J. Cole Sends Subliminal Shots At Kanye and Drake on "False Prophets"

Next Friday, December 9th, J. Cole will release his fourth studio album, 4 Your Eyez Only. And while that alone should be enough to let you know that 2016's not going out quietly, Cole released a documentary in support of the record last night that provided an intimate glimpse into his creative process for the record. Cole writes out his thoughts, displays an impressive grasp of music theory and caps off his Eyez doc with a music video for the new song "False Prophets."

But that track, breezy and laid-back in its feel, only provides Cole with fertile ground to ruminate on the state of hip-hop and its graceless heroes. Cole raps:

Life is a balance/You lose your grip you could slip into an abyss/No doubt, you see these niggas trippin’/Ego in charge of every move, he’s a star/ And we can’t look away due to the days when he caught our hearts/He’s falling apart but we deny it/ Justifying the half-assed shit he drop, we always buy it

When he tell us he a genius but it’s clearer lately/ It’s been hard for him to look into the mirror lately/There was a time when this nigga was my hero maybe/That’s the reason why his fall from grace is hard to take/’Cause I believed him when he said his shit was purer and he the type of nigga swear he real but all around is fake

The women, the dickriders, you know, the yes men/ Nobody with the balls to say something to contest him/So it grows out of control/ Until the person that he truly was all along is starting to show.

Many have taken this as a direct reference to Kanye West. Cole goes on to say:

Wonder what happened/Maybe it’s my fault for idolizing niggas based off the words that they be rappin’/But come to find out these niggas don’t even write they own shit/Hear some new style bubbling up then they bite that shit.”

That last line has been interpreted as a ghostwriting reference aimed at Drake. Gonna keep our hot take out of it (for now,) but it doesn't appear that J. Cole's pulling any punches with this new record. Suppose we'll just have to wait and see. Hear "False Prophets" down below and pre-order your copy of 4 Your Eyez Only on iTunes today.