J. Cole is one of today's most recognizable faces of conscious rap. One can expect him to be aware of and attentive to politics. During the 2016 elections which culminated with Donald Trump's presidential victory, J. Cole "wokeness" led him to abstain from voting.
During an interview with Billboard last week, the Dreamville main man explained why he chose not to partake in his right to vote during one of the most controversial sets of campaigns.
"Because Hillary Clinton wasn't somebody that was motivating me to go vote. If it was Bernie Sanders, I would've showed up and voted. I would've been the first one in line, no bullshit. No disrespect to Hillary."
Although his desire to support of Bernie Sanders during that time is currently being made public, Cole says he isn't one to endorse politicians overtly:
"I don't care to lend my voice for a politician at the end of the day."
In one way, he is content with the results of the last presidential election, considering how many issues have been added to the public discourse, ones that might have remained buried under a different administration.
"Actually, with Trump in office, I love that America gets to see the truth. If Hillary Clinton was in office, it would be the most fucking disingenuous shit because everybody would be thinking that everything's cool because we got an incredibly qualified female president. Which would've been amazing on so many levels. But all the shit we see right now would've still existed; it would've just been quiet. And I prefer this shit to be out loud. I prefer an honest America. I prefer the world seeing that, yes, we're a country that is dumb enough -- no disrespect -- [that] we got duped into electing Donald Trump."
