J. Cole Talks Fatherhood, Going Platinum with No Features and More in GQ Cover Story

J. Cole has been stepping out of his comfort zone a lot more this past year since the release of his 2018-project, K.O.D.

From interviewing Lil Pump to being open to working with artists again, ranging from 21 Savage to MoneyBagg Yo, the theDreamville rapper took GQ to his backyard of North Carolina during All-Star weekend for their forthcoming issue.

“I’ve reached a point in my life, where I’m like, ‘How long am I gonna be doing this for?’” says Cole. “I’m starting to realize like, oh shit—let’s say I stopped this year. I would feel like I missed out on certain experiences, you know? Working with certain artists, being more collaborative, making more friends out of peers, making certain memories that I feel like if I don’t, I’m gonna regret it one day.”

Donned in high-fashion pieces by Bally, Hermès, Isabel Marant and more while photographed by Awol Erizku, Cole opens up a lot more than we expected – giving us fatherhood, how he feels about not winning a GRAMMY, Colin Kaepernick settling his case, having the same Versace sweater as his peers at the 2013 BET Awards and more.

ON THE ‘J. COLE WENT PLATINUM WITH NO FEATURES’ PHRASE: “I was loving it. I was like, ‘Word up—this is funny as hell.’ But the second or third time, I was like, ‘All right, it’s almost embarrassing now.’ Like, ‘All right, man, y’all gonna make me put a feature on the album just so this shit can stop.’”

ON LOSING BEST NEW ARTIST AT THE 2012 GRAMMYS: “It would’ve been disastrous for me, because subconsciously it would’ve been sending me a signal of like ‘Okay, I am supposed to be this guy.’ But I would’ve been the dude that had that one great album and then fizzled out.”

ON NOT WINNING ANY GRAMMYS: “I’m not supposed to have a Grammy, you know what I mean? At least not right now, and maybe never. And if that happens, then that’s just how it was supposed to be.”

ON FATHERHOOD: “For a while, I felt a little weird about it. Like, nah. I felt, ‘Did I miss something?’ ‘Cause I didn’t feel the change that people talk about. And then I figured out what it was. I changed my life in order to get ready to have a family and to have a son. I literally changed my life, where I was living, the things that I was doing. I changed. So because of that, when my son came, I was ready. I already made room.”