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With the exception of Kendrick Lamar, it\u2019s been a rough year commercially for hip-hop, at least in terms of the lack of hits that have been produced in the genre. Last fall, Billboard reported<\/a> that for the first time in 35 years, there were no hip-hop songs charting within the Top 40. In an effort to turn the tide back in hip-hop\u2019s favour we have J. Cole, one of the genre\u2019s most respected artists of the last decade, back with a new album, The Fall-Off<\/em>, an album that he says will be his last.\u00a0<\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n Positioning his The Fall-Off <\/em>as his final statement instantly raises the stakes, not just for his fans but for hip-hop as a genre. In an era where rappers rarely take any time away from the studio or the spotlight, Cole choosing closure almost feels a little radical. He\u2019s not retiring from lack of relevance, if anything he\u2019s on track<\/a> for some really high first-week sales numbers. He\u2019s simply reminding us that sometimes the most powerful move an artist can make is knowing when the story is complete (for now). I take this with a grain of salt of course as this wouldn\u2019t be the first time that an artist claims a body of work is their \u201clast\u201d when it indeed is not. Barbra Streisand has gone on the record many times<\/a> that she was retiring and she just released a new album last year. Lily Allen also has suggested she\u2019d retire from music and now just released one of the most successful albums of her career. For all we know, Cole may be back in a few years with a \u201cnever mind\u201d, but for the time being he has said that he intends<\/a> for this to be his last project – \u201cintends\u201d being the key word here.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n After the slew of controversies<\/a> he faced two years ago during the Kendrick and Drake beef, many fans were intrigued to see if he\u2019d address it on the album, and he does on a few tracks. The one that stands out to me is \u201cI Love Her Again\u201d where he uses a romantic relationship as an analogy for hip-hop and his relationships within the genre. He uses a cheating girlfriend choosing two lovers over him as a representation of hip-hop choosing his \u201ctwo homies\u201d who \u201cstarted beefing\u201d, which many fans believe is Kendrick and Drake. Is it just fan lore? Could be, that\u2019s the beauty of dissecting new lyrics, it really can mean what you want it to mean. It\u2019s a subtle yet direct approach to acknowledge a situation that did more damage than good for almost everyone involved. That\u2019s the thing about the most famous rap beefs, it\u2019s the ones with the worst outcomes which become the most known.<\/p>\n Next week\u2019s street date is the day before Valentine\u2019s Day so there\u2019s a solid selection of music for all the lovers. Charli XCX drops the soundtrack to Wuthering Heights <\/em>and <\/em>Brent Faiyaz is releasing his new album after scrapping it entirely last September. I\u2019m most excited for Jill Scott\u2019s new album To Whom This May Concern, <\/em>because no one does music for love better than Jill. This week along with J. Cole are new releases from ZAYN, Tame Impala with JENNIE, Charlie Puth with Kenny G, and FISHER. Plus, a Madonna deep cut from the Erotica <\/em>album has a moment on Tik Tok.<\/p>\n \u00a0Listen on\u2026<\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n MC\u2019s PICKS OF THE WEEK<\/u><\/strong><\/p>\n \u201cTwo Six\u201d by J. Cole<\/strong><\/p>\n The album starts off on a very strong note with the banger \u201cTwo Six\u201d that instantly catches your ear in the same vein that his past hits like \u201cWork Out\u201d<\/a> and \u201cNo Role Modelz\u201d<\/a> do. He released an accompanying music video to the song which follows a black-and-white old school aesthetic along with some colour shots interwoven. Many quick cuts of his poetry flash along the scene, as well as him in front of historical landmarks in his hometown of Fayetteville. The video is a representation of his roots and how far he has come since his time in North Carolina. The title of the song \u201cTwo Six\u201d is a symbol for one of the nicknames that Fayetteville locals have given to a military base there, with the number still being used as a jail code. Cole has referenced his hometown in his music before, as his 2014 album 2014 Forest Hills Drive <\/em>was the actual address of his childhood home that he shared with his single mother. For a lead single from an album that is intended to be his last, \u201cTwo Six\u201d is a strong representation of the origin story of one of this generations most talented MCs.<\/p>\n