J. Cole shoots project in Fayetteville Thursday, today
Music star and former Fayetteville resident J. Cole is shooting a video project in Fayetteville this week.
In a conversation with The Fayetteville Observer on Thursday evening, Cole declined to discuss details of the video project.
The video was filmed Thursday afternoon on a basketball court near Walker-Spivey Elementary School on Fisher Street in the Old Wilmington Road area. Cole was there along with other performers who ran up and down the court to play basketball for the shoot.
The shoot drew a crowd of spectators, several of whom said they were thrilled to see him.
Tiana Allen of Fayetteville and several of her friends hoped to get a photo with Cole. Allen had seen him in concert, but she said the experience at the basketball court was different.
“I was star-struck,” Allen said.
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Pine Forest High School students Xavier McLean and Don Marcell said Cole’s success and seeing him Thursday inspires them to strive to do great things.
“I’ve seen him once in concert, but it’s still surreal seeing up close, in person, and he’s from Fayetteville,” McLean said.
Marcell said he hopes to have a music career, too.
Earlier Thursday, the project was scheduled to be filmed at a private home on Fanning Circle in the Hollywood Heights neighborhood in west Fayetteville, according to a city special events permit. People reported on social media Thursday that they saw filming activity.
The city permit says filming was to take place Thursday evening at the ServiceSource office on Ames Street. ServiceSource is a nonprofit organization that provides vocational training for people with disabilities. A Fayetteville woman said she went there Thursday morning and was told the filming had been completed. She said she saw parking signs that had been set up for the film crew.
The city permit says filming is scheduled for Friday at Fayetteville State University. University spokesman Jeffrey Womble declined to discuss specifics of that.
The special events permit paperwork was issued for Object & Animal USA, a creative studio based in Los Angeles. The studio said 75 people would be involved in the production and it agreed to pay for Fayetteville police officers to provide security. Several officers were at the basketball court Thursday.
Cole has previously used Fayetteville in his video and documentary work. One of his studio albums, “2014 Forest Hills Drive,” is named for his childhood home here.
Staff writer Paul Woolverton can be reached at pwoolverton@fayobserver.com or 910-486-3512. Staff writer Melody Brown-Peyton can be reached at mbrownpeyton@fayobserver.com or 910-486-3568. Staff writer Rodd Baxley can be reached at rbaxley@fayobserver.com or 910-486-3519.
