LeBron James Reveals What He's Listening To Right Now & It's Not "ICEMAN"

BY Aron A.
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May 11, 2026; Los Angeles, California, USA; Los Angeles Lakers forward LeBron James (23) controls the ball against Oklahoma City Thunder guard Luguentz Dort (5) during the first half in game four of the second round of the 2026 NBA Playoffs at Crypto.com Arena. Mandatory Credit: Gary A. Vasquez-Imagn Images/MAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect
We shouldn't be surprised.

It’s been a year of excellent releases, from mainstream drops from our favorites to underground gems that will land on everyone’s year-end list. But for LeBron James, there appears to be one album that’s stuck on rotation: The Fall-Off. During a recent interview, James was asked about what he’s currently listening to, and he couldn’t help but praise J. Cole. “What am I listening to right now? J. Cole. His whole album, The Fall-Off,” James said.

This isn’t much of a surprise, considering that LeBron James was memefied earlier this year for carrying a vinyl of The Fall-Off as he arrived at the Kaseya Center for a matchup against the Miami Heat. Cole revealed in an interview with Carmelo Anthony that he brought his sons to that game, but LeBron brought his vinyl of the album to get it signed.

"On his way, he had The Fall-Off vinyl -- he brought it so I could sign it,” he said. “My oldest [is] getting into basketball, Bron is his No. 1, and I hit Bron, and he graciously said he would do it.”

Is LeBron James Listening To ICEMAN?

Although we could all consider this to be a rather innocuous answer, it does come on the heels of Drake’s new albums, ICEMAN, and its accompanying projects, Habibti and Maid Of Honour. ICEMAN, of course, contains a few shots at LeBron related to their supposed fall-out post-Pop Out. LeBron’s appreciation for Kendrick Lamar’s “Not Like Us,” and the videos of him dancing along to the song in various places, including the Summer Olympics, evidently soured his stance with Drake.

On “Make Them Remember,” Drake appears to address their issues, rapping, “Please stop asking what's going on with 23 and me, I'm a real n***a, and he's not.” So far, we haven’t heard anything from LeBron regarding those lyrics.

About The Author
Aron A. is a features editor for HotNewHipHop. Beginning his tenure at HotNewHipHop in July 2017, he has comprehensively documented the biggest stories in the culture over the past few years. Throughout his time, Aron’s helped introduce a number of buzzing up-and-coming artists to our audience, identifying regional trends and highlighting hip-hop from across the globe. As a Canadian-based music journalist, he has also made a concerted effort to put spotlights on artists hailing from North of the border as part of Rise & Grind, the weekly interview series that he created and launched in 2021. Aron also broke a number of stories through his extensive interviews with beloved figures in the culture. These include industry vets (Quality Control co-founder Kevin "Coach K" Lee, Wayno Clark), definitive producers (DJ Paul, Hit-Boy, Zaytoven), cultural disruptors (Soulja Boy), lyrical heavyweights (Pusha T, Styles P, Danny Brown), cultural pioneers (Dapper Dan, Big Daddy Kane), and the next generation of stars (Lil Durk, Latto, Fivio Foreign, Denzel Curry). Aron also penned cover stories with the likes of Rick Ross, Central Cee, Moneybagg Yo, Vince Staples, and Bobby Shmurda.

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