J. Cole: 2014 Forest Hills Drive Still Going Crazy 6 Years Later

Things are heating up for J. Cole as Dreamville co-founder and Cole’s manager, Ibrahim Hamad, tweeted that J. Cole now has 12 new plaques to his name. These new RIAA certifications all come from tracks featured on J. Cole’s acclaimed album, 2014 Forest Hills Drive.

This is a big deal for the talented rapper because RIAA’s Platinum and Gold certifications are awarded to artists when their record sells 1 million units and 500,000 units respectively.

The certifications for 2014 Forest Hills Drive arrives shortly after the RIAA announced 10 new plaques for its follow-up studio album, 4 Your Eyez Only.

If you are not familiar with J. Cole’s body of work, or 2014 Forest Hills Drive in particular, it is his third studio album that was released on December 9, 2014, by ByStorm Entertainment, Columbia Records, Dreamville Records and Roc Nation.

Without a doubt, 2014 Forest Hills Drive was an album that gave the term “nostalgia” a completely new meaning. Released on December 9th, 2014, the album soared into popularity as over two million copies were sold worldwide.

Continuing to achieve musical feats, FHD went on to go double platinum, furthering Cole’s success.

Not only did this prompt the Forest Hills Drive Homecoming Tour in the artist’s home state of North Carolina, but the success inspired the production of the 2014 FHD Homecoming movie, which was a self-narrated documentary depicting the origin story of Jermaine “J.” Cole.

This fame welcomed the introduction of his 2016 album “4 Your Eyez Only” with somewhat confused-yet open-arms. The various confusion amidst fans regarding the variety of song styles led to an overall drop in sales, as 4YEO only managed to go platinum.

Dealing with much heavier topics like gun violence, mass incarceration, and toxic masculinity, the artist’s fans were utterly shocked as to why J. Cole decided to take such a far step back from the light that Forest Hills Drive had provided everyone with.

However, Cole’s fanbase still supported him, and although the 4YEO album brought up hidden details about the artist’s own personal life, listeners still couldn’t wait to see what the artist came up with next.

This hope was not in vain this year as J. Cole released his latest album “K.O.D” in May 2018. Initial reviews were somewhat surprised; the album, taking a much more aggressive approach, was something unfamiliar to listeners who had been a part of the nostalgic “2014 Forest Hills Drive” and somewhat somber “4 Your Eyez Only” in the past.

There was more confusion; not only about the meaning behind the album’s acronym in general but behind the meaning and interpretation of the accompanying music videos for some of the songs.

However confused his fanbase seemed to be, the album still hit record sales; 4YEO succeeded in being the fifth straight album to debut at the top of the Billboard 200 charts. J. Cole also succeeded in being able to appeal to both his younger, newer fans, as well as his more experienced listeners.

With this being his third album in 6 years, Cole honed in on his versatile music creating skills in order to make three differently styled, unique albums that intrigued his entire fanbase.

And although the albums continue to dive further into more serious social topics, the overall stability of J. Cole’s music career remains unwavering, even while he continues to perplex his fans and make them wonder what his next move is.

Image: Tabatha Fireman/Getty Images