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J Cole Be Free Analysis

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In more recent news On August 14, 2014, J. Cole released the passionate song “Be Free” as a response to the horrific murder of 18-year-old Michael Brown in Ferguson, Missouri. The tragic death of the unarmed young black kid raised more awareness on police brutality and created more tension in that city. Due to this tragic event, riots and protests emerged in Ferguson and the tension between the African Americans and the police grew. The song focuses on racism, police brutality and discrimination in America. J. Cole used his fame and musical lyrics to bring more awareness on the social inequality that is still occurring in today's society. J Cole writes in his lyrics Are we all “alone fighting on our own. Please give me a chance, I don't wanna dance, something’s got me down, I will stand my ground, Don’t just stand around, Don’t just stand around” (Cole)in these set of lyrics J Cole sounds desperate as he asks for a second chance to be seen as an equal. He is upset at the fact that everyday is a survival for African American, they are fighting for another day to live. Their dream wasn’t to just make it alive the next day, but to …show more content…

It has been shown that 98% of the time when singer/ rappers sings about women in their songs its usually degrading. Society puts pressure on women using music, videos, and lyrics to body shame women. “Those who continue to consume media are strongly influenced by stereotypical images of uniformly beautiful, obsessively thin and scantily dressed objects of male desire. And studies show that girls who are frequent viewers have the most negative opinion of their gender" (Media and Girls). The media can cause insecurities in teens. Lyrics like, “I’m looking for a dime that’s top of the line, cute face, small waist with a big behind”. (Ying Yang Twins) Lyrics like these objectify women and demean them. It holds them to unnatural and incapable beauty

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1523 Words | 7 Pages

This quote does an effective job at sharing with the audience the constant state of fear and shame black people had to live with in society. This quote resonated with African Americans reading this, in addition this quote was written to help white people understand what it felt like to be

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516 Words | 3 Pages

One of the hallmarks of J. Cole's music is his skillful storytelling. He uses his songs as a platform to narrate tales of struggle, resilience, and personal growth. From addressing the systemic injustices faced by Black Americans in tracks like "Be Free" to exploring his own vulnerabilities and insecurities in songs like "Love Yourz," Cole's storytelling resonates deeply with listeners. He not only sheds light on the harsh realities of life but also offers messages of hope and empowerment. J. Cole's impact extends beyond the music itself.

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1160 Words | 5 Pages

FreeQuency relates directly to prominent current events surrounding police brutality. Oscar Grant was an unarmed man that was shot in the back by a police officer. The events that transpired that day were recorded on the phone and caused protests to erupt. I related the lines “criminal before child,” to the shooting of Tamir Rice. Tamir was a twelve-year-old boy that was playing with a toy gun and was shot twice and died later on that day.

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491 Words | 2 Pages

Literary Analysis of J Cole: How The World Influenced His Music J Cole is an artist that cares deeply about the black community. He cares so much that he dedicated an entire album to the black community. JCole also stands up to the political ideas in his music as well. The world often is what influences JCole to make music.

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745 Words | 3 Pages

Cole world: The Sideline Story, Created by Jermaine Cole also known as J Cole. The album cover of The Sideline Story has J Cole sitting in a locker on a locker room bench. The locker room looks like a high school locker room. Its dark but it has some lighting coming from the back of J Cole as it would be a door that can be open that leads to the basketball court/gym.

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515 Words | 3 Pages

At that moment, J Cole realizes the evil in the world. No matter how much he tries to deny it, he will always be judged by the color of his skin and that it is impossible for African-Americans and Caucasians to live together in peace. “So much for integration. Don’t know what I was thinkin’. I’m moving back to Southside” (Cole

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523 Words | 3 Pages

The song sends a message that people can treat each other however they like. The lyrics paint a picture of a girl who has gone down the wrong track, and the writer of the song is jealous and possessive of her. The message that is coming across in this song is that men own women, and women are worthless. This not only impacts women but also men, one man who is quite well known has written these words, creating a view that all men act this way, this could be disheartening for some men. The message that’s being heard by many young people and the example that is set for them is not good and is raising a generation of people who lack

