J Cole New Single “Snow On tha Bluff” Attracts Controversy

J. Cole has left his fans surprised with the release of a new single titled “Snow On tha Bluff.”

The new song addresses racism, activism, organizing, social media, police brutality, his celebrity status, and much more.

Due to some of J. Cole’s lyrics, many fans also felt the song referred to Chicago rapper Noname.

In the lyrics, Cole refers to “a young lady out there, she way smarter than me” who tweets often about sociopolitical issues such as capitalism and police brutality but whose tone “bothers” him.

Noname’s timeline easily fits the bill, since 2019 many of her tweets revolve around activism and subjects like defunding the police and she certainly hasn’t been shy in sharing her disdain for opposition to her ideas.

Noname called out big-name rappers for their silence following the murder of George Floyd. After the song was released, Noname tweeted: “QUEEN TONE!!!!!!”

J. Cole | Pitchfork

J. Cole raps on the track:

“I scrolled through her timeline in these wild times and I started to read/She mad at these crackers, she mad at these capitalists, mad at these murder police/ She mad at my n*ggas, she mad at our ignorance, she wear her heart on her sleeve/She mad at the celebrities, low key I be thinkin she talking bout me,”

The line from which Noname was referring to sees J. Cole rap, “But Shit, its something about the queen tone that’s bothering me.”

Many didn’t agree with J. Cole as it was pointed out to him by one observer that:

 “Noname started a whole ass book club around dismantling white supremacy and capitalism and J. Cole wants this woman to spell it out for him like he can’t read.”

Taking to his Twitter page hours later to clear the air, J. Cole said while he stands by what he said on the song, he recognises Noname as a leader in these times and appreciates her.

He also went on to say that right or wrong, all he did was to be honest.

He wrote:

“Some assume to know who the song is about. That’s fine with me, it’s not my job to tell anybody what to think or feel about the work. I accept all conversation and criticisms. But let me use this moment.

 Follow @noname. I love and honor her as a leader in these times. She has done and is doing the reading and the listening and the learning on the path that she truly believes is the correct one for our people. Meanwhile a nigga like me just be rapping.”

He conitnued:

“I haven’t done a lot of reading and I don’t feel well equipped as a leader in these times. But I do a lot of thinking. And I appreciate her and others like her because they challenge my beliefs and I feel that in these times that’s important.

We may not agree with each other but we gotta be gentle with each other.”

In the time since Cole released KOD in 2018, he’s been teasing a new album called The Fall Off, which currently has no release date.