Born Sinner

Untitled

Born Sinner is the second studio album by American hip hop recording artist J. Cole. The album was released on June 18, 2013 in the United States under Roc Nation and Columbia Records. It is the follow-up to his debut album, Cole World: The Sideline Story, which was released in 2011. The album features guest appearances from Miguel, Amber Coffman, Kendrick Lamar, TLC, James Fauntleroy, 50 Cent, Bas and Jhené Aiko. The album was also primarily produced by Cole himself, along with others such as Jake One, Syience, Christian Rich and Elite.

The album was supported by three official singles—"Power Trip", "Crooked Smile" and "Forbidden Fruit", the former which peaked at number 19 and number 36 on the US Billboard Hot 100 along with the promotional single "Miss America". Upon its release Born Sinner received generally positive reviews from music critics and sold 297,000 copies in the United States in its first week of release. As of September 19, 2013, the album has sold 599,000 copies in the United States.

Background

A week after releasing his Gold certified debut album Cole World: The Sideline Story, Cole begun work on the album that would become Born Sinner. He said it allowed him to, "reinvigorate himself both mentally and creatively." October 24, 2011 during an interview with Hot 106’s Rise & Grind morning show, Cole revealed he had begun working on his second studio album, with hopes of releasing it in June 2012. He had also stated that the album would consist of songs that failed to make his debut: "I don’t know how many, but I got songs that didn’t make the last album that are automatically going to make this one." On February 24, 2012 J. Cole reached two million followers on Twitter, he celebrated by releasing the song "Grew up Fast." On March 1, 2012, J. Cole returned to his home town, Fayetteville North Carolina. To celebrate his return he released the song "Visionz of Home" and launched an event titled "Dreamville weekend" to inspire the youth of his hometown to achieve great things. On July 26, he returned to Twitter after a 100-day absence and went on to reveal and release his new song "The Cure" in where he hints at a new album. On October 20, he announced at a live show that his second album is complete and he's waiting until after Lamar releases good kid, m.A.A.d city to reveal it and previewed two new songs; "Maine On Fire" and "Crooked Smile." However they were not tied to any project. "Maine on Fire" would end up appearing on a Funkmaster Flex mixtape.

On November 5, Cole revealed the title of his sophomore album, and an album teaser for it, Born Sinner and the release date of January 28, 2013, via ustream. With the title he ended his basketball-themed series of projects. He would say,

"It was just time for something new. I wouldn't have minded doing it again but I felt that I closed that story. "That metaphor and that storyline had really ended. Metaphorically I was just a kid working to get on this basketball team, got cut — that was The Come Up, then The Warm Up was like, alright I made the team, I'm on the team, now what? I'm not in the game, I'll just ride the end of the bench. Then Friday Night Lights was like 'come on man, you're still not gonna put me in the game? What I gotta do? Here, I'm gonna kill it in practice.Sideline Story was like, Wow, I really am starting now, and I feel like I ended that chapter when it's all said and done. Plus, this new theme is really more reflective of where I'm at and where I've been at for the past two years, so it was just perfect to move on."

Recording and production

Shortly after then Cole stated that the album is 90% completed including the writing and recording. Cole has said he has recorded four albums worth of material for the album.

On November 30, 2012 Cole said he feels the album will be better than his debut due to him being more free in creating this one. Most of the production will come from himself and most guest producers and features will be kept under wraps until the album release comes closer. He went onto say the features will be minor and key to the album. The albums production was primarily handled by J. Cole himself.

Release and promotion

J. Cole announced a release date of January 28, 2013 (his birthday) along with the album name on November 9, 2012. In early January the album was included on multiple "Most Anticipated Albums of 2013" such as MTV and XXL Magazine ranked Born Sinner the sixth most anticipated album of 2013. After describing the January release date as ambitious, he would announce on New Years Day 2013 that the album would be coming out at a later date. On February 22, 2013 J. Cole said that the album should arrive around June 2013. He later would confirm a release month for June, and then on April 8, 2013 J. Cole announced via Twitter that the album would be released on June 25, 2013. However, he announced on May 20, 2013 via his Twitter account that he would move the release up one week to June 18, 2013. He later revealed that he moved up the release date to coincide with the release of Kanye West's album Yeezus, saying "Instantly the lightbulb [turned on]… it got real. I was like, ‘Yo…’ The idea hit me instantly: ‘You got to go to that date. I’m not going to sit [here]… I worked too hard to come a week later after Kanye West drops an amazing album. It’d be like, ‘Oh and J.Cole dropped too, a week later.’ Nah. I’m going to go see him on that date. He’s the greatest. So it’s like, I’m a competitor by nature so it was instant, it wasn’t even a thought.”

On February 12, 2013 Cole released a free EP titled Truly Yours in promotion of the album. The EP consists of five songs in their "raw form" that he knew would not make the cutlist for Born Sinner. Later on April 29, he announced that he would be releasing Truly Yours 2 the following day. The EP featured guest appearances by 2 Chainz, Young Jeezy and Bas, with production from Canei Finch, Jake One and J. Cole himself. Cole announced the deluxe version of the album will include an extra CD which will double as Truly Yours 3 and featuring 5 new songs. The track "New York Times" is the only song that features a rapper besides Cole, rapping on the entire album. The track features 50 Cent and Bas, which Cole originally wanted to have 50 and Nas on the song.

J. Cole said there is a lot he wants to do that he didn't get to do on his last album because the label didn't know that he was gonna come out and have the number-one album in the country so this time he hopes the promotion effort is way bigger. He plans to shoot a short film to accompany the album as well as multiple music videos. In promotion of the album Cole released several Born Sinner vlogs, the first video spotlighted Cole's mother and her former job of working at the post office, and her retirement. The second video spotlighted friend and frequent collaborator Kendrick Lamar. In the video he discusses his earliest musical influences and his work ethic. On June 6, 2013 J. Cole held one time listen sessions for the album in various places throughout North America. The following day the album leaked in full online via various peer-to-peer file sharing websites. Rather than go into crisis mode and attempt to remove it from online, Cole put the album up for a limited time free stream.

Singles

The first promotional single from Born Sinner was "Miss America" and which released on November 13, 2012. Cole said he pushed away pop-accessibility in order to put out a single that provides social commentary. The song has been described by multiple outlets and Cole himself as not an ordinary first single and in no way directed towards radio. The song has peaked at number 34 on the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs.

On February 12, 2013, J. Cole announced that the first official single from the album would be released in the next week. Two days later on February 14, he released the lead single, "Power Trip", a collaboration with Miguel. The song was sent to Urban contemporary radio on February 19, 2013. The song has since peaked at number 19 on the US Billboard Hot 100. On April 9, 2013, the music video was released for "Power Trip" featuring Miguel.

The second official single, "Crooked Smile" featuring R&B group TLC premiered on June 3, 2013. The song was made available on iTunes the following day. The song was sent to Rhythmic contemporary radio on June 18. It has since peaked at number 37 on the Billboard Hot 100. On September 18, 2013, the music video was released for "Crooked Smile" featuring TLC.

Upon release of the album the song "Forbidden Fruit" featuring rapper Kendrick Lamar debuted at number 46 on the Billboard Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart. The song was the last song recorded for the album, as it contained a reference to him dropping his album the same day as Kanye West, who also released Yeezus on June 18, 2013. It was reported by MTV in June 2013 that it would be the album's third single. Then on August 1, 2013 it was sent to urban contemporary radio as Born Sinner's third single. The song has peaked at number 46 on the Billboard Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs.

Commercial performance

Born Sinner sold 297,000 copies in the United States in its first week of release, debuting at number two on the Billboard 200 chart, finishing approximately 30,000 copies short of Kanye West's Yeezus. In its second week the album sold 84,000 more copies. After 2 weeks of being at number two, Born Sinner climbed to number one in its third week with 58,000 more copies sold. In its fourth week the album sold 39,000 more copies. On August 14, 2013, two months shortly after its release, Born Sinner was certified gold by the RIAA (Recording Industry Association of America), for shipments and sales of 500,000 copies. As of September 19, 2013, the album has been certified platinum in the United States.

Critical response

Professional ratings

Review scores
Source	Rating
Allmusic
The Boston Globe	7/10
Entertainment Weekly	(B–)
Exclaim!	(9/10)
Los Angeles Times
Now
Pitchfork Media	6/10
Rolling Stone
Spin	(6/10)
XXL	(L)

Upon its release Born Sinner received generally positive reviews from music critics. At Metacritