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J. Cole is entering the podcast game with a new “limited audio series” which will see him recap his journey to Hip Hop stardom and share unreleased music.
Announced on Sunday (November 17), Inevitable is hosted by Cole alongside his longtime manager Ibrahim “Ib” Hamad and frequent collaborator Scott Lazer, who has directed the rapper’s past documentaries and concert films as well as videos such as “Kevin’s Heart” and “ATM.”
“In this raw and reflective limited audio series, Jermaine Cole takes listeners on an unfiltered voyage through his life, career, and personal evolution, using both released and unreleased music to guide the story,” a synopsis reads.
“Through conversation with Ibrahim Hamad and Scott Lazer, Season 1 finds Cole recounting his journey from his early days as a young, aspiring rapper to finally seeing his dreams become a reality, despite the many hurdles and pitfalls he faces along the way.”
A trailer for the series, posted on social media by J. Cole, explains that the idea began in 2022 when the trio “sat down to record a little conversation” after Ib had found an old laptop containing old demos and unreleased songs from the Dreamville leader, which “conjured up all these amazing memories that they’ve shared over the years.”
“One day turned into two, two days turned into three,” Lazer says in the clip. “We kept going for eight days, tracking the entire arch of Cole’s career from the very early days when he started writing his first songs, all the way up until now. We covered everything from, of course, the music to relationships.”
In his social media caption, Cole described the series as “a movie in the form of a conversation” and said it had an “emotional” and “therapeutic” impact on him.
“When I heard it with fresh ears, I was glued to the story as if it was somebody else’s,” he wrote. “At times I could feel my adrenaline rush when hearing about the ups and the many downs and how it all played out in the end.
“I got so much clarity from it, and I understood more than ever the power of having a dream, the power of fueling that dream with strong vision, the magic that happens when we stay in alignment with God, and the darkness that can come in the times that we don’t.”
The usually guarded Cole admitted that he was initially hesistant to share so much of his life story, but ultimately decided that it was worth releasing in hopes of inspiring listeners to chase their own dreams.
“If I was a younger version of myself, I know that I would get so much fuel from hearing this from somebody that went for theirs and ‘made it.’ For that reason, I think it’s worth sharing,” he added.
“So, if you rocked with me at any point so far on my journey, I hope this will give you even more perspective and fill in a lot of blanks. If you have your own dream in life that you hope to achieve, in any field, I hope that this will feed your spirit, giving you confidence to believe in that dream and the encouragement to push through the tough times. To go for it even when you may be afraid to.”
Season one is comprised of 10 episodes, with the first premiering on Monday (November 18) at 6pm ET/3pm PT via Inevitable’s official website. Access to all episodes costs a minumum of $10 (but fans have the option to pay more if they wish).
The series arrives ahead of J. Cole’s eagerly anticipated seventh album The Fall-Off, which he revealed earlier this year he was “at the tail-end” of finishing. A release date has yet to be announced.