The rise of J. Cole

RALEIGH — As the sun went down, the temperature seemed to rise in Dorthea Dix Park Saturday.

A sold out crowd of more than 40,000 at the first ever Dreamville Festival danced and sang along to the likes of Ari Lennox, Big Sean and Bas.

But it was clear who most of the crowd were there to see

"I want to see J. Cole and hang out with my friends," said Savannah Hill, waiting to enter the park with her friends Anna James and Campbell Britton, all from Greenville.

The friends joined the throng of fans who showed up for the festival, which was rescheduled from September because of Hurricane Florence.

Clear skies and mild temperatures greeted the fans, although the ground was still soggy from rain the day before.

Traffic moved at a crawl as people searched for parking spaces. Fans lined up at the entrances to have their tickets checked.

Fans were excited.

A pregnant Preanna Singleton, whose son Noah is due in August, said the boy would be "going to his first concert.

"I'm excited," Singlet on said. "I've never been to a crowd more than 40,000 people, so it should be interesting."

The music started around noon on two stages, dubbed Rise and Shine. Mez, Lute and Omen were among the first performers.

Several of the acts name-checked J. Cole, drawing cheers from the crowd.

Others gave tribute to murdered rapper Nipsey Hussle.

Nelly drew cheers for his more old-school set, while SZA got into more of a slow groove.

At around 9:30 p.m., the crowd got what it was waiting for as J. Cole hit the stage.

The path from Fayetteville to Dreamville

J. Cole’s rise to rap royalty began in Fayetteville.

Born Jermaine Cole in Germany to an Army father and a mother who worked at the post office, Cole showed a love of music early.

His mother, Kay Cole, remembers a son who “wasn’t afraid to sing and dance,” as she said in a 2016 interview.

And it wasn’t always rap or hip-hop that got him moving. Kay Cole remembered dancing with her son in the family’s kitchen to a bluegrass radio program.

But as with many young men his age — Cole is 34 — rap soon took center stage. He became fascinated with the genre and began to compete in freestyle battles at local clubs and with a local rap duo called Bomm Sheltuh.

[PHOTOS: J. Cole in Fayetteville through the years]

Upon graduation from Terry Sanford High School in 2003, Cole moved to New York to attend St. John’s University.

While in college, Cole recorded his first mix tape, “The Come Up,” and found a manager. His skills wouldn’t go unnoticed for long.

In 2008, rapper and entrepreneur Jay Z heard Cole’s “Lights, Please” and offered him a record deal. With the endorsement of such an established figure, Cole was off and running.

In 2011, after a couple more mixtapes, Cole released his first studio album, “Cole World: The Sideline Story.” It debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard charts and notched sales of nearly a million.

The world took notice, and in 2012 Cole was nominated for Best New Artist at the 2012 Grammys, losing to Bon Iver.

Through it all, Cole never forgot his Fayetteville roots. His 2014 album, “2014 Forest Hills Drive,” referenced his former address here; its cover showed him sitting on the roof of the house.

He later bought the house with the goal of opening it as a home for single-mother families.

[PHOTOS: J. Cole before he was famous]

Cole remembered Fayetteville in other ways as well. He shot a video for his song “Power Trip” here and occasionally references the city in his lyrics.

In 2015, Cole made local history when he brought out surprise guests Jay Z and Drake at a concert in the Crown Coliseum. The concert was filmed for an HBO special.

Cole's star has risen to the point where he was featured in a recent glossy GQ magazine cover story, a distinction reserved for the likes of Harrison Ford, Lin-Manuel Miranda and The Rock.

In the profile, Cole talks about balancing his high public profile — such as performing at the recent NBA All-Star game — with his intense need for privacy.

"J. Cole might be a famous musician, but in some ways he tries to live life like he's not," the story reads. "Home is in North Carolina, where he can play basketball at a local gym for hours without being disturbed."

Cole also established the Dreamville Foundation, which sponsored school supply drives and other efforts. Over the years, he has popped in at the Fayetteville Urban Ministry; in December he made an appearance at a Falcon Children’s Home Christmas party at Round-a-Bout Skating in Eutaw Shopping Center.

Cole has generally kept the appearances under wraps, with the public not aware of them until after the fact.

[PHOTOS: For $325K, live on J. Cole's street]

Alysse Stewart, program director and on-air personality with Magic 106.9 in Fayetteville, said that side of Cole is part of his appeal.

“For me, J. Cole represents what’s positive in the industry. I think it’s not all about the money with him,” Stewart said. “He genuinely cares about uplifting those around him. From what I’ve heard, he doesn’t seek the attention, he just does it.”

Fan Ana Holtzclaw, who attended the Dreamville Festival, agreed.

“I think he’s brought nothing but positive vibes to the Fayetteville community,” Holtzclaw said. “People of all ages have been inspired by him. You always see him in the news — ‘Oh, he’s visiting Fayetteville.’ That means a lot.”

Cole’s music has grown and changed along with the artist. Critics took note of dark themes such as addiction on his most recent album, last year’s “KOD.”

“For a talented technical rapper with reverence for hip-hop’s history, Cole has never really been playful,” Pitchfork magazine wrote in a review of “KOD.”

Noting Cole’s “weakness for corny punchlines,” the magazine nonetheless concluded, “But even so, Cole is capable of making a strong case for his beliefs. When he does, it’s thanks to the emotional appeals he embeds in certain songs.”

Jerry Doby, editor in chief of Atlanta-based The Hype magazine, said he sees Cole becoming “more adult with it.

“He doesn’t shy away from the hot button topics,” Doby said. “He’s trying to make eternal music, what we call ‘forever music,’ things that will last beyond a generation of music listeners. Music that my grandchildren might listen to.”

Cole’s career is evolving in other ways, as well, Doby said, perhaps taking a cue from his mentor Jay Z.

“He is moving from being just an artist into the entrepreneurial stage, which is pretty amazing,” Doby said. “Not many artists from the hip-hop realm have their own branded kind of festival. It’s pretty historic, really.”

Taking the stage at Dreamville

Cole, wearing a red Dreamville jersey, stood at the microphone for a couple of minutes looking out at the crowd, taking it all in.

Cole asked that the stage lights be turned on the crowd so he could see his fans. He name-checked several North Carolina cities, ending with his native Fayetteville.

"Make some noise in the back," Cole said, and the crowd responded with cheers and upheld phones.

Cole mentioned Cross Creek Mall and other local sites. He told the crowd that he "didn't have hits, only classics."

Cole brought rapper 21 Savage on to share the stage with him.

As the crowd cheered and chanted the words to some of Cole's songs, the rapper seemed to appreciate it all.

"This is beautiful," he said. "We've never had anything like this in North Carolina."

The crowd of more than 40,000 seemed to agree.

Staff writer Rodger Mullen can be reached at rmullen@fayobserver.com or 910-486-3561.