Review of '2014 Forest Hill Drive'; still a hit after 9 years!
by Geraldine D.
Every hall that you walk in AHS, you will see students with headphones in listening to music, and I guarantee you a huge chunk of these students are listening to or have listened to J.Cole’s 2014 Forest Hill Drive, or at least a few songs from this album. J. Cole is a 38 year old American rapper and record producer.He was born in Fayetteville, North Carolina. 2014 Forest Hill Drive is a certified triple-platinum. This album came out on December 9th, 2014 and was nominated for Best Rap Album at the 2016 Grammy Awards but unfortunately lost.
Even though this album is almost ten years old, it is a staple for the modern high school student, those interested in rap anyway, and J. Cole’s album 2014 Forest Hill Drive will always be one of his best pieces of work.
One thing that makes this record so great is that the songs in this album have more than just lyrics. He has stories and advice along with a good beat. His songs connect with things people go through in real life or feelings they have come across in their life. Each one of the songs in this album have their own set of meaningful lyrics. This album is a hip-hop with rap album. Each song has its own story, theme and message. He writes life and struggles into music as he grows from having nothing to everything. For example, January 28th talks about how he overcame the challenges he faced and how he made his life better through hard work and perseverance. In a set of lyrics, J. Cole raps “I got a date with destiny, I'm running late, but I'm here.” He expresses how even though it's taking longer than expected, he still worked to reach his goal.
Secondly, as J. Cole turns storytelling into music, these stories often center around his personal struggles that he has overcome, giving listeners a sense that they are not alone when they have bad things happen in their own lives and making them feel like they can overcome the odds, too. In his song “ 03 Adolescence” he talks about the struggles he faces as he goes from being a young male to an adult. In one of his lyrics, He says “I grew up, a f----- screw up.” As he feels that growing up , he never did things right. He also talks about how growing up, he didn't have a father figure but although he doesn't focus on that now, it could affect him in the future. As his lyrics are “I ain’t grow up with my father, i ain't thinking about that now. Fast forward four years or so from now I'll probably cry.” Listeners who may be in similar situations as J. Cole can listen to lyrics and know they are not the only ones with problems and struggles.
Another theme on the album that resonates with readers is the importance of being grateful and staying humble. His song “Love Yourz” is about learning to be grateful for what you have even if people have more than you. There's always going to be someone with better stuff than you but you won't ever be happy unless you love what you have. He raps, “Its beauty in the struggle, ugliness in the success.” He explains that even though he grew to success, there were still flaws in that and that even in his worst moments , there is always something beautiful in that. At points of the song, the lyrics “but you ain’t ever gonna be happy till you love yours” will play. Although some people have a better house, car or clothes than you, accepting and being grateful for what you have will bring you happiness.
Students at Airport also view the album positively, such as Kimberly C. who is a sophomore at AHS who enjoys listening to J. Cole's music along with a lot of other students. She says, “ This album will always be a classic.”
A freshman at AHS , Aylin T. says “I think this is a good album. It has a lot of background about J. Cole’s career and life.”
Critics have more mixed opinions. Craig Jenkins on Pitchfork.com did not like this album as much. He says that a decent album selling itself as great. It wraps itself in the garments of a classic but tailoring is off, meaning he could have trimmed and edited the tracks a bit better. He says that he makes passable albums with memorable singles but that the album as whole lacks perfection. He rated the album a 6.9 out of 10. Another critic, Gio Genner says that the listening experience is unreal and that the album could be seen as an autobiography of J. Cole's life. He says that this is his favorite album of all time.
Overall, I rate this album a 9/10. Every song has its own set of deep lyrics and messages along with good beats to it. There were no features and this album was still great and made with real feelings. This album can be found in any music streaming apps such as spotify, soundcloud, apple music, and ect. I really recommend listening to this album and paying attention to the lyrics as you vibe to the beat too.