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Super successful and undeniably enigmatic rapper J. Cole recently gave Billboard a rare sit down interview this week where he shared some thoughts about a number of topics which further reveal his mindset about politics, the music industry, and the current rise of celebrity worship.
In no uncertain terms, Cole makes it known from jump that he doesn’t like the trappings of fame and he is fully aware that critics think that he’s prone to “finger wagging” his peers in hip-hop. Doing so has positioned him as a “moral authority” to a lot of people; namely his loyal fanbase.
These days, the 33-year-old wants us to know there’s a lot more to him than meets the eye.
Here are five tidbits about J.Cole that completely blew our minds.
1. He likes to help out the community anonymously
The day that Billboard writer Dee Lockett was shadowing the rapper, it was 107-degrees in Dallas. Even though he was due onstage in a few hours, he made everyone in his camp make a detour to a local charity event.
Residents of Oak Cliff, a neighborhood where the crime rate is twice that of the national average, had been incessantly tweeting Cole, begging him to attend their drive for school supplies, called the “Back to School Festival.” Cole, with no advance notice or publicity, showed up with a U-Haul stocked with $20,000 worth of goods.He also chose not to formally announce his donation, but instead take pictures with fans including the occasional hugs and autograph.
“He got a show tonight, he didn’t have to come to this,” said one shocked parent.
And even after he was whisked back into his SUV, Cole rolled down his tinted window and offered a young woman who dreams of starting a charter school, the email address of someone at his Dreamville label who might be able to help her.
That quick afternoon detour pretty much sums up J. Cole’s disdain for milking his celebrity juxtaposed against his deep understanding of the power it can provide to help those less fortunate.
Rea Davis and J. Cole attend J. Cole For Bally Cocktail at Bally Phipps Plaza on August 15, 2015 in Atlanta, Georgia. (Photo by Paras Griffin/Getty Images for Bally)
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