The standout track, “Once An Addict (Interlude),” paints the picture of a young Jermaine Cole witnessing his mother cope with the breakdown of her marriage by relying on alcohol and classic tunes. The storytelling in the back half of “KOD” proves to be the biggest strength of this project. The persona works well, but its sparse use makes it feel underdeveloped. Edward’s two appearances on this album are on the hooks of “FRIENDS” and “The Cut Off,” in which he speaks about needing drugs to feel like himself. In an album centered around the repercussions of addiction, he uses the character to represent someone who has fallen down the perilous path of substance abuse. Inspired by the hatred he holds for his stepfather, the kiLL edward persona is the manifestation of Cole’s attempts to deal with his own pain. However, fans quickly figured out that he wasn’t a featured artist at all, but rather Cole’s alter ego. His inclusion on the album puzzled fans not only because Cole is known to steer clear of features on his projects, but because nobody had ever heard of kiLL edward. The only featured artist on “KOD” is the mysterious kiLL edward. Blending distorted 808s with his usual boom-bap sound, Cole delivers an introspective and self-aware album that listeners can still turn up to. However, Cole proved that he hasn’t lost his ability to captivate his audience with the release of his fifth studio album, “KOD,” on April 20.
Cole released his underwhelming studio album “4 Your Eyez Only.” At that time, Cole was considered one of the greatest artists in hip-hop, but fans started to question whether “Cole World” was finally past its golden age. It’s been a year and a half since North Carolina rapper J.