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Wikipedia

4 Your Eyez Only

January 01, 1970

This article is about the 2016 album. For the 2017 documentary, see J. Cole: 4 Your Eyez Only. For other media with the same title, see For Your Eyes Only (disambiguation).

4 Your Eyez Only is the fourth studio album by American rapper J. Cole. It was released on December 9, 2016, by Dreamville Records, Roc Nation and Interscope Records.[5] The album was Cole's first release with Interscope—his previous albums were released by Columbia Records.[6] 4 Your Eyez Only was released exactly two years after Cole's previous studio album, 2014 Forest Hills Drive.

4 Your Eyez Only
Studio album by
J. Cole
ReleasedDecember 9, 2016 (2016-12-09)
Recorded
Studio
Genre
Length44:32
Label
Producer
J. Cole chronology
Forest Hills Drive: Live
(2016) 		4 Your Eyez Only
(2016) 		KOD
(2018)
Singles from 4 Your Eyez Only
  1. "Deja Vu"
    Released: January 10, 2017
  2. "Neighbors"
    Released: April 25, 2017
Vinyl cover

Most of these recordings took place from 2015 to 2016, while the production on the album was primarily handled by Cole himself, alongside several other record producers such as Vinylz, Boi-1da, Cardiak, Ron Gilmore, Frank Dukes, Chargaux and Elite, among others. The album explores a variety of topics concerning the African American community including mass incarceration, racial discrimination, gang violence and depression. The two-part suite “She’s Mine” dives deeper into Cole’s emotions and provides the album with another perspective: hope. The album also touches on other topics such as love and fatherhood.

The album was supported by two singles: "Deja Vu," and "Neighbors". All 10 songs from 4 Your Eyez Only debuted in the top 40 of the US Billboard Hot 100. Cole achieved twelve simultaneous Hot 100 entries in a single week. Promoting the release, Cole released a one-hour documentary (by the same name) on April 15, 2017, on HBO, featuring music from the album. In June 2017, Cole embarked on the 4 Your Eyez Only World Tour, to promote the album.

4 Your Eyez Only debuted at number one on the US Billboard 200, selling 363,000 copies in its first week (492,000 with additional album-equivalent units), earning Cole his fourth consecutive number-one album in the country. It had the third-largest weekly sales for an album in 2016. The album also debuted at number one on Billboard's Canadian Albums Chart. The reception for 4 Your Eyez Only was generally positive, with most critics praising the songwriting, and some calling it Cole's most mature album to date. It appeared on several music publications' year-end lists. On January 12, 2017, 4 Your Eyez Only was certified Gold by the Recording Industry Association of America, and was certified Platinum on April 7, 2017.

Background edit

On July 29, 2016, DJ Khaled released his ninth album,[7] Major Key, the fifth track of which, titled "Jermaine's Interlude", features Cole.[8] During his feature on that track, Cole declares, "Said all I could say, now I play with thoughts of retirement"—a line that had fans of Cole's wondering about the future of his music career.[9] In October 2016, while performing at a live concert, Cole said that it would be his "last show for a very long time."[10][11] However, on December 1, with no announcement from Cole himself, a pre-order for his fourth studio album, titled 4 Your Eyez Only was made available on iTunes Store, with a release date for December 9, 2016.[12] Dreamville Records revealed 4 Your Eyez Only official track listing on December 6 through their Twitter account.[13] According to a Twitter rep, there were 2.7 million tweets mentioning J. Cole or 4 Your Eyez Only between December 7 to 19, 2016.[14] In January 2017, in an interview with The Huffington Post, Cole's manager and Dreamville president, Ibrahim Hamad revealed not even the label knew they would be releasing 4 Your Eyez Only until very late. By the time it actually came out only seven people had heard the album in its entirety.[15]

Album artwork edit

The photo that forms the basis of the cover art was shot by Anthony "Supreme" Thompson, who is a photographer and a fan of Cole's. The photo was shot in an Atlanta neighborhood in September 2016.[16] Thompson explained on Instagram:

This Atlanta neighborhood was just going crazy! People were running out of their house to take a photo of Cole and ask him questions but, there was something to me about this boy and how he kept looking at Cole as he walked around his neighborhood. I can see in his eyes how much this experience is slowly changing his life forever! The young boy's face just stood out to me to capture. I saw in his eyes he knew nothing about J. Cole, but was somewhat amazed how everyone was reacting to him. The boy even asked Cole several times who he was. But, he couldn't understand what was going on in his world. Cole and I spent hours one night looking for photos for his album cover but nothing seemed to stand out. Then a few days passed and I finally found this photo that I felt represented the cover the most to me to pitch to him.[17]

The cover art was revealed when the album was made available for pre-order on iTunes.[12] XXL named it one of the best cover arts of 2016.[18]

Recording and production edit

 
The majority of the album was recorded in Raleigh, North Carolina (pictured).

The majority of the album was recorded at a home and recording studio in North Carolina that Cole nicknamed the Sheltuh. Some sessions also took place at Electric Lady Studios in New York City, over the summer of 2016.[19] On March 18, 2016, an incident occurred at the Sheltuh that inspired the making of the track, "Neighbors",[20] Dreamville in-house producer, Elite explained the situation in an interview with Complex, saying:

Basically Cole rented out a house in North Carolina. It's not for him; it's like a safe haven/creative workspace for all the Dreamville artists and producers. We call it the Sheltuh, and a lot of the album was recorded there.. It's basically a studio in a basement, in the woods. It's also in the suburbs of a pretty wealthy neighborhood in North Carolina. So you have, predominately, African-Americans coming in and out of this house. Ubers coming, and every once in awhile you'll see a group of us outside on the porch smoking weed. So the neighbors started getting real paranoid. Apparently what happened was, we were all in Austin, Texas, for SXSW; thankfully no one was in the house when this went down. One of the neighbors told the police we were growing weed or selling drugs out of this house. And there was a huge investigation, like a million-dollar investigation. They flew helicopters over, sent an entire SWAT team armed with weapons, broke down the door and searched the whole house. Thankfully nobody was in the house. Our engineer Juro "Mez" Davis had just stepped out for lunch and he came back and saw the SWAT team busting down the door. They go downstairs and all they see is a studio, and obviously they felt stupid. It's just crazy ironic because out of anybody, they picked the wrong person. J. Cole is the last person to do anything like that. He's out here doing extremely positive things for the community and for young artists. Because of obvious racism from the neighbors, the police were called and a raid took place.[21]

 
Producer Elite provided production on the album, and also served as co-executive producer of the album.

We've worked on albums before and a lot of times we would get a song and everything was sown up, and basically they're just like, "Can you just sprinkle a little extra whatever on it?" For this particular album, to be given the opportunity to work with people who were so kind and so open and so willing to let us do our thing and let us contribute vocals on the track and have this creative freedom is kind of unprecedented for us, and it gave us the opportunity to get our first production credit and really be fully integrated into the sound of the project.

— In an interview with XXL in December 2016, Margaux of duo Chargaux spoke on the most surprising part about working on 4 Your Eyez Only.[22]

According to Elite the title track "4 Your Eyez Only" started the entire concept of the album, he said:

That was a beat he found on SoundCloud by a producer who was pretty unknown [BLVK] and just blacked out for like 24 hours. He wrote and wrote and wrote to that loop. That was one song he expressed to me like, 'we got to make this worthy of an album.' You can't just have an eight-minute song.[23]

The track "Ville Mentality" features a spoken interlude performed by a young girl. The girl was recorded by Cole while visiting and speaking with kids at an elementary school in his hometown, Fayetteville, North Carolina.[24] The foundation for the track "For Whom the Bell Tolls" was produced by New York University student Elijah Scarlett, Dreamville president Ibrahim Hamad discovered the beat on SoundCloud in January 2016 and reached out to Scarlett. Cole provided co-production, Nico Segal, Anthony Ware, and Theo Croker added horns, while duo Chargaux added strings. 4 Your Eyez Only is Scarlett's first major production credit, having previously only collaborated with friends.[25] Producer Cardiak with help from Frank Dukes created the beat for the track "Immortal" with Cole in mind shortly after the release of Cole's previous album, 2014 Forest Hills Drive. In an interview with XXL magazine Cardiak said, "You know I was just always working on stuff for J. Cole. I had a idea of like the type of tracks he wanted, the sound and all that. I was just crafting a couple tracks. Shortly after 2014 Forest Hills Drive came out, I sent that beat over and he liked it and he told me to put it to the side and here we are today."[26] Classical string duo Chargaux are credited on seven of the album's ten tracks, and were on many of the songs that got cut. They previously collaborated with Cole on the track "St. Tropez" from 2014 Forest Hills Drive. They provided string arrangements, background vocals and additional production on 4 Your Eyez Only.[22]

Similar to his previous album, 4 Your Eyez Only contains no features, other than Dreamville signee Ari Lennox who provided additional vocals on the track "Change". Ibrahim Hamad (Cole's manager) spoke on it saying: "Cole's never gonna force anything. He's not the guy that's out, hanging out with rappers or in the studio with rappers all day. He's really in the studio with his team and making music with his producers and his artists. He's done songs with other people involved but it might not make the album. [His artist] Ari [Lennox's] voice made the album on "Change" because she came in, added something to it and it worked. If it doesn't work, Cole's not gonna put it on there because it's a name. He's never gonna put it on there just to say he got a feature." He continued saying, "He also didn't go into it like, "I'm gonna have no features on this album." He didn't go into Forest Hills Drive initially saying he was gonna have no features. That's just how it ended up. At the end of the day, the most important thing to him and to all of us is how do we get this point that we're trying to get through and how do we make the best version of a song?".[1]

Lyrics and themes edit

Lyrically, the album follows the story of a young man, as he goes from selling crack, to falling in love and starting a family. In the final track, it is revealed that he has died, and almost the entire album is a tape he created for his daughter to listen to after he's gone.[27] Upon release of 4 Your Eyez Only, many fans came up with theories about the meaning behind the album.[28] Genius reached out to a source close to Dreamville, who confirmed that the storyline is about a real friend of Cole's, and that he changed the name to James for the sake of privacy.[29] Casey Miller from the Daily Emerald described the album as "a track-by-track journey of a black man's experience of growing up in our nation, from encountering ghetto violence at a young age, suffering inescapable racial prejudices in real life and in the media and dealing with death and mortality. He also discusses falling in love and having a child, which provides a source of levity for the album because after all, not everything in life is tragic."[30]

In an interview with Jon Caramanica for The New York Times in April 2017, Cole revealed that the album is told mostly through a character that's a composite of two men he grew up with in Fayetteville, Cole said:

He's a tough guy, a criminal stereotype, except inverted. The people that I know that live that life and come from that life, or even used to live that life, there's so much more than that. They have multiple sides, and the side that is the strongest is love — of mothers, of friends, of girlfriends, of children. The album's goal was to humanize the people that have been villainized in the media.[31]

Release and promotion edit

See also: 4 Your Eyez Only World Tour, Eyez, and J. Cole: 4 Your Eyez Only

On December 2, 2016, Cole released a 40-minute documentary, titled Eyez via Tidal. The film features behind-the-scenes footage of Cole working with collaborators on the album,[32] and was directed by Scott Lazer.[33] The documentary also includes two music videos for the tracks "False Prophets" and "Everybody Dies".[34][35] Both tracks were initially included on the album, however, both songs were omitted due to them not fitting the album's concept.[1] The documentary was uploaded on Dreamville's YouTube channel on December 5, 2016.[36]

 
Cole performing at Air Canada Centre in Toronto as part of the 4 Your Eyez Only World Tour.

To further promote the album, Cole announced 4 Your Eyez Only World Tour on February 21, 2017.[37] The tour included 62 dates across North America, Europe and Australia. The first 13 dates took place in smaller, intimate venues, while the next set of dates took place in arenas. The tour began June 1, 2017, in Columbia, South Carolina and concluded December 9, in Perth, Australia.[38] A limited edition 4 Your Eyez Only collectors set was made available for pre-order on February 22, 2017, via Dreamville's website, with a shipping and release date of April 28, 2017.[39] The bundle included 4 Your Eyez Only on vinyl, cassette and CD, or you could purchase each individually, the set also included limited artwork and 4 Your Eyez Only tour pre-sale access.[40] Dreamville artists J.I.D, Ari Lennox and Lute served as opening acts on the first leg of the tour.[41] Singer Anderson Paak and rapper Bas served as opening acts on the second leg of the tour, along with J.I.D and Ari Lennox.[42] EarthGang joined J.I.D and Ari Lennox as opening acts on the European leg.[43] The tour grossed $40 million.[44] On September 2, 2017, Cole performed his entire 4 Your Eyez Only Tour setlist at the Budweiser Made in America Festival in Philadelphia.[45]

On March 24, 2017 HBO announced a second documentary with Cole tiled, J. Cole: 4 Your Eyez Only, the first being Forest Hills Drive: Homecoming in 2016, the documentary aired April 15, 2017, on HBO and HBO Now.[46] Incorporating music from 4 Your Eyez Only, Cole captured stories of residents in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, Atlanta, Georgia, Ferguson, Missouri, his father's hometown, Jonesboro, Arkansas and his hometown, Fayetteville, North Carolina. Entertainment Weekly reported, "The documentary promises to illustrate how their struggles over viable housing, voting laws for felons, integration, and more mirror the frustrations felt across the nation." The documentary included security camera footage of a SWAT raid that took place on March 18, 2016, at Cole's North Carolina home studio, which served as inspiration for the track "Neighbors".[47] Cole also previewed new music in the documentary.[48] The film was directed by Cole and Scott Lazer.[49] The documentary was exclusively screened at the Troxy in London on April 19, 2017.[50] On May 1, 2017, the film was uploaded on Dreamville's YouTube channel.[51] Writing for Billboard, J'na Jefferson praised the film saying it "brings black perseverance to the forefront".[52] Cole spoke about the documentary with The New York Times saying:

I felt like it would be mad powerful for black people to see black people talking to each other. And you see a rapper who's considered one of the biggest in the game, just listening. These are people that never get to be heard, by the world or even by each other. That lack of representation can lead to potentially catastrophic misunderstandings.[31]

 
4 Your Eyez Only cassette cover art.

Singles edit

On January 10, 2017, "Deja Vu" was serviced to American mainstream urban radio, as the album's first single.[53] The single debuted at number 7 on the US Billboard Hot 100,[54] becoming Cole's first top 10 song. The single also debuted at number 4 on the US Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs.[55] The track was produced by Vinylz and Boi-1da, with additional production from Cole, Ron Gilmore and Velous and samples "Swing My Way" by K. P. & Envyi.[56]

"Neighbors" was serviced to rhythmic radio on April 25, 2017, as the album's second single.[57] "Neighbors" debuted at number 13 on the US Billboard Hot 100[54] and number 8 on the US Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart.[55] The song was produced by Cole,[58] and during his 4 Your Eyez Only World Tour, Cole revealed the beat for "Neighbors" is the instrumental from his 2013 single, "Forbidden Fruit" played in reverse, with a tempo switch and snare removal.[59] On May 1, 2017, the music video for "Neighbors" was uploaded on Cole's Vevo channel.[60]

Other songs edit

On December 5, "False Prophets" and "Everybody Dies" were released as singles to iTunes and all streaming services.[61] Both tracks charted on the US Billboard Hot 100, "False Prophets" peaked at number 54, while "Everybody Dies" peaked at number 57.[54] The beat for "False Prophets" was composed by producer Freddie Joachim.[62] The instrumental, titled "Waves" was used by multiple artists, most notably, fellow rapper Joey Badass, who used it for his track, "Waves", off his debut mixtape, 1999 (2012).[63] Joey Badass said that Cole played him the track months before its release.[64] XXL and Capital XTRA named "False Prophets" one of the best hip hop songs of 2016.[65][66] XXL also named "Everybody Dies" one of the best diss tracks of 2016,[67] while also naming it one of the best verses of 2016.[68] 2DOPEBOYZ listed "Everybody Dies" among the best verses of 2016.[69] On January 16, 2017, Cole released a track titled, "High for Hours", the song was produced by Elite and Cam O'bi.[70] It was recorded in summer 2015 while on the Forest Hills Drive Tour, and was considered for 4 Your Eyez Only but was omitted due to it not fitting the narrative.[23]

Music videos for the tracks "For Whom the Bell Tolls", "Immortal", "Ville Mentality", "Change", "She's Mine Pt. 2" and "4 Your Eyez Only" were included in the J. Cole: 4 Your Eyez Only HBO documentary. Cole never officially released the videos separately from the documentary, but all were eventually uploaded to YouTube by accounts not associated with Cole.[71]

Critical reception edit

Professional ratings
Aggregate scores
SourceRating
AnyDecentMusic?6.7/10[72]
Metacritic75/100[73]
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic     [74]
Consequence of SoundB[75]
Exclaim!9/10[76]
The Guardian     [77]
The Independent     [78]
Now     [79]
Pitchfork6.7/10[80]
PopMatters8/10[81]
Slant Magazine     [82]
XXL4/5 (XL)[83]

Upon its release, 4 Your Eyez Only received positive reviews from music critics. At Metacritic, which assigns a normalized rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream publications, the album received an average score of 75, based on 14 reviews.[73] Rob Boffard of Exclaim! praised J. Cole's songwriting stating, "Cole has always been one of the most slept-on songwriters in hip-hop, and on this record, he's better than he's ever been."[76] Writing for The Guardian, Sheldon Pearce said, "there is still significant room for growth, but he has finally found his voice. It's only when he questioned his motivations that he discovered what was truly valuable: peace of mind."[77] Jon Caramanica of The New York Times praised 4 Your Eyez Only, describing it as "spartan but sumptuous, emotionally acute but plain-spoken." He said, "there's an extraordinary sense of calm pervading this album, one of the year's most finely drawn."[84] Jesse Fairfax from HipHopDX wrote that, "Cole deserves consideration for tugging at the heartstrings of listeners with raw human emotion but still leaves open the door to reach a musical zenith.[85] Chris Robbins wrote a positive review for XXL saying, 4 Your Eyez Only "is a solid, short listen that relies on J. Cole's strength and comfort zone, perhaps a little too much at times, but the underlying concepts continue to add a layer of depth to his artistry."[83]

Pitchfork writer Paul A. Thompson gave the album a 6.7 out of 10 stating, "on J. Cole's fourth album, he wrestles with the fragility of life and the importance of family ties, he also sands down some of his worst impulses."[80] Kahron Spearman from The Daily Dot wrote that "though love and hope are sufficient motifs, Cole still suffers from lack of specificity (even when he channels one very specific character). No particular track punches through. Per Cole's usual, no new ground has been discovered—but in the right space, 4 Your Eyez Only pierces hearts. J. Cole made another wildly popular, OK rap album—and for now, that's fine."[86] Writing for New York (Vulture), Craig Jenkins declared it Cole's "best and most mature album."[87] In a positive review from The Advocate, Josh Jackson stated, "it may not have the force of 2014 Forest Hills Drive, but this is a highly personal set, confirming Cole's status as one of the best young rappers out there.[88] Writing for The Hoya, Pranav Marupudi called the album Cole's "most mature yet, demonstrating, once again, that he may be one of the most talented rappers in the game."[89]

4 Your Eyez Only received an editor rating of 83% on HotNewHipHop, they praised the album saying, it "overcomes an ambitious concept and a couple of awkward moments to stand as J. Cole's best album."[90] Dominic Griffin writing for Spectrum Culture, gave the album 3 out of 5 stars, he stated: "J. Cole isn't as restlessly inventive or innovative as Kendrick Lamar. He's also not as charismatic or solipsistic as Drake. Here he smartly splits the difference between his closest competitors."[91] William Sutton of PopMatters wrote a positive review, deeming the album Cole's "most mature and cohesive record to date", he commented saying: "Whilst 4 Your Eyez Only may not be full of the political rage and rhetoric of Run the Jewels or the figurehead positioning of To Pimp a Butterfly, it presents another perspective, a simpler, more grounded viewpoint. The record is written from the point of view of the very people who the media frequently discuss but rarely talk directly to. In its own way, it makes 4 Your Eyez Only as powerful as any of these other releases that have been held up by critics and fans alike."[81] In an interview with Sporting News in December 2016, NBA player Karl-Anthony Towns praised the album, calling it "dopest album of the year".[92]

Year-end lists edit

At the end of 2016, 4 Your Eyez Only appeared on a number of critics' lists ranking the year's top albums. HipHopDX listed the album at number 20 on their list of the 20 best rap albums of 2016, they commented saying, "Brandishing polished storytelling abilities (with the real-life account of "Neighbors" and the moving title track), the Villematic undoubtedly forgot a lot of the energy at home at Forest Hills Drive. Nonetheless, the succinct project was ripe for catalog building for one of the game's current elites."[93] The Boombox listed the album at number 14, writer David Winter commented saying, "Cole inhabits different personas throughout 4 Your Eyez Only but it all feels like his voice. When he raps about doing laundry or being harassed by racist neighbors and the police, you know that it's coming from a very real place. It makes for one of the year's most somber—but rewarding—releases. This guy just keeps getting better."[94] Sam Bennett of Contactmusic.com listed 4 Your Eyez Only among his top ten albums of 2016, he praised the album saying: "Cole is one of the most important voices in modern music, and with this latest LP he's crafted another body of work that points to rappers like Cole and Kendrick Lamar, who are making provocative, artistic albums that impact the music scene and spark conversation between people, being real contenders for those revered "Top Five Dead Or Alive" conversations."[95]

XXL named the album one of the best hip hop projects of 2016, they said, "4 Your Eyez Only is a wonderfully well-produced concept album that tells two sides of a coming-of-age story from a young man who lives his life on the streets. Cole follows the same script as his previous album, 2014 Forest Hills Drive, delivering heartfelt, honest lyrics that brings fans closer into his mind."[96] Rolling Stone listed the album at number 35 on their list of the 40 best rap albums of 2016, Timmhotep Aku commented saying: "this album is more than a 10-track eulogy: It's a well-executed meditation on love, loss, fatherhood and being black in America. Good reason to root for the underdog."[96] Rap-Up listed the album at number 18 on their editors' list of the 20 best rap albums of 2016,[97] while it was listed at number 5 by fans on their readers' choice list.[98] The Birmingham News named the album one of their favorites from a Southern musician in 2016, writer Jared Boyd said: "Much sharper and less fluffy than his commercial output to date, 4 Your Eyez Only isn't a landmark record, by any means, but another step in the right direction after Cole's fan favorite 2014 Forest Hill Drive".[99]

Awards edit

4 Your Eyez Only received nominations for Top Rap Album at the 2017 Billboard Music Awards,[100] and Album of the Year at the 2017 BET Awards.[101] The album was also nominated for Album of the Year at the 2017 BET Hip Hop Awards.[102] 4 Your Eyez Only World Tour was nominated for Top Rap Tour at the 2018 Billboard Music Awards.[103]

Commercial performance edit

In the United States, 4 Your Eyez Only debuted at number one on the Billboard 200 with 492,000 album-equivalent units, of which 363,000 were pure album sales, becoming Cole's fourth number one album.[104] It had the third-largest weekly sales for an album in 2016, behind Views by Drake and Lemonade by Beyoncé.[104] It was also the second-largest weekly streaming figure for an album in 2016, tallying 118,000 in SEA units (equaling 51.7 million streams of the album's songs) behind only Views.[104] 4 Your Eyez Only, Views and The Weeknd's Starboy were the first albums ever to move over 100,000 albums in a week with streaming alone.[105] Cole joined DMX and Drake as one of only three rappers to have their first four studio albums reach number one on the Billboard 200.[106] The album remained in the chart's top five for the next several weeks.[107][108][109][110] On January 12, 2017, 4 Your Eyez Only was certified Gold by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA),[111] and only three months later was certified Platinum on April 7, 2017.[112] In Canada, the album debuted at number one, selling 31,000 copies.[113]

"Deja Vu" entered the US Billboard Hot 100 at number 7 without being released as a single at the time, becoming Cole's highest-charting song. All 10 songs from 4 Your Eyez Only debuted in the top 40 of the Hot 100, after only having four top 40 entries as a solo artist. Cole achieved twelve simultaneous Hot 100 entries in a single week.[114]

4 Your Eyez Only was ranked as the tenth most popular album of 2017 on the Billboard 200.[115]

Controversy edit

 
Rapper Wale responded to "False Prophets" with a track called "Groundhog Day"

Upon the release of Eyez documentary, "Everybody Dies" and "False Prophets" caused controversy within the hip hop community, as many assumed that "Everybody Dies" contained shots aimed at fellow rappers Lil Uzi Vert and Lil Yachty. During an interview with Los Angeles' radio station Power 106, Lil Yachty responded, saying: "I don't listen to J. Cole [but] I definitely listened to it [and] people said he was talking about me. He said 'Lil.' I'm not little. My name has 'Lil' in it but there's a lot of 'Lil' rappers. [It's] either me or Uzi. Honestly, I don't give a fuck."[116] Lil Uzi Vert acknowledged the track, he responded via Twitter on December 2, 2016, by simply tweeting, "Heard some beautiful shit today @JColeNC"[117] People also argued that the first verse on "False Prophets" consisted of direct shots at rapper Kanye West, due to Cole's referencing to West's altering public perception by the media and fans; as well as Kanye's recent hospitalization. Many also presumed that the second verse was directed at rapper Wale, with Cole saying that despite Wale's fourth album receiving fairly well critical and commercial success, Wale remains misunderstood and slighted by his peers.[118] On December 3, Wale released a track, called "Groundhog Day" as a response to "False Prophets",[119] and the pair were spotted together in Raleigh, North Carolina at a North Carolina State University basketball game later that day.[120] Cole spoke about "False Prophets" in an interview with The New York Times, saying:

Rappers rap about other rappers all the time — subliminal insult, direct attack — but rarely from a place of love. "That speaks to the state of us as a people," he said. "For so long my mind state was, I have to show how much better than the next man I am through these bars. Who's the best? Let me prove it. And it's just like, damn, I'm really feeding into a cycle of keeping black people down, I'm really feeding into that.[31]

Upon release of 4 Your Eyez Only, producers Vinylz and Boi-1da accused producer Foreign Teck of stealing their beat, to Cole's track "Deja Vu" and giving it to singer Bryson Tiller for his hit record "Exchange", explaining why the tracks share similarities. Vinylz said Cole's track was recorded before Tiller's, and that he sent Foreign Teck a video of him making the beat to "Deja Vu", and a week later Teck posted a beat on Instagram with the same drums. Vinylz also alleged that Foreign Teck offered him publishing, a tacit admission that he had reverse engineered the beat.[121] Another producer by the name of Gmoney Baby also claimed that he made the beat.[122] In an interview with Billboard, Ibrahim Hamad revealed that "Deja Vu" was originally intended for Cole's previous album, 2014 Forest Hills Drive (2014).[1] He commented on the issue saying:

Cole had already made the song, so when Bryson's album came out and we heard it, it was a feeling like, "Damn, he used the same sample." But to Cole, it don't matter. He's not competing with Bryson. What Bryson's song did was incredible, and to Cole, it was like, "It's a part of the story I want to tell, so I'm gonna use [the beat]." We didn't really know the backstory at the time of what happened with Vinylz and Boi-1da and [ForeignTeck] who made the beat. That was none of our concern. We just knew that Bryson had a really dope song that was out that used the same sample, basically the same beat, and that we had a totally different song.[1]

Track listing edit

Credits adapted from 4 Your Eyez Only liner notes on Dreamville's official website and BMI's Repertoire.[123][124]

No.TitleWriter(s)Producer(s)Length
1."For Whom the Bell Tolls"
2:07
2."Immortal"
  • Cole
  • Easterly
  • Carl McCormick
  • Whitney
3:21
3."Deja Vu"
4:24
4."Ville Mentality"
3:14
5."She's Mine Pt. 1"
3:29
6."Change"
5:31
7."Neighbors"
3:36
8."Foldin Clothes"
5:16
9."She's Mine Pt. 2"
  • Cole
  • Pierre
  • Parrino
  • Gilmore
  • Easterly
  • Whitney
4:38
10."4 Your Eyez Only"
  • Cole
  • Joshua Black
  • Parrino
  • Easterly
  • Whitney
  • Yuji Ohno
8:50
Total length:44:32

Notes

  • ^[a] signifies a co-producer.
  • ^[b] signifies an additional producer.
  • "For Whom the Bell Tolls", "Immortal", "Deja Vu", and "Ville Mentality" features background vocals by Kaye Foxx.
  • "Change" feature additional vocals by Ari Lennox.
  • "Foldin Clothes" feature talk-box by Irvin Washington, background vocals by Steve Lacy, and additional background vocals by T.S. Desandies and Brittany Carter.
  • "4 Your Eyez Only" feature additional vocals by Chargaux.

Sample credits

Personnel edit

Credits adapted from official liner notes.[2]

Production

  • Elijah Scarlett – production (track 1)
  • Cardiak – production (track 2)
  • Frank Dukes – production (track 2)
  • Boi-1da – production (track 3)
  • Velous – production (track 3)
  • Vinylz – production (track 3)
  • Ron Gilmore – production (track 4), additional production (tracks 3, 5, 6, 7, 8)
  • Elite – production (tracks 4), additional production (tracks 5-9), co–production (track 10)
  • J. Cole – production (tracks 5–9), co–production (tracks 1, 10), additional production (tracks 2–4)
  • Chargaux – additional production (tracks 5, 9)
  • Deputy – production (tracks 5, 9)
  • Steve Lacy – production (track 8)
  • BLVK – production (track 10)
  • Childish Major – additional production (track 10)

Charts edit

Certifications edit

Region Certification Certified units/sales
Australia (ARIA)[151] Gold 35,000‡
Denmark (IFPI Danmark)[152] Gold 10,000‡
United Kingdom (BPI)[153] Gold 100,000‡
United States (RIAA)[154] 2× Platinum 2,000,000‡

‡ Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone.

Release history edit

Region Date Format Label
Australia[155] December 9, 2016
Belgium[156]
Canada[157]
Denmark[158]
France[159]
Ireland[160]
Japan[161]
New Zealand[162]
United Kingdom[163]
United States[164]
Germany[165] December 12, 2016
Italy[166]
Spain[167]

See also edit

References edit

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Further reading edit

  • Conteh, Mankaprr (December 21, 2016). "Suicidal Thoughts: My Experience Listening to J. Cole's '4 Your Eyez Only'". DJBooth.
  • Lefsetz, Bob (April 19, 2017). "J. Cole, Success & the Ability to Capture Inspiration When It Strikes". DJBooth.

External links edit

  • 4 Your Eyez Only at Discogs (list of releases)

January 01, 1970
your, eyez, only, this, article, about, 2016, album, 2017, documentary, cole, other, media, with, same, title, your, eyes, only, disambiguation, fourth, studio, album, american, rapper, cole, released, december, 2016, dreamville, records, nation, interscope, r. This article is about the 2016 album For the 2017 documentary see J Cole 4 Your Eyez Only For other media with the same title see For Your Eyes Only disambiguation 4 Your Eyez Only is the fourth studio album by American rapper J Cole It was released on December 9 2016 by Dreamville Records Roc Nation and Interscope Records 5 The album was Cole s first release with Interscope his previous albums were released by Columbia Records 6 4 Your Eyez Only was released exactly two years after Cole s previous studio album 2014 Forest Hills Drive 4 Your Eyez OnlyStudio album by J ColeReleasedDecember 9 2016 2016 12 09 Recorded2014 Deja Vu 1 2015 2016StudioElectric Lady New York City The Sheltuh Raleigh North Carolina 2 GenreConscious hip hop 3 jazz rap 4 Length44 32LabelDreamville Roc Nation InterscopeProducerJermaine Cole Elite BLVK Boi 1da Cardiak Chargaux Childish Major Deputy Elijah Scarlett Frank Dukes Ron Gilmore Steve Lacy Velous VinylzJ Cole chronologyForest Hills Drive Live 2016 4 Your Eyez Only 2016 KOD 2018 Singles from 4 Your Eyez Only Deja Vu Released January 10 2017 Neighbors Released April 25 2017Vinyl cover Most of these recordings took place from 2015 to 2016 while the production on the album was primarily handled by Cole himself alongside several other record producers such as Vinylz Boi 1da Cardiak Ron Gilmore Frank Dukes Chargaux and Elite among others The album explores a variety of topics concerning the African American community including mass incarceration racial discrimination gang violence and depression The two part suite She s Mine dives deeper into Cole s emotions and provides the album with another perspective hope The album also touches on other topics such as love and fatherhood The album was supported by two singles Deja Vu and Neighbors All 10 songs from 4 Your Eyez Only debuted in the top 40 of the US Billboard Hot 100 Cole achieved twelve simultaneous Hot 100 entries in a single week Promoting the release Cole released a one hour documentary by the same name on April 15 2017 on HBO featuring music from the album In June 2017 Cole embarked on the 4 Your Eyez Only World Tour to promote the album 4 Your Eyez Only debuted at number one on the US Billboard 200 selling 363 000 copies in its first week 492 000 with additional album equivalent units earning Cole his fourth consecutive number one album in the country It had the third largest weekly sales for an album in 2016 The album also debuted at number one on Billboard s Canadian Albums Chart The reception for 4 Your Eyez Only was generally positive with most critics praising the songwriting and some calling it Cole s most mature album to date It appeared on several music publications year end lists On January 12 2017 4 Your Eyez Only was certified Gold by the Recording Industry Association of America and was certified Platinum on April 7 2017 Contents 1 Background 2 Album artwork 3 Recording and production 4 Lyrics and themes 5 Release and promotion 5 1 Singles 5 2 Other songs 6 Critical reception 6 1 Year end lists 7 Awards 8 Commercial performance 9 Controversy 10 Track listing 11 Personnel 12 Charts 12 1 Weekly charts 12 2 Year end charts 13 Certifications 14 Release history 15 See also 16 References 17 Further reading 18 External linksBackground editOn July 29 2016 DJ Khaled released his ninth album 7 Major Key the fifth track of which titled Jermaine s Interlude features Cole 8 During his feature on that track Cole declares Said all I could say now I play with thoughts of retirement a line that had fans of Cole s wondering about the future of his music career 9 In October 2016 while performing at a live concert Cole said that it would be his last show for a very long time 10 11 However on December 1 with no announcement from Cole himself a pre order for his fourth studio album titled 4 Your Eyez Only was made available on iTunes Store with a release date for December 9 2016 12 Dreamville Records revealed 4 Your Eyez Only official track listing on December 6 through their Twitter account 13 According to a Twitter rep there were 2 7 million tweets mentioning J Cole or 4 Your Eyez Only between December 7 to 19 2016 14 In January 2017 in an interview with The Huffington Post Cole s manager and Dreamville president Ibrahim Hamad revealed not even the label knew they would be releasing 4 Your Eyez Only until very late By the time it actually came out only seven people had heard the album in its entirety 15 Album artwork editThe photo that forms the basis of the cover art was shot by Anthony Supreme Thompson who is a photographer and a fan of Cole s The photo was shot in an Atlanta neighborhood in September 2016 16 Thompson explained on Instagram This Atlanta neighborhood was just going crazy People were running out of their house to take a photo of Cole and ask him questions but there was something to me about this boy and how he kept looking at Cole as he walked around his neighborhood I can see in his eyes how much this experience is slowly changing his life forever The young boy s face just stood out to me to capture I saw in his eyes he knew nothing about J Cole but was somewhat amazed how everyone was reacting to him The boy even asked Cole several times who he was But he couldn t understand what was going on in his world Cole and I spent hours one night looking for photos for his album cover but nothing seemed to stand out Then a few days passed and I finally found this photo that I felt represented the cover the most to me to pitch to him 17 The cover art was revealed when the album was made available for pre order on iTunes 12 XXL named it one of the best cover arts of 2016 18 Recording and production edit nbsp The majority of the album was recorded in Raleigh North Carolina pictured The majority of the album was recorded at a home and recording studio in North Carolina that Cole nicknamed the Sheltuh Some sessions also took place at Electric Lady Studios in New York City over the summer of 2016 19 On March 18 2016 an incident occurred at the Sheltuh that inspired the making of the track Neighbors 20 Dreamville in house producer Elite explained the situation in an interview with Complex saying Basically Cole rented out a house in North Carolina It s not for him it s like a safe haven creative workspace for all the Dreamville artists and producers We call it the Sheltuh and a lot of the album was recorded there It s basically a studio in a basement in the woods It s also in the suburbs of a pretty wealthy neighborhood in North Carolina So you have predominately African Americans coming in and out of this house Ubers coming and every once in awhile you ll see a group of us outside on the porch smoking weed So the neighbors started getting real paranoid Apparently what happened was we were all in Austin Texas for SXSW thankfully no one was in the house when this went down One of the neighbors told the police we were growing weed or selling drugs out of this house And there was a huge investigation like a million dollar investigation They flew helicopters over sent an entire SWAT team armed with weapons broke down the door and searched the whole house Thankfully nobody was in the house Our engineer Juro Mez Davis had just stepped out for lunch and he came back and saw the SWAT team busting down the door They go downstairs and all they see is a studio and obviously they felt stupid It s just crazy ironic because out of anybody they picked the wrong person J Cole is the last person to do anything like that He s out here doing extremely positive things for the community and for young artists Because of obvious racism from the neighbors the police were called and a raid took place 21 nbsp Producer Elite provided production on the album and also served as co executive producer of the album We ve worked on albums before and a lot of times we would get a song and everything was sown up and basically they re just like Can you just sprinkle a little extra whatever on it For this particular album to be given the opportunity to work with people who were so kind and so open and so willing to let us do our thing and let us contribute vocals on the track and have this creative freedom is kind of unprecedented for us and it gave us the opportunity to get our first production credit and really be fully integrated into the sound of the project In an interview with XXL in December 2016 Margaux of duo Chargaux spoke on the most surprising part about working on 4 Your Eyez Only 22 According to Elite the title track 4 Your Eyez Only started the entire concept of the album he said That was a beat he found on SoundCloud by a producer who was pretty unknown BLVK and just blacked out for like 24 hours He wrote and wrote and wrote to that loop That was one song he expressed to me like we got to make this worthy of an album You can t just have an eight minute song 23 The track Ville Mentality features a spoken interlude performed by a young girl The girl was recorded by Cole while visiting and speaking with kids at an elementary school in his hometown Fayetteville North Carolina 24 The foundation for the track For Whom the Bell Tolls was produced by New York University student Elijah Scarlett Dreamville president Ibrahim Hamad discovered the beat on SoundCloud in January 2016 and reached out to Scarlett Cole provided co production Nico Segal Anthony Ware and Theo Croker added horns while duo Chargaux added strings 4 Your Eyez Only is Scarlett s first major production credit having previously only collaborated with friends 25 Producer Cardiak with help from Frank Dukes created the beat for the track Immortal with Cole in mind shortly after the release of Cole s previous album 2014 Forest Hills Drive In an interview with XXL magazine Cardiak said You know I was just always working on stuff for J Cole I had a idea of like the type of tracks he wanted the sound and all that I was just crafting a couple tracks Shortly after 2014 Forest Hills Drive came out I sent that beat over and he liked it and he told me to put it to the side and here we are today 26 Classical string duo Chargaux are credited on seven of the album s ten tracks and were on many of the songs that got cut They previously collaborated with Cole on the track St Tropez from 2014 Forest Hills Drive They provided string arrangements background vocals and additional production on 4 Your Eyez Only 22 Similar to his previous album 4 Your Eyez Only contains no features other than Dreamville signee Ari Lennox who provided additional vocals on the track Change Ibrahim Hamad Cole s manager spoke on it saying Cole s never gonna force anything He s not the guy that s out hanging out with rappers or in the studio with rappers all day He s really in the studio with his team and making music with his producers and his artists He s done songs with other people involved but it might not make the album His artist Ari Lennox s voice made the album on Change because she came in added something to it and it worked If it doesn t work Cole s not gonna put it on there because it s a name He s never gonna put it on there just to say he got a feature He continued saying He also didn t go into it like I m gonna have no features on this album He didn t go into Forest Hills Drive initially saying he was gonna have no features That s just how it ended up At the end of the day the most important thing to him and to all of us is how do we get this point that we re trying to get through and how do we make the best version of a song 1 Lyrics and themes editLyrically the album follows the story of a young man as he goes from selling crack to falling in love and starting a family In the final track it is revealed that he has died and almost the entire album is a tape he created for his daughter to listen to after he s gone 27 Upon release of 4 Your Eyez Only many fans came up with theories about the meaning behind the album 28 Genius reached out to a source close to Dreamville who confirmed that the storyline is about a real friend of Cole s and that he changed the name to James for the sake of privacy 29 Casey Miller from the Daily Emerald described the album as a track by track journey of a black man s experience of growing up in our nation from encountering ghetto violence at a young age suffering inescapable racial prejudices in real life and in the media and dealing with death and mortality He also discusses falling in love and having a child which provides a source of levity for the album because after all not everything in life is tragic 30 In an interview with Jon Caramanica for The New York Times in April 2017 Cole revealed that the album is told mostly through a character that s a composite of two men he grew up with in Fayetteville Cole said He s a tough guy a criminal stereotype except inverted The people that I know that live that life and come from that life or even used to live that life there s so much more than that They have multiple sides and the side that is the strongest is love of mothers of friends of girlfriends of children The album s goal was to humanize the people that have been villainized in the media 31 Release and promotion editSee also 4 Your Eyez Only World Tour Eyez and J Cole 4 Your Eyez Only On December 2 2016 Cole released a 40 minute documentary titled Eyez via Tidal The film features behind the scenes footage of Cole working with collaborators on the album 32 and was directed by Scott Lazer 33 The documentary also includes two music videos for the tracks False Prophets and Everybody Dies 34 35 Both tracks were initially included on the album however both songs were omitted due to them not fitting the album s concept 1 The documentary was uploaded on Dreamville s YouTube channel on December 5 2016 36 nbsp Cole performing at Air Canada Centre in Toronto as part of the 4 Your Eyez Only World Tour To further promote the album Cole announced 4 Your Eyez Only World Tour on February 21 2017 37 The tour included 62 dates across North America Europe and Australia The first 13 dates took place in smaller intimate venues while the next set of dates took place in arenas The tour began June 1 2017 in Columbia South Carolina and concluded December 9 in Perth Australia 38 A limited edition 4 Your Eyez Only collectors set was made available for pre order on February 22 2017 via Dreamville s website with a shipping and release date of April 28 2017 39 The bundle included 4 Your Eyez Only on vinyl cassette and CD or you could purchase each individually the set also included limited artwork and 4 Your Eyez Only tour pre sale access 40 Dreamville artists J I D Ari Lennox and Lute served as opening acts on the first leg of the tour 41 Singer Anderson Paak and rapper Bas served as opening acts on the second leg of the tour along with J I D and Ari Lennox 42 EarthGang joined J I D and Ari Lennox as opening acts on the European leg 43 The tour grossed 40 million 44 On September 2 2017 Cole performed his entire 4 Your Eyez Only Tour setlist at the Budweiser Made in America Festival in Philadelphia 45 On March 24 2017 HBO announced a second documentary with Cole tiled J Cole 4 Your Eyez Only the first being Forest Hills Drive Homecoming in 2016 the documentary aired April 15 2017 on HBO and HBO Now 46 Incorporating music from 4 Your Eyez Only Cole captured stories of residents in Baton Rouge Louisiana Atlanta Georgia Ferguson Missouri his father s hometown Jonesboro Arkansas and his hometown Fayetteville North Carolina Entertainment Weekly reported The documentary promises to illustrate how their struggles over viable housing voting laws for felons integration and more mirror the frustrations felt across the nation The documentary included security camera footage of a SWAT raid that took place on March 18 2016 at Cole s North Carolina home studio which served as inspiration for the track Neighbors 47 Cole also previewed new music in the documentary 48 The film was directed by Cole and Scott Lazer 49 The documentary was exclusively screened at the Troxy in London on April 19 2017 50 On May 1 2017 the film was uploaded on Dreamville s YouTube channel 51 Writing for Billboard J na Jefferson praised the film saying it brings black perseverance to the forefront 52 Cole spoke about the documentary with The New York Times saying I felt like it would be mad powerful for black people to see black people talking to each other And you see a rapper who s considered one of the biggest in the game just listening These are people that never get to be heard by the world or even by each other That lack of representation can lead to potentially catastrophic misunderstandings 31 nbsp 4 Your Eyez Only cassette cover art Singles edit On January 10 2017 Deja Vu was serviced to American mainstream urban radio as the album s first single 53 The single debuted at number 7 on the US Billboard Hot 100 54 becoming Cole s first top 10 song The single also debuted at number 4 on the US Hot R amp B Hip Hop Songs 55 The track was produced by Vinylz and Boi 1da with additional production from Cole Ron Gilmore and Velous and samples Swing My Way by K P amp Envyi 56 Neighbors was serviced to rhythmic radio on April 25 2017 as the album s second single 57 Neighbors debuted at number 13 on the US Billboard Hot 100 54 and number 8 on the US Hot R amp B Hip Hop Songs chart 55 The song was produced by Cole 58 and during his 4 Your Eyez Only World Tour Cole revealed the beat for Neighbors is the instrumental from his 2013 single Forbidden Fruit played in reverse with a tempo switch and snare removal 59 On May 1 2017 the music video for Neighbors was uploaded on Cole s Vevo channel 60 Other songs edit On December 5 False Prophets and Everybody Dies were released as singles to iTunes and all streaming services 61 Both tracks charted on the US Billboard Hot 100 False Prophets peaked at number 54 while Everybody Dies peaked at number 57 54 The beat for False Prophets was composed by producer Freddie Joachim 62 The instrumental titled Waves was used by multiple artists most notably fellow rapper Joey Badass who used it for his track Waves off his debut mixtape 1999 2012 63 Joey Badass said that Cole played him the track months before its release 64 XXL and Capital XTRA named False Prophets one of the best hip hop songs of 2016 65 66 XXL also named Everybody Dies one of the best diss tracks of 2016 67 while also naming it one of the best verses of 2016 68 2DOPEBOYZ listed Everybody Dies among the best verses of 2016 69 On January 16 2017 Cole released a track titled High for Hours the song was produced by Elite and Cam O bi 70 It was recorded in summer 2015 while on the Forest Hills Drive Tour and was considered for 4 Your Eyez Only but was omitted due to it not fitting the narrative 23 Music videos for the tracks For Whom the Bell Tolls Immortal Ville Mentality Change She s Mine Pt 2 and 4 Your Eyez Only were included in the J Cole 4 Your Eyez Only HBO documentary Cole never officially released the videos separately from the documentary but all were eventually uploaded to YouTube by accounts not associated with Cole 71 Critical reception editProfessional ratingsAggregate scoresSourceRatingAnyDecentMusic 6 7 10 72 Metacritic75 100 73 Review scoresSourceRatingAllMusic nbsp nbsp nbsp nbsp nbsp 74 Consequence of SoundB 75 Exclaim 9 10 76 The Guardian nbsp nbsp nbsp nbsp nbsp 77 The Independent nbsp nbsp nbsp nbsp nbsp 78 Now nbsp nbsp nbsp nbsp nbsp 79 Pitchfork6 7 10 80 PopMatters8 10 81 Slant Magazine nbsp nbsp nbsp nbsp nbsp 82 XXL4 5 XL 83 Upon its release 4 Your Eyez Only received positive reviews from music critics At Metacritic which assigns a normalized rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream publications the album received an average score of 75 based on 14 reviews 73 Rob Boffard of Exclaim praised J Cole s songwriting stating Cole has always been one of the most slept on songwriters in hip hop and on this record he s better than he s ever been 76 Writing for The Guardian Sheldon Pearce said there is still significant room for growth but he has finally found his voice It s only when he questioned his motivations that he discovered what was truly valuable peace of mind 77 Jon Caramanica of The New York Times praised 4 Your Eyez Only describing it as spartan but sumptuous emotionally acute but plain spoken He said there s an extraordinary sense of calm pervading this album one of the year s most finely drawn 84 Jesse Fairfax from HipHopDX wrote that Cole deserves consideration for tugging at the heartstrings of listeners with raw human emotion but still leaves open the door to reach a musical zenith 85 Chris Robbins wrote a positive review for XXL saying 4 Your Eyez Only is a solid short listen that relies on J Cole s strength and comfort zone perhaps a little too much at times but the underlying concepts continue to add a layer of depth to his artistry 83 Pitchfork writer Paul A Thompson gave the album a 6 7 out of 10 stating on J Cole s fourth album he wrestles with the fragility of life and the importance of family ties he also sands down some of his worst impulses 80 Kahron Spearman from The Daily Dot wrote that though love and hope are sufficient motifs Cole still suffers from lack of specificity even when he channels one very specific character No particular track punches through Per Cole s usual no new ground has been discovered but in the right space 4 Your Eyez Only pierces hearts J Cole made another wildly popular OK rap album and for now that s fine 86 Writing for New York Vulture Craig Jenkins declared it Cole s best and most mature album 87 In a positive review from The Advocate Josh Jackson stated it may not have the force of 2014 Forest Hills Drive but this is a highly personal set confirming Cole s status as one of the best young rappers out there 88 Writing for The Hoya Pranav Marupudi called the album Cole s most mature yet demonstrating once again that he may be one of the most talented rappers in the game 89 4 Your Eyez Only received an editor rating of 83 on HotNewHipHop they praised the album saying it overcomes an ambitious concept and a couple of awkward moments to stand as J Cole s best album 90 Dominic Griffin writing for Spectrum Culture gave the album 3 out of 5 stars he stated J Cole isn t as restlessly inventive or innovative as Kendrick Lamar He s also not as charismatic or solipsistic as Drake Here he smartly splits the difference between his closest competitors 91 William Sutton of PopMatters wrote a positive review deeming the album Cole s most mature and cohesive record to date he commented saying Whilst 4 Your Eyez Only may not be full of the political rage and rhetoric of Run the Jewels or the figurehead positioning of To Pimp a Butterfly it presents another perspective a simpler more grounded viewpoint The record is written from the point of view of the very people who the media frequently discuss but rarely talk directly to In its own way it makes 4 Your Eyez Only as powerful as any of these other releases that have been held up by critics and fans alike 81 In an interview with Sporting News in December 2016 NBA player Karl Anthony Towns praised the album calling it dopest album of the year 92 Year end lists edit At the end of 2016 4 Your Eyez Only appeared on a number of critics lists ranking the year s top albums HipHopDX listed the album at number 20 on their list of the 20 best rap albums of 2016 they commented saying Brandishing polished storytelling abilities with the real life account of Neighbors and the moving title track the Villematic undoubtedly forgot a lot of the energy at home at Forest Hills Drive Nonetheless the succinct project was ripe for catalog building for one of the game s current elites 93 The Boombox listed the album at number 14 writer David Winter commented saying Cole inhabits different personas throughout 4 Your Eyez Only but it all feels like his voice When he raps about doing laundry or being harassed by racist neighbors and the police you know that it s coming from a very real place It makes for one of the year s most somber but rewarding releases This guy just keeps getting better 94 Sam Bennett of Contactmusic com listed 4 Your Eyez Only among his top ten albums of 2016 he praised the album saying Cole is one of the most important voices in modern music and with this latest LP he s crafted another body of work that points to rappers like Cole and Kendrick Lamar who are making provocative artistic albums that impact the music scene and spark conversation between people being real contenders for those revered Top Five Dead Or Alive conversations 95 XXL named the album one of the best hip hop projects of 2016 they said 4 Your Eyez Only is a wonderfully well produced concept album that tells two sides of a coming of age story from a young man who lives his life on the streets Cole follows the same script as his previous album 2014 Forest Hills Drive delivering heartfelt honest lyrics that brings fans closer into his mind 96 Rolling Stone listed the album at number 35 on their list of the 40 best rap albums of 2016 Timmhotep Aku commented saying this album is more than a 10 track eulogy It s a well executed meditation on love loss fatherhood and being black in America Good reason to root for the underdog 96 Rap Up listed the album at number 18 on their editors list of the 20 best rap albums of 2016 97 while it was listed at number 5 by fans on their readers choice list 98 The Birmingham News named the album one of their favorites from a Southern musician in 2016 writer Jared Boyd said Much sharper and less fluffy than his commercial output to date 4 Your Eyez Only isn t a landmark record by any means but another step in the right direction after Cole s fan favorite 2014 Forest Hill Drive 99 Awards edit4 Your Eyez Only received nominations for Top Rap Album at the 2017 Billboard Music Awards 100 and Album of the Year at the 2017 BET Awards 101 The album was also nominated for Album of the Year at the 2017 BET Hip Hop Awards 102 4 Your Eyez Only World Tour was nominated for Top Rap Tour at the 2018 Billboard Music Awards 103 Commercial performance editIn the United States 4 Your Eyez Only debuted at number one on the Billboard 200 with 492 000 album equivalent units of which 363 000 were pure album sales becoming Cole s fourth number one album 104 It had the third largest weekly sales for an album in 2016 behind Views by Drake and Lemonade by Beyonce 104 It was also the second largest weekly streaming figure for an album in 2016 tallying 118 000 in SEA units equaling 51 7 million streams of the album s songs behind only Views 104 4 Your Eyez Only Views and The Weeknd s Starboy were the first albums ever to move over 100 000 albums in a week with streaming alone 105 Cole joined DMX and Drake as one of only three rappers to have their first four studio albums reach number one on the Billboard 200 106 The album remained in the chart s top five for the next several weeks 107 108 109 110 On January 12 2017 4 Your Eyez Only was certified Gold by the Recording Industry Association of America RIAA 111 and only three months later was certified Platinum on April 7 2017 112 In Canada the album debuted at number one selling 31 000 copies 113 Deja Vu entered the US Billboard Hot 100 at number 7 without being released as a single at the time becoming Cole s highest charting song All 10 songs from 4 Your Eyez Only debuted in the top 40 of the Hot 100 after only having four top 40 entries as a solo artist Cole achieved twelve simultaneous Hot 100 entries in a single week 114 4 Your Eyez Only was ranked as the tenth most popular album of 2017 on the Billboard 200 115 Controversy edit nbsp Rapper Wale responded to False Prophets with a track called Groundhog Day Upon the release of Eyez documentary Everybody Dies and False Prophets caused controversy within the hip hop community as many assumed that Everybody Dies contained shots aimed at fellow rappers Lil Uzi Vert and Lil Yachty During an interview with Los Angeles radio station Power 106 Lil Yachty responded saying I don t listen to J Cole but I definitely listened to it and people said he was talking about me He said Lil I m not little My name has Lil in it but there s a lot of Lil rappers It s either me or Uzi Honestly I don t give a fuck 116 Lil Uzi Vert acknowledged the track he responded via Twitter on December 2 2016 by simply tweeting Heard some beautiful shit today JColeNC 117 People also argued that the first verse on False Prophets consisted of direct shots at rapper Kanye West due to Cole s referencing to West s altering public perception by the media and fans as well as Kanye s recent hospitalization Many also presumed that the second verse was directed at rapper Wale with Cole saying that despite Wale s fourth album receiving fairly well critical and commercial success Wale remains misunderstood and slighted by his peers 118 On December 3 Wale released a track called Groundhog Day as a response to False Prophets 119 and the pair were spotted together in Raleigh North Carolina at a North Carolina State University basketball game later that day 120 Cole spoke about False Prophets in an interview with The New York Times saying Rappers rap about other rappers all the time subliminal insult direct attack but rarely from a place of love That speaks to the state of us as a people he said For so long my mind state was I have to show how much better than the next man I am through these bars Who s the best Let me prove it And it s just like damn I m really feeding into a cycle of keeping black people down I m really feeding into that 31 Upon release of 4 Your Eyez Only producers Vinylz and Boi 1da accused producer Foreign Teck of stealing their beat to Cole s track Deja Vu and giving it to singer Bryson Tiller for his hit record Exchange explaining why the tracks share similarities Vinylz said Cole s track was recorded before Tiller s and that he sent Foreign Teck a video of him making the beat to Deja Vu and a week later Teck posted a beat on Instagram with the same drums Vinylz also alleged that Foreign Teck offered him publishing a tacit admission that he had reverse engineered the beat 121 Another producer by the name of Gmoney Baby also claimed that he made the beat 122 In an interview with Billboard Ibrahim Hamad revealed that Deja Vu was originally intended for Cole s previous album 2014 Forest Hills Drive 2014 1 He commented on the issue saying Cole had already made the song so when Bryson s album came out and we heard it it was a feeling like Damn he used the same sample But to Cole it don t matter He s not competing with Bryson What Bryson s song did was incredible and to Cole it was like It s a part of the story I want to tell so I m gonna use the beat We didn t really know the backstory at the time of what happened with Vinylz and Boi 1da and ForeignTeck who made the beat That was none of our concern We just knew that Bryson had a really dope song that was out that used the same sample basically the same beat and that we had a totally different song 1 Track listing editCredits adapted from 4 Your Eyez Only liner notes on Dreamville s official website and BMI s Repertoire 123 124 No TitleWriter s Producer s Length1 For Whom the Bell Tolls Jermaine ColeElijah ScarlettJasmine EasterlyMtendere MandowaNico SegalMargaux WhitneyElijah ScarlettJ Cole a 2 072 Immortal ColeEasterlyCarl McCormickWhitneyCardiakFrank DukesCole b 3 213 Deja Vu ColeAnderson HernandezMatthew SamuelsTyler BryantJavalyn HallMichael JohnsonVinylzBoi 1daVelousCole b Ron Gilmore b 4 244 Ville Mentality ColeAnthony ParrinoRonald GilmoreEasterlyTheodore CrokerWhitneyGilmoreEliteCole b 3 145 She s Mine Pt 1 ColeJamil PierreParrinoGilmoreEasterlyWhitneyBill WithersColeDeputyGilmore b Elite b Chargaux b 3 296 Change ColeParrinoGilmoreWhitneyJames YanceyJames Branch Jr ColeElite b Gilmore b 5 317 Neighbors ColeParrinoRonnie FosterColeElite b 3 368 Foldin Clothes ColeParrinoSteve LacyColeSteve LacyElite b Gilmore b 5 169 She s Mine Pt 2 ColePierreParrinoGilmoreEasterlyWhitneyColeDeputyGilmore b Elite b Chargaux b 4 3810 4 Your Eyez Only ColeJoshua BlackParrinoEasterlyWhitneyYuji OhnoBLVKCole a Elite a Childish Major b 8 50Total length 44 32 Notes a signifies a co producer b signifies an additional producer For Whom the Bell Tolls Immortal Deja Vu and Ville Mentality features background vocals by Kaye Foxx Change feature additional vocals by Ari Lennox Foldin Clothes feature talk box by Irvin Washington background vocals by Steve Lacy and additional background vocals by T S Desandies and Brittany Carter 4 Your Eyez Only feature additional vocals by Chargaux Sample credits Immortal contains samples of Pianoparts performed by Frank Dukes 125 Deja Vu contains samples of Swing My Way written by Javalyn Hill and Michael Johnson and performed by K P amp Envyi 56 Neighbors contains samples of Forbidden Fruit performed by J Cole featuring Kendrick Lamar which itself samples Mystic Brew written and performed by Ronnie Foster 126 127 Change contains samples of African Rhythms written by James Yancey and James Branch Jr and performed by J Dilla 4 Your Eyez Only contains samples of To the Oasis written and performed by Yuji Ohno 128 23 Personnel editCredits adapted from official liner notes 2 Vocalists J Cole primary artist Kay Foxx background vocals tracks 1 2 3 4 Ari Lennox additional vocals track 6 Brittany Carter additional vocals track 8 Irvin Washington talk box track 8 Steve Lacy background vocals track 8 T S Desandies additional vocals track 8 Chargaux additional vocals track 10 Musicians Nate Fox musical arrangement track 1 Peter Cottontale musical arrangement track 1 Nico Segal horn arrangement track 1 Anthony Ware horns track 1 Theo Croker horns track 1 trumpet arrangement tracks 4 10 Chargaux string arrangement tracks 1 2 4 5 6 10 Matt McNeal provided beat track 2 Nate Jones bass tracks 3 10 Deputy wurlitzer tracks 5 9 J Cole guitar bass tracks 5 6 9 Ron Gilmore piano rhodes tracks 7 8 Steve Lacy guitar bass track 8 Kyla Moscovich trumpet track 10 David Linaburg guitar track 10 Carlin White drums track 10 Nuno Malo strings track 10 Masayuki BIGYUKI Hirano ja piano rhodes organ track 10 Technical Juro Mez Davis mixing tracks 1 10 Felton Brown art direction Anthony Supreme Thompson photography Delphine Diallo cover design Scott Lazer visual direction Chris Athens mastering Beatriz Artola assistant engineer tracks 1 2 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 Gosha Usov assistant engineer tracks 1 2 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 Managerial Jermaine Cole executive producer Ibrahim Hamad executive producer A amp R management Anthony Elite Parrino co executive producer Adam Roy Rodney creative direction management Dreamville marketing Roc Nation marketing Chaka Pilgrim Roc Nation executive Jay Brown Roc Nation executive Shawn Jay Z Carter Roc Nation executive Joie Manda Interscope executive John Janick Interscope executive Steve Bermen Interscope executive Nelly Ortiz Roc Nation product manager Laura Carter Interscope product manager Nicole Bilzerian Interscope marketing Tim Glover for Interscope A amp R coordinator Gary Kelly for Interscope sales Gretchen Anderson for Interscope production Damien Granderson for Davis Sharpiro Lewit Grabel Leven Granderson amp Blake LLP legal Production Elijah Scarlett production track 1 Cardiak production track 2 Frank Dukes production track 2 Boi 1da production track 3 Velous production track 3 Vinylz production track 3 Ron Gilmore production track 4 additional production tracks 3 5 6 7 8 Elite production tracks 4 additional production tracks 5 9 co production track 10 J Cole production tracks 5 9 co production tracks 1 10 additional production tracks 2 4 Chargaux additional production tracks 5 9 Deputy production tracks 5 9 Steve Lacy production track 8 BLVK production track 10 Childish Major additional production track 10 Charts editWeekly charts edit Chart 2016 17 Peak position Australian Albums ARIA 129 6 Belgian Albums Ultratop Flanders 130 34 Belgian Albums Ultratop Wallonia 131 121 Canadian Albums Billboard 132 1 Danish Albums Hitlisten 133 16 Dutch Albums Album Top 100 134 8 Finnish Albums Suomen virallinen lista 135 31 French Albums SNEP 136 127 German Albums Offizielle Top 100 137 79 Irish Albums IRMA 138 19 New Zealand Albums RMNZ 139 10 Norwegian Albums VG lista 140 6 Portuguese Albums AFP 141 31 Scottish Albums OCC 142 53 Swedish Albums Sverigetopplistan 143 3 Swiss Albums Schweizer Hitparade 144 16 UK Albums OCC 145 21 UK R amp B Albums OCC 146 2 US Billboard 200 104 1 US Top R amp B Hip Hop Albums Billboard 147 1 Year end charts edit Chart 2017 Position Canadian Albums Billboard 148 24 Swedish Albums Sverigetopplistan 149 98 US Billboard 200 115 10 US Top R amp B Hip Hop Albums Billboard 150 9Certifications editRegion Certification Certified units sales Australia ARIA 151 Gold 35 000 Denmark IFPI Danmark 152 Gold 10 000 United Kingdom BPI 153 Gold 100 000 United States RIAA 154 2 Platinum 2 000 000 Sales streaming figures based on certification alone Release history editRegion Date Format Label Australia 155 December 9 2016 CDdigital download DreamvilleRoc NationInterscopePolydorUniversal Belgium 156 Canada 157 Denmark 158 France 159 Ireland 160 Japan 161 New Zealand 162 United Kingdom 163 United States 164 Germany 165 December 12 2016 Italy 166 Spain 167 See also edit2016 in hip hop music List of number one albums of 2016 Canada List of Billboard 200 number one albums of 2016 List of Billboard number one R amp B hip hop albums of 2016 4 Your Eyez Only World Tour J Cole 4 Your Eyez OnlyReferences edit a b c d e Platon Adelle December 21 2016 J Cole s Manager amp Dreamville President Ibrahim Ib Hamad Talks Going Platinum With No Features amp Success of 4 Your Eyez Only Billboard Archived from the original on December 22 2016 Retrieved December 22 2016 a b Official 4 Your Eyez Only Album Credits Archived from the original on November 17 2017 Retrieved December 10 2016 Holden Walter Warner January 9 2017 The North Carolina rapper moves away from commercial noise to make a conscious album Blasting News Archived from the original on February 19 2017 Retrieved February 18 2017 Taylor Alec January 6 2017 4 Your Eyez Only by J Cole Live in Limbo Archived from the original on February 19 2017 Retrieved February 18 2017 4 Your Eyez Only by J Cole on iTunes iTunes Archived from the original on December 29 2016 Retrieved December 1 2016 Interscope Mines a Cole Surprise Update Hits Daily Double December 2 2016 Archived from the original on December 20 2016 Retrieved December 3 2016 DJ Khaled Major Key Tracklist Album Art Genius Archived from the original on November 28 2016 Retrieved December 1 2016 Schwartz Danny July 28 2016 DJ Khaled Jermaine s Interlude feat J Cole amp EarthGang New Song HotNewHipHop Archived from the original on November 6 2016 Retrieved November 5 2016 Fleischer Adam July 27 2016 Could J Cole s Retirement from Rap Be on the Way MTV News Archived from the original on November 6 2016 Retrieved November 5 2016 Lal Rahul October 2 2016 J Cole Plays His Last Show for a Very Long Time Radio com Archived from the original on December 2 2016 Retrieved December 1 2016 Complex News October 2 2016 J Cole Performed His Last Show for a Very Long Time YouTube Archived from the original on March 31 2017 Retrieved December 1 2016 a b Payne Ogden December 1 2016 J Cole Silently Announces The Release Of 4 Your Eyez Only Forbes Archived from the original on December 14 2016 Retrieved December 15 2016 Dreamville December 5 2016 4 Your Eyez Only Available Everywhere 12 9 Dreamville Twitter Archived from the original on December 9 2016 Retrieved December 5 2016 Diep Eric December 21 2016 From Hometown Hero to Superstar Status How High Can J Cole Climb Billboard Archived from the original on December 23 2016 Retrieved December 23 2016 Khan Azeem January 22 2017 The International Dreamvillain Ibrahim Ib Hamad The Huffington Post Archived from the original on February 14 2017 Retrieved February 13 2017 Anthony Supreme Director amp Photographer J Cole 4 Your Eyez Only AnthonySupreme com Archived from the original on December 20 2016 Retrieved December 2 2016 Meka December 2 2016 The Photographer Behind J Cole s 4 Your Eyez Only Reveals Its Concept 2DOPEBOYZ Archived from the original on December 3 2016 Retrieved December 2 2016 Madden Sidney December 6 2016 20 Best Covers of 2016 XXL Archived from the original on December 25 2016 Retrieved December 24 2016 Diep Eric December 2 2016 14 Things We Learned from J Cole s Eyez Documentary Complex Archived from the original on December 20 2016 Retrieved December 3 2016 Ortiz Edwin December 9 2016 Here Are the Full Credits for J Cole s 4 Your Eyez Only Album Complex Archived from the original on December 20 2016 Retrieved December 9 2016 Ortiz Edwin December 10 2016 The Album Is Largely From a Perspective That Isn t J Cole s Producer Elite on 4 Your Eyez Only Complex Archived from the original on December 11 2016 Retrieved December 10 2016 a b XXL Staff December 12 2016 Producers Explain How J Cole s 4 Your Eyez Only Album Came Together Chargaux XXL Archived from the original on February 2 2017 Retrieved January 29 2017 a b c James Andy April 21 2017 Beat Break Dreamville s Elite Shares the Story Behind His 5 Biggest Songs DJBooth Archived from the original on April 22 2017 Retrieved April 21 2017 Only Hip Hop Facts January 11 2017 The girl on JColeNC s Ville Mentality was recorded by Cole while visiting amp speaking to kids at a school in Fayetteville Twitter Archived from the original on February 5 2017 Retrieved January 27 2017 Kennedy John December 14 2016 How An NYU Student Scored His First Production Credit on J Cole s 4 Your Eyez Only Genius Archived from the original on February 2 2017 Retrieved January 29 2017 XXL Staff December 12 2016 Producers Explain How J Cole s 4 Your Eyez Only Album Came Together Cardiak XXL Archived from the original on December 20 2016 Retrieved January 29 2017 J Cole 4 Your Eyez Only 2016 Genius Archived from the original on December 13 2016 Retrieved December 14 2016 Thompson Desire December 10 2016 This Fan Theory About J Cole s 4 Your Eyez Only Actually Makes Sense Vibe Archived from the original on December 13 2016 Retrieved December 14 2016 Kennedy John December 12 2016 J Cole Changed The Name of His Murdered Friend On 4 Your Eyez Only Genius Archived from the original on December 14 2016 Retrieved December 14 2016 Miller Casey December 15 2016 J Cole addresses race in America with 4 Your Eyez Only Daily Emerald Archived from the original on December 16 2016 Retrieved December 15 2016 a b c Caramanica Jon April 14 2017 J Cole the Platinum Rap Dissident Steps Back From the Spotlight The New York Times Archived from the original on June 26 2017 Retrieved April 14 2017 Bundy Will December 2 2016 Watch Cole s Surprise Released Short Documentary Eyez Now The Fader Retrieved December 2 2016 Frydenlund Zach December 2 2016 The Inside Story of How J Cole s Eyez Documentary Was Made Complex Archived from the original on December 3 2016 Retrieved December 3 2016 Dreamville December 5 2016 False Prophets J Cole YouTube Archived from the original on December 9 2016 Retrieved December 5 2016 Dreamville December 5 2016 Everybody Dies J Cole YouTube Archived from the original on December 9 2016 Retrieved December 6 2016 Dreamville December 5 2016 Eyez YouTube Archived from the original on May 16 2017 Retrieved May 17 2017 J Cole January 21 2017 4 Your Eyez Only Tour On sale Friday See you in a few Twitter Archived from the original on March 13 2017 Retrieved February 21 2017 Simmons Ted February 21 2017 J Cole Reveals 4 Your Eyez Only Tour Dates XXL Archived from the original on February 22 2017 Retrieved February 21 2017 Dreamville February 22 2017 Limited Edition Vinyl amp Cassette Available Now Order for Exclusive access to 4YourEyezOnly Tour Pre sale Tickets Twitter Archived from the original on March 15 2017 Retrieved February 22 2017 Ibrahim Hamad February 22 2017 The Bundle The Vinyl or the Cassette order which ever one you want to get a pre sale code Twitter Archived from the original on March 15 2017 Retrieved February 22 2017 Ibrahim Hamad Tomorrow 4youreyezonlytour let s get it started First Run with the home team jidsv arilennox lute west9 dreamville Twitter Retrieved May 31 2017 Dreamville June 17 2017 It s time to hit them arenas Catch JColeNC this summer with AndersonPaak Bas JIDsv AriLennox Twitter Retrieved June 18 2017 Dreamville The 4YEOTour hits Europe in T minus 10 days Pulling up with JColeNC JIDsv AriLennox EarthGang See you soon Twitter Retrieved September 19 2017 Cantor Paul April 25 2018 J Cole Just Wants to Be Himself Vulture Archived from the original on April 29 2018 Retrieved April 27 2018 Lamarre Carl September 3 2017 J Cole and Solange Light Up Day 1 of Made in America Festival 2017 Billboard Archived from the original on September 4 2017 Retrieved September 4 2017 HBO March 24 2017 J Cole 4 Your Eyez Only premieres April 15 at 10 00PM on HBO JColeOnHBO Twitter Archived from the original on April 2 2017 Retrieved March 24 2017 Smith Trevor April 16 2017 Watch Footage Of Raid On J Cole s Home Studio That Inspired Neighbors HotNewHipHop Archived from the original on April 17 2017 Retrieved April 16 2017 Espinoza Joshua April 15 2017 J Cole Previews New Music in 4 Your Eyez Only Documentary on HBO Complex Archived from the original on April 17 2017 Retrieved April 16 2017 Romano Nick March 24 2017 HBO announces second J Cole documentary coming in April Entertainment Weekly Archived from the original on March 25 2017 Retrieved March 24 2017 Tipple Ben April 12 2017 J Cole announces exclusive 4 Your Eyez Only screening Ticketmaster Blog Archived from the original on April 13 2017 Retrieved April 12 2017 Dreamville May 1 2017 J Cole 4 Your Eyez Only a Dreamville film YouTube Archived from the original on February 27 2020 Retrieved May 1 2017 J na Jefferson April 16 2017 J Cole s HBO Documentary Brings Black Perseverance to the Forefront Billboard Archived from the original on May 14 2017 Retrieved May 18 2017 Top 40 M Future Releases All Access Music Group Archived from the original on January 4 2017 Retrieved January 18 2017 a b c J Cole Chart History Billboard Archived from the original on May 3 2014 Retrieved December 15 2016 a b J Cole Chart history Hot R amp B Hip Hop Songs Hot R amp B Hip Hop Songs for J Cole Archived from the original on June 28 2014 Retrieved January 9 2017 a b J Cole Deja Vu on Genius Genius Archived from the original on December 10 2016 Retrieved December 9 2016 Top 40 Rhythmic Future Releases All Access Access Music Group Archived from the original on August 4 2017 Retrieved April 13 2017 J Cole Neighbors on Genius Genius Archived from the original on April 14 2017 Retrieved April 14 2017 Evans Gavin July 10 2017 J Cole Reveals Beat for Neighbors Is Actually Forbidden Fruit Played Backwards Complex Archived from the original on July 13 2017 Retrieved July 15 2017 JColeVEVO May 1 2017 J Cole Neighbors YouTube Archived from the original on May 2 2017 Retrieved May 1 2017 Schwartz Danny December 6 2016 J Cole s False Prophets amp Everybody Dies Now On iTunes amp Streaming Services HotNewHipHop Archived from the original on December 20 2016 Retrieved December 9 2016 freddiejoachim Freddie Joachim Waves SoundCloud Archived from the original on December 20 2016 Retrieved December 15 2016 Pro Era July 12 2012 Joey Bada Waves Official Video YouTube Archived from the original on November 15 2016 Retrieved December 15 2016 Joey Badass December 2 2016 Nah but nothing but love for my big brother JColeNC He played the song for me amp asked for my blessing on the beat months ago Real one 4 Twitter Retrieved December 15 2016 XXL Staff December 8 2016 50 Best Hip Hop Songs of 2016 XXL Archived from the original on December 10 2016 Retrieved December 23 2016 The Best Hip Hop Songs of 2016 Capital XTRA Archived from the original on December 24 2016 Retrieved December 23 2016 Emmanuel C M December 15 2016 Here Are Hip Hop s Best Diss Tracks of 2016 XXL Archived from the original on December 24 2016 Retrieved December 23 2016 XXL Staff December 16 2016 20 Best Hip Hop Verses of 2016 XXL Archived from the original on December 24 2016 Retrieved December 23 2016 blame it on 2DBZ December 30 2016 Top Verses of 2016 2DOPEBOYZ Archived from the original on January 1 2017 Retrieved December 31 2016 a href Template Cite web html title Template Cite web cite web a CS1 maint numeric names authors list link Blistein Jon January 17 2017 Hear J Cole Reflect on Oppression Obama Revolution on High for Hours Rolling Stone Archived from the original on May 18 2017 Retrieved May 18 2017 Music videos J Cole For Whom The Bell Tolls Official Video YouTube April 19 2017 Archived from the original on August 11 2017 Retrieved April 22 2017 J Cole Immortal Official Music Video YouTube April 16 2017 Archived from the original on August 10 2017 Retrieved April 22 2017 J Cole Ville Mentality Music Video YouTube April 15 2017 Archived from the original on August 11 2017 Retrieved April 22 2017 J Cole Change Official Music Video YouTube April 15 2017 Archived from the original on August 11 2017 Retrieved April 22 2017 J Cole She s Mine PT 2 Music Video YouTube April 15 2017 Retrieved April 22 2017 J Cole 4 Your Eyez Only Official Music Video YouTube April 16 2017 Retrieved June 12 2017 Stars Dance by Selena Gomez reviews AnyDecentMusic Archived from the original on October 29 2021 Retrieved October 24 2022 a b Reviews for 4 Your Eyez Only by J Cole Metacritic Archived from the original on January 5 2017 Retrieved October 9 2017 Kellman Andy December 23 2016 4 Your Eyez Only J Cole AllMusic Archived from the original on December 24 2016 Retrieved December 23 2016 Eustice Kyle December 19 2016 J Cole 4 Your Eyez Only Consequence of Sound Archived from the original on December 22 2016 Retrieved December 19 2016 a b Boffard Rob December 13 2016 J Cole 4 Your Eyez Only Exclaim Archived from the original on December 20 2016 Retrieved December 14 2016 a b Pearce Sheldon December 10 2016 J Cole 4 Your Eyez Only review unsparing unflinching raptivism The Guardian Archived from the original on January 13 2017 Retrieved December 12 2016 Gill Andy December 14 2016 Album reviews The Doors Daniel Bachman J Cole Thom Hell and more The Independent Archived from the original on December 17 2016 Retrieved December 11 2017 Ritchie Kevin December 28 2016 J Cole solidifies his rep as a social realist storyteller on 4 Your Eyez Only Now Archived from the original on September 5 2017 Retrieved September 4 2017 a b Thompson Paul A December 14 2016 J Cole 4 Your Eyez Only Pitchfork Archived from the original on December 29 2016 Retrieved December 14 2016 a b Sutton William January 17 2017 J Cole 4 Your Eyez Only PopMatters Archived from the original on February 12 2017 Retrieved February 11 2017 Hurst Josh January 17 2017 J Cole 4 Your Eyez Only Slant Magazine Archived from the original on January 14 2017 Retrieved January 10 2017 a b Gibbons Chris December 16 2016 J Cole Stays in His Comfort Zone on 4 Your Eyez Only XXL Archived from the original on December 20 2016 Retrieved December 16 2016 Caramanica Jon December 14 2016 Review The Only Big Name Here Is Still J Cole s The New York Times Archived from the original on December 14 2016 Retrieved December 14 2016 Fairfax Jesse December 16 2016 Review J Cole Illustrates Thug Paradise With 4 Your Eyez Only HipHopDX Archived from the original on December 17 2016 Retrieved December 16 2016 Spearman Kahron December 12 2016 J Cole s 4 Your Eyez Only reviewed The Daily Dot Archived from the original on December 20 2016 Retrieved December 18 2016 Jenkins Craig December 15 2016 J Cole s 4 Your Eyez Only Is His Best and Most Mature Album Vulture Archived from the original on December 17 2016 Retrieved December 18 2016 Jackson Josh December 15 2016 Album review J Cole gets personal on 4 Your Eyez Only The Advocate Retrieved December 17 2016 Marudupi Pranav December 19 2016 Album Review 4 Your Eyez Only The Hoya Archived from the original on December 27 2016 Retrieved December 26 2016 Lyons Patrick December 15 2016 J Cole s 4 Your Eyez Only Review HotNewHipHop Archived from the original on December 16 2016 Retrieved December 17 2016 Griffin Dominic January 22 2017 J Cole 4 Your Eyez Only Spectrum Culture Archived from the original on December 6 2018 Retrieved January 29 2017 Lamarre Carl December 28 2016 NBA Star Karl Anthony Towns Hails J Cole s 4 Your Eyez Only as the Dopest Album of the Year Billboard Archived from the original on January 6 2017 Retrieved January 5 2017 DX Staff December 31 2016 The 20 Best Rap Albums Of 2016 HipHopDX Archived from the original on January 2 2017 Retrieved January 1 2017 BoomBox Staff December 31 2016 Year In Review The 25 Best Hip Hop Albums of 2016 The Boombox Retrieved January 6 2017 Bennett Sam January 3 2017 Sam Bennett s Top Ten Albums of 2016 contactmusic com Archived from the original on January 7 2017 Retrieved January 7 2017 a b XXL Staff December 19 2016 50 Best Hip Hop Albums of 2016 XXL Archived from the original on December 25 2016 Retrieved December 24 2016 Rap Up s 20 Best Albums of 2016 11 20 Rap Up December 12 2016 Archived from the original on December 14 2016 Retrieved January 5 2017 Readers Choice Best Albums of 2016 Rap Up December 19 2017 Archived from the original on January 6 2017 Retrieved January 5 2017 25 of our favorite albums from Southern musicians in 2016 The Birmingham News December 14 2016 Archived from the original on September 23 2018 Retrieved April 30 2017 Petit Stephanie April 10 2017 Billboard Music Awards Nominations 2017 Heavy Hitters Like Beyonce and Drake Dominate Top Categories People Music Archived from the original on April 10 2017 Retrieved April 10 2017 Kennedy Gerrick D May 15 2017 Beyonce tops 2017 BET Awards nominations Los Angeles Times Archived from the original on May 16 2017 Retrieved May 15 2017 Lemco Ben Dandridge Cardi B Kendrick Lamar And DJ Khaled Are The Lead Nominees For The 2017 BET Hip Hop Awards The Fader Retrieved September 14 2017 Billboard Staff April 17 2018 Billboard Music Awards 2018 Nominations See the Full List Billboard Archived from the original on January 18 2019 Retrieved April 27 2018 a b c d Caulfield Keith December 19 2016 J Cole Scores His Fourth No 1 Album on Billboard 200 Chart With Third Largest Debut of 2016 Billboard Archived from the original on December 29 2016 Retrieved December 20 2016 McIntyre Hugh December 23 2016 Drake The Weeknd And J Cole Have All Moved Over 100 000 Albums In A Week With Streaming Alone Forbes Archived from the original on January 3 2017 Retrieved January 2 2017 Winslow Mike December 19 2016 J Cole Ties Drake and DMX With Fourth 1 AllHipHop Archived from the original on December 21 2016 Retrieved December 20 2016 Hernandez Victoria December 27 2016 Hip Hop Album Sales Kid Cudi amp Gucci Mane Debut In Top 20 HipHopDX Archived from the original on December 28 2016 Retrieved January 8 2017 Hernandez Victoria January 3 2017 Hip Hop Album Sales Yo Gotti amp Run The Jewels Projects Debut On Billboard 200 Albums Chart HipHopDX Archived from the original on January 9 2017 Retrieved January 8 2017 Hernandez Victoria January 9 2017 Hip Hop Album Sales The Weeknd s Starboy Shoots to 1 Again HipHopDX Archived from the original on January 10 2017 Retrieved January 9 2017 Hernandez Victoria January 16 2017 Hip Hop Album Sales The Weeknd s Starboy Holds Top Spot HipHopDX Archived from the original on January 19 2017 Retrieved January 26 2017 Feig Zakk January 12 2017 J Cole s 4 Your Eyez Only Officially Goes Gold HotNewHipHop Archived from the original on January 13 2017 Retrieved January 14 2017 Roc Nation April 7 2017 Congrats JColeNC s 4 Your Eyez Only has been certified platinum by RIAA Listen on TIDALHiFi Twitter Archived from the original on April 22 2017 Retrieved April 7 2017 External Source December 19 2016 On The Charts This Week FYIMusicNews Archived from the original on December 22 2016 Retrieved December 20 2016 Trust Gary December 19 2016 Rae Sremmurd Tops Hot 100 Zayn amp Taylor Swift J Cole Debut in Top 10 Billboard Archived from the original on December 22 2016 Retrieved December 19 2016 a b Top Billboard 200 Albums Year End 2017 Billboard Archived from the original on December 24 2017 Retrieved December 12 2017 Power 106 Los Angeles December 2 2016 Lil Yachty Responds to J Cole s Diss on Everybody Dies YouTube Archived from the original on December 6 2016 Retrieved December 5 2016 a href Template Cite web html title Template Cite web cite web a CS1 maint numeric names authors list link Feig Zakk December 3 2016 Lil Uzi Vert Slyly Acknowledges J Cole Diss HotNewHipHop Archived from the original on March 12 2017 Retrieved March 8 2017 Fitzgerald Trent December 2 2016 Did J Cole Really Call Out Kanye West and Wale on False Prophets Debate Erupts on Twitter The Boombox Archived from the original on December 5 2016 Retrieved December 5 2016 Burgess Omar December 3 2016 Wale Responds to J Cole s False Prophets on New Song Groundhog Day Complex Archived from the original on December 4 2016 Retrieved December 5 2016 Vernon Coleman II C December 4 2016 J Cole and Wale Attend NC State Basketball Game Together XXL Archived from the original on December 6 2016 Retrieved December 5 2016 Schwartz Danny December 9 2016 Boi 1da amp Vinylz Explain Why J Cole s Deja Vu amp Bryson Tiller s Exchange Use The Same Beat HotNewHipHop Archived from the original on December 10 2016 Retrieved December 9 2016 Exchange by Bryson Tiller The beat was stolen from producer G Money in 2013 YouTube June 12 2016 Archived from the original on February 4 2017 Retrieved December 11 2016 4YEO CREDITS Dreamville December 14 2016 Archived from the original on May 17 2019 Retrieved May 17 2019 BMI Repertoire Search repertoire bmi com Archived from the original on September 15 2020 Retrieved May 17 2019 J Cole Immortal on WhoSampled WhoSampled Retrieved May 14 2017 J Cole Neighbors on WhoSampled WhoSampled Archived from the original on July 18 2017 Retrieved July 18 2017 Genius July 18 2017 J Cole s Neighbors Beat Is Forbidden Fruit Reversed YouTube Retrieved July 18 2017 J Cole 4 Your Eyez Only on WhoSampled WhoSampled Archived from the original on July 18 2017 Retrieved May 14 2017 Australiancharts com J Cole 4 Your Eyez Only Hung Medien Retrieved December 17 2016 Ultratop be J Cole 4 Your Eyez Only in Dutch Hung Medien Retrieved December 17 2016 Ultratop be J Cole 4 Your Eyez Only in French Hung Medien Retrieved December 17 2016 On The Charts This Week FYIMusicNews Retrieved December 20 2016 Danishcharts dk J Cole 4 Your Eyez Only Hung Medien Retrieved December 21 2016 Dutchcharts nl J Cole 4 Your Eyez Only in Dutch Hung Medien Retrieved December 17 2016 J Cole 4 Your Eyez Only in Finnish Musiikkituottajat IFPI Finland Retrieved December 18 2016 Le Top de la semaine Top Albums Fusionnes SNEP Week 50 2016 in French Syndicat National de l Edition Phonographique June 10 2013 Archived from the original on January 15 2017 Retrieved December 20 2016 Offiziellecharts de J Cole 4 Your Eyez Only in German GfK Entertainment Charts Retrieved December 17 2016 GFK Chart Track Albums Week 50 2016 Chart Track IRMA Retrieved December 17 2016 Charts nz J Cole 4 Your Eyez Only Hung Medien Retrieved December 16 2016 Norwegiancharts com J Cole 4 Your Eyez Only Hung Medien Retrieved December 17 2016 Portuguesecharts com J Cole 4 Your Eyez Only Hung Medien Retrieved January 26 2017 16 2016 40 Official Scottish Albums Chart Top 100 Official Charts Company Retrieved December 17 2016 Sverigetopplistan Sveriges Officiella Topplista Sverigetopplistan Archived from the original on June 1 2009 Retrieved December 17 2016 Click on Veckans albumlista Swisscharts com J Cole 4 Your Eyez Only Hung Medien Retrieved December 21 2016 J Cole Artist Official Charts UK Albums Chart Retrieved December 17 2016 19 2016 115 Official R amp B Albums Chart Top 40 Official Charts Company Retrieved December 21 2016 J Cole Chart History Top R amp B Hip Hop Albums Billboard Retrieved December 20 2016 Top Canadian Albums Year End 2017 Billboard Archived from the original on December 24 2017 Retrieved December 15 2017 Arslista Album Ar 2017 in Swedish Sverigetopplistan Archived from the original on January 16 2018 Retrieved January 16 2018 Top R amp B Hip Hop Albums Year End 2017 Billboard Retrieved June 30 2020 ARIA Charts Accreditations 2023 Albums PDF Australian Recording Industry Association Retrieved December 17 2023 Danish album certifications J Cole 4 Your Eyez Only IFPI Danmark Retrieved October 19 2021 British album certifications J Cole 4 Your Eyez Only British Phonographic Industry Retrieved April 25 2021 American album certifications J Cole 4 Your Eyez Only Recording Industry Association of America Retrieved November 17 2023 iTunes Music 4 Your Eyez Only by J Cole iTunes December 9 2016 Archived from the original on December 20 2016 Retrieved December 12 2016 iTunes Music 4 Your Eyez Only by J Cole iTunes December 9 2016 Archived from the original on December 20 2016 Retrieved December 12 2016 iTunes Music 4 Your Eyez Only by J Cole iTunes December 9 2016 Archived from the original on December 20 2016 Retrieved December 12 2016 iTunes Music 4 Your Eyez Only by J Cole iTunes December 9 2016 Archived from the original on December 20 2016 Retrieved December 12 2016 iTunes Musique 4 Your Eyez Only par J Cole iTunes December 9 2016 Archived from the original on December 20 2016 Retrieved December 12 2016 iTunes Musik 4 Your Eyez Only von J Cole iTunes December 9 2016 Archived from the original on December 20 2016 Retrieved December 12 2016 iTunes ミュージック J Cole 4 Your Eyez Only iTunes December 9 2016 Archived from the original on December 20 2016 Retrieved December 12 2016 iTunes Music 4 Your Eyez Only by J Cole iTunes December 9 2016 Archived from the original on December 20 2016 Retrieved December 12 2016 iTunes Music 4 Your Eyez Only by J Cole iTunes December 9 2016 Archived from the original on December 20 2016 Retrieved December 12 2016 iTunes Music 4 Your Eyez Only by J Cole iTunes December 9 2016 Archived from the original on December 29 2016 Retrieved December 12 2016 iTunes Music 4 Your Eyez Only von J Cole iTunes December 9 2016 Archived from the original on December 20 2016 Retrieved December 12 2016 iTunes Musica 4 Your Eyez Only di J Cole iTunes December 9 2016 Archived from the original on December 20 2016 Retrieved December 12 2016 iTunes Musica 4 Your Eyez Only de J Cole iTunes December 9 2016 Archived from the original on December 20 2016 Retrieved December 12 2016 Further reading editConteh Mankaprr December 21 2016 Suicidal Thoughts My Experience Listening to J Cole s 4 Your Eyez Only DJBooth Lefsetz Bob April 19 2017 J Cole Success amp the Ability to Capture Inspiration When It Strikes DJBooth External links edit4 Your Eyez Only at Discogs list of releases Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title 4 Your Eyez Only amp oldid 1218049134, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,

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