2014 Forest Hills Drive

J. Cole Compares “2014 Forest Hills Drive” To Winning A Championship

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The debate surrounding J Cole’s legacy often lies within the number of classic albums in his catalog. Some would say none, while others proclaim 2014 Forest Hills Drive as his magnum opus. The rapper didn’t win a Grammy for the album. However, he later earned a trophy for his contributions to 21 Savage’s “a lot.” During his conversation with Bob Myers on Lead By Example, he explained that the experience of recording and releasing the album felt similar to a championship run. “Had I won it early on, I feel like it would have validated all of those feelings I had for it,” J Cole said.

“Maybe it would have felt like a championship at that point, I’m not sure,” he continued. However, 2014 Forest Hills Drive’s loss allowed him to reflect on his career. These days, he doesn’t necessarily hold the accolade to the same standards as he did when he was younger. “After more time with sitting with myself, it becomes clear that, ‘Oh, wait a minute, those things weren’t for you.’ And then when it actually came, it was almost like, ‘I’m not in love with this thing anymore.’ So it couldn’t feel like a championship,” he added.

J Cole’s Grammy Win

Evidently, the Grammys can’t dictate J. Cole’s greatness. During his conversation, he told Myers that winning the award was “nowhere close to a championship for me.” Still, in retrospect, the success and praise that 2014 Forest Hills Drive earned made felt comparable to how the Bulls two-time three-peats. “The making of this album I got called Forest Hills Drive, and the releasing of it and the tour, that was a championship run in the way that how the Bulls look at The Last Dance,” he said.

Ultimately, the album’s success cemented J Cole’s status in hip-hop and the recognition from institutes like the Recording Academy couldn’t take that away from him. “The fact that it didn’t win didn’t change my experience. That was what a championship felt like to me,” he concluded. 2014 Forest Hills Drive dropped with no prior announcement, leaping to the top of the Billboard 200 with 350K units sold in its first week. Check out J Cole’s interview with Bob Myers above and sound off with your thoughts in the comments. 

J. Cole Views ‘2014 Forest Hills Drive’ Like A ‘Championship Run,’ With Or Without A Grammy Win

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J. Cole‘s album, 2014 Forest Hills Drive, was well acclaimed — enough to earn him a Grammy nomination for Best Rap Album in 2016. He lost to another beloved project in Kendrick Lamar’s To Pimp A Butterfly, though.

However, in a new interview on ESPN’s Lead By Example With Bob Myers, the musician opened up about while the accolade was important to him at the time, just making the record great meant more in the long run.

“It was so important to me,” J. Cole said. “Had I had won it early on, I think it would have validated all those feelings I had for it. Maybe it would have felt like a championship at that point, I’m not sure. The fact that it didn’t happen and then it didn’t happen and it didn’t happen, it allowed me to reflect.”

“There was an album that felt like a championship,” he added. “The making of this album I got called Forest Hills Drive, and the releasing of it and the tour. That was a championship run in a way I would look at how the Bulls look at The Last Dance. That was the feeling. Guess what, that album didn’t win a Grammy. A Grammy didn’t increase my enjoyment or decrease my enjoyment. If that album had won a Grammy, it wouldn’t have changed my experience. The fact that it didn’t win didn’t change my experience. That was what a championship felt like to me.”

Cole eventually did go on to win a Grammy for his “A Lot” collab with 21 Savage in 2020.

Seven Years After Its Release, J. Cole’s ‘2014 Forest Hills Drive’ Is Still On The ‘Billboard’ 200

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On December 9th, 2014, J. Cole’s monumental 2014 Forest Hills Drive was released and debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard 200 chart. Suffice it to say, a lot has happened in the time since for Cole, who frequently finds himself in the mix of a lot of people’s contemporary rap Mt. Rushmore debates. Cole has claimed 15 Grammy nominations (yielding one win) and all six of his albums have hit No. 1 on the Billboard 200, but none can match the unfathomable success of 2014 Forest Hills Drive, which has now been on the charts for a whopping 367 straight weeks (as HipHopDX points out).

In fact, it’s actually still in the top 100, currently clocking in at No. 80, humorously down a spot from No. 79 last week. It’s a certified triple-Platinum album — with no features, naturally. Both “No Role Modelz” and “Wet Dreamz” are Platinum songs on their own and the album is Cole’s undisputed crown jewel. This all comes on the heels of Cole’s latest album, The Off-Season, getting Platinum status as of last week — with features from 21 Savage, 6lack, Lil Baby, Bas, and Morray.

When the 64th Grammy Awards ceremony takes place on January 31st, 2022, Cole will be in the running for four awards: Best Rap Album (for The Off-Season, of course), Best Rap Performance, and Best Rap Song (for “My Life” featuring 21 Savage and Morray), and Best Melodic Rap Performance (for “Pride Is The Devil” featuring Lil Baby). We’ll see if this time his Grammy success will stack up to his Billboard dominance.