JAY-Z is opening up about his relationship with J. Cole, pushing back on long-standing narratives about how the Roc Nation co-founder handled Cole early in his career.
In a recent interview with GQ, JAY-Z addressed the idea that Cole wasn’t fully supported during his rise, making it clear that his approach was intentional. Cole signed to Roc Nation as its first artist in 2009 but parted ways with the label around 2020 to focus on his own imprint, Dreamville Records.
“The narrative is that we didn’t love Cole,” JAY-Z said. “No, we believed in him enough to let him find his journey. It took him a minute, but he found his way.”
The comments come as part of a broader conversation about how Roc Nation has evolved since its founding in 2008. JAY-Z explained that the company has shifted away from the traditional label structure toward a more flexible, artist-focused model, one that prioritizes independence and creative control.
“I never was comfortable with that anyway,” he said, referring to the idea of tightly managing an artist’s direction. “An artist’s expression should be their expression. I really fall back.”
JAY-Z acknowledged that while he offered guidance early on, including suggesting Cole collaborate with hitmaking production team Stargate, he never forced creative decisions.
“I was giving him a chance to take his talent and show it to the most people possible, but his way,” he said. “I didn’t say, ‘Here’s this record… you putting it out.’”
He contrasted that approach with his dynamic with Memphis Bleek, whom he described as more of a younger brother figure who would follow his direction more closely.
“Bleek is my little brother, he has to listen to me,” JAY-Z said. “But for J. Cole, he has to find his own direction, and I’m going to give him the tools.”
Looking at where Cole is now, JAY-Z made it clear there’s no lingering tension.
“I don’t have any negative feelings for him,” he said. “I’m actually super proud of him and what he’s done.”
He also revealed that he still keeps up with Cole’s music as a fan, noting that he recently heard new material through DJ Clue rather than directly from Cole himself.
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