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303 Words | 2 Pages

Langston Hughes uses symbolism in “Let America Be America Again” to impart the lack of freedom and inequality that restricts all people who are socially and economically disadvantaged of their unalienable rights. Hughes’ poem, “Let America be America Again” utilizes symbolism to illustrate the lack of freedom amidst people, regardless of the color of their skin or the amount of wealth they possess. The lines, “ I am the Negro bearing slavery’s scars/ I am the red man driven from the land,” references how African Americans had gone through segregation and they were mercilessly beaten when they were considered African slaves, though there were in the land of the free, scars that would never vanish throughout the history of the U.S. In the same

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59 Words | 1 Pages

The second line expresses a sense of self satisfaction among African Americans, by the action of taking justice with their own hands because they may feel as if there is no other choice. He also expresses how even though the emancipation act in 1863 aimed to set free all slaves, Africans have never truly been felt free of society.

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957 Words | 4 Pages

cole as a house slave who has to prove himself or in other words his blackness to the other slaves. As a house slave you didn 't have to be in the field all day in scorching temperatures and wore better attire since you were closer to masters family in which left plenty of room for jealousy to develop among the slaves. The lyrics alone are about hatred and love in terms of people who succeed in the black community but after viewing the video the audience makes a connection to hatred towards successful people to the 1800s when all this community shattered started. It 's a scene toward the beginning of the video in which Cole is doing the black power hand gesture to the field slaves as they walk past the house, they retaliated on him since they don 't believe he has the privilege to do such a gesture since he 's a house slave. Prior to slavery black communities where strong and were not filled completely with invy which is seen thoroughly throughout this music

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585 Words | 3 Pages

J Cole’s music appeals to the mind of the listener, he raps about real life issues: more than heartbreak and love. He raps about real life experiences. He often raps about his experiences of being black and the discrimination that he has lived through. In his song, “No Role Modelz”, he says “I came fast like 911 in white neighborhoods, ain’t got no shame bout it”. He expresses that there’s a clear difference between how the justice department treats white people versus black people.

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1047 Words | 5 Pages

Amazed by what I listened to, I proceeded to listen to his older music and ever since then J. Cole has been my favorite rapper and taught me to love rap/hip hop. He always wants to inspire and spread messages through his music. He does not like it when rappers just talk about random things in their music, he speaks and looks for substance. Recently over the past couple of years, he has been expressive on his view of “Black Lives Matter,” talking about the sensitive subject in songs such as “Be Free” and “High for Hours” and his latest album “4 Your Eyes Only.” He can easily rap or talk about sex, drugs and money like most rappers but he chooses to use his music to spread messages and awareness and this is what changed my perspective on rap/hip hop music.

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653 Words | 3 Pages

Hip-hop is an influential form of music that displays an artist’s honest and revealing story that many of the general public can relate to. One of the many songs that I can relate to is “Love Yourz” written by J Cole. The song talks about how Cole reflects on the most important things in life such as love and happiness. He realizes that the money and fame didn’t bring him the happiness he desired. To gain true happiness, he needed to appreciate himself and those that love him.

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1384 Words | 6 Pages

The song Be Free, J. Cole, opens with a low pitched piano composition. The tune is played relatively the same, throughout the entirety of the song, with the exception of a few high keys sprinkled in throughout its course. There is a an electronic beat layered over this simple tune that is deeply pitched as well, but played at a slightly faster pace. While there are hints of somber humming featured in spots of the song, it’s music track is fairly simple in style. Overall, the instrumentals of Be Free lack development in conjunction with J. Cole’s flow, however, this isn 't a negative factor because the tracks simplicity gives a beautiful contrast to Cole’s dynamic, yet raspy and unrefined voice.

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1219 Words | 5 Pages

Another major theme on the album is violence. The unfortunate fact is that when people hear violent lyrics in rap music, they automatically think that the rapper is a violent person. . Contrary to popular belief, there have been songs dedicated to the empowerment of women in a male-dominant society. For example, in J. Cole’s song “Crooked Smile”, he is speaking to women who think that they have to meet certain expectations for men to accept them. More specifically, he explains that women shouldn’t have to make themselves perfect for anyone because nobody’s perfect.

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