J. Cole Surprises Fans At Fayetteville Listening Event For "The Fall-Off"

BY Gabriel Bras Nevares
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J Cole Surprises Fans Fayetteville Listening Event The Fall Off
February 15, 2020; Chicago, Illinois, USA; American rapper J. Cole during NBA All Star Saturday Night at United Center. Mandatory Credit: Kyle Terada-USA TODAY Sports via Imagn Images
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J. Cole pays tribute to his hometown of Fayetteville consistently on "The Fall-Off," so to see him in the flesh there is even more special.

J. Cole may have said goodbye to fans on his presumably final album The Fall-Off, but die-hards in his hometown of Fayetteville, North Carolina will most likely continue to see him around for a very long time. If they had any doubt about that, his recent surprise pop-out at a fan listening event in the Ville for the project should quell it.

For those unaware, it seems like the Dreamville rapper chose to surprise his supporters who gathered for this unspecified listening party on Friday (February 6). XXL shared two videos of the occasion on Instagram. Both of them show him greeting various folks in big crowds, both outside and indoors. You can even hear Cole go "It's a lot going on" at one point. Overall, it's quite the wholesome sight and very much in line with the artist and person he presents himself as, especially on this new LP.

J. Cole's new "Two Six" music video also pays tribute to Fayetteville, on top of all the references, conceptual weight, and thematic focus that the hometown represents on The Fall-Off as a whole.

Is The Fall-Off J. Cole's Last Album?

This pop-out for this listening event shows how much he appreciates his fanbase and the support of his music, and we wonder how that will evolve in the coming years. After all, many folks presume The Fall-Off will be J. Cole's last album, based on what he, his team, and his peers have said about it many times in the past.

However, a lot of folks doubt that this will be the case, as Cole spoke on falling back in love with hip-hop, feeling inspired again, and other themes that have die-hard fans not fully buying the retirement story. So while this may be the closing of a big chapter, maybe he will come back in other ways.

Regardless, fans are split concerning J. Cole's The Fall-Off. Hardcore listeners seem very happy, haters have plenty of reason to hate, and everyone else is seemingly falling somewhere in the middle. But for fans in Fayetteville who are closer to Cole than most, nothing can take this moment away.

About The Author
Gabriel Bras Nevares is a staff writer for HotNewHipHop. He joined HNHH while completing his B.A. in Journalism & Mass Communication at The George Washington University in the summer of 2022. Born and raised in San Juan, Puerto Rico, Gabriel treasures the crossover between his native reggaetón and hip-hop news coverage, such as his review for Bad Bunny’s hometown concert in 2024. But more specifically, he digs for the deeper side of hip-hop conversations, whether that’s the “death” of the genre in 2023, the lyrical and parasocial intricacies of the Kendrick Lamar and Drake battle, or the many moving parts of the Young Thug and YSL RICO case. Beyond engaging and breaking news coverage, Gabriel makes the most out of his concert obsessions, reviewing and recapping festivals like Rolling Loud Miami and Camp Flog Gnaw. He’s also developed a strong editorial voice through album reviews, think-pieces, and interviews with some of the genre’s brightest upstarts and most enduring obscured gems like Homeboy Sandman, Bktherula, Bas, and Devin Malik.

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