convo was me telling him he was hurting hip hop by giving J Cole a platform and I was saying how much I loved Future
— ye (@kanyewest) April 2, 2025
No one listens to J Cole after losing their virginity
— ye (@kanyewest) April 2, 2025
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