As one of the more anticipated albums of 2014, 2014 (coincidence, right?) Forest Hills Drive aimed to finally kill off Jermaine Cole's doubters once and for all. Born Sinner, his sophomore effort, brought juxtaposed reviews, many loved it and many hated it. In my own opinion, it had a few songs in which Cole showed flashes of real talent. For example, the whole "faggot" spiel in Villuminati--I still see that as one of his best displays of lyricism. On to Forest Hills. Being Cole's third album, it drew quite a bit of attention from everyone from bloggers to radio listeners.
Will this be the project in which he finally establishes himself as one of hip hop's premier emcees? Let's get to it.
If you like good music, you probably won't find much use for this. Kind of melodic, but mostly annoying. Not much to see.
2. January 28
One of the more forgettable tracks on the album. Titles after Cole's birthday, the song brings a lazy beat to the table with a background sample of what I imagine the sirens from the odyssey probably sound like. Personally, I'm a fan of the hook. It's very catchy and soothing, which sadly isn't true for the rest of the track. Cole's first effort at lyricism on the album seems half-assed and off beat. His flow is loose, and this song left me wondering if it has been left off of Born Sinner.
3. Wet Dreamz
Here we go. This is the J Cole that I like. This track addresses his first time, how it came about, and how he lied about being a virgin to the girl he smashed. For a second straight song, the hook is catchy as hell. That seems to be a strong point of his on this album. Cole's flow is tight and he brings a real storytelling element that I can't say I've ever seen from him, at least not on this level. Impressive, one of my favorites.
4. '03 Adolescence
What the hell Jermaine? Why did you get my hopes up with "Wet Dreamz" and then follow it with this boring and forgettable mass of corny punch lines? Now, Cole is known for those corny punch lines, but they aren't as plentiful on this album as the previous ones. This track, however, is home to most of the aforementioned trash. Ex: "burnt trees and cd's like this was broadway, Times Square". C'mon Cole.
5. A Tale of Two Citiez
The production on this track is hard. The beat has a very trap feel to it, yet Cole is able to lay down some nice bars and an alright hook. All you really need to know about this track is that when he says "nice watch, run it" you better be ready to get buck.
6. Fire Squad
This is easily one of the high points on the album. Cole continuously asks "Nigga why you actin like a hoe, nigga why you actin like bitch" which is just funny. The beat reminds me of Mobb Deep, which is high praise. The focus of this track is that no one can shoot like Cole, as he is a combo of '02 Lil Wayne and KD, among others. He also drops a line about how white people have stolen hip hop and how amusing it is to see Iggy (Azalea) win a Grammy. I enjoyed this one.
7. St. Tropez
Boring. Very boring. Forgettable track, one that doesn't belong on this album, especially in this spot between the three best tracks.
8. G.O.M.D.
Standing for "Get off my dick", track 8 immediately makes you forget the bullshit that was "St Tropez" and gives you hope for the rest of the album. Cole spits fire over a bass heavy beat that samples what sounds like (for lack of a better term) a negro spiritual (his words, not mine). The hook draws inspiration from "to the window to the wall" and it seems Cole is back to making good hooks at this point. On every album, there's at least one, sometimes a few tracks, that bump in the whip. This is that shit.
9. Role Modelz
Cole reaches his peak right here. Disappointingly, this is the climax of the album. Not disappointingly, it goes HARD. On the previous track, I was talking about shit that bumps in the whip--this is the second track on the album that meets the criteria. Cole lays down the best lyrics on the whole album, and the piano and treble-laden beat has a smooth bassline that makes it flow. The hook is simple and extremely catchy. Cole also drops a line about himself being a B-list celebrity, which I really just loved for some reason. Just when you think the song is ending, we reach my favorite part of the album--a spoken word quote by George Bush, to the effect of "Fool me once, shame on you. Fool me twice, well you can't fool me twice." Cole follows this with his own take on the quote and a list of his regrets about being too young for some of the most beautiful black women in showbiz, serving as some of the most memorable bars on the album. This will be one that you go back to with regularity.
10. Hello
I'm actually pissed off. WHY would you follow the best track with the worst one? Jesus Christ, Jermaine, this is bad. With an overly synthesized beat that sounds like it would be more at home as an Ellie Goulding instrumental, Cole revisits his corny bullshit with likes such as "on the rebound like a putback". This is terrible.
11. Apparently
You know what hip hop needs? Another track about a rapper's mom. Come on. I'm assuming the title of this track is an hint that he "apparently" decided to stop making good music. Just for laughs: "I'm hot, dog, ketchup."
12. Love Yourz
This track is shockingly not shitty. Cole preaches about how no life is better than yours, a nice message. Personally, I'm a fan of the piano heavy production. The hook isn't very good, yet I find myself humming it after I listen to the song, which counts in a positive way. Not Cole's best work lyrically, but an extremely welcome change from the last two musical abominations.
13. Note to Self
At least the Outro is a lot better than the intro. There are parts of this track that aren't very good, but there are enough redeeming qualities that I would put it in the positive category. The instrumental is basic and very nice to listen to to. Cole doesnt rap as much as he sings, which personally i don't mind because I love the man's voice. But what i could do without is the ten fucking minute shoutout that ends the song. This isn't an acceptance speech, Jermaine. Naturally, when he says "this the credits, if you don't want to sit through the credits get ya ass up", I turned the shit off promptly.
Rating: 3/5
I wanted to give this album a higher rating, I really did. But on a 13 song project, you can't have very many bad songs, and this had its share. Not only that, but the bad songs were very bad. In my opinion, Cole went 7.5/13 on good tracks vs bad tracks, and that's barely above average. Granted, the high points were very impressive and there are tracks that I will be going back to listen to for a while. But, even after his third album, Cole still has a good amount of room for improvement. You're running out of time, Jermaine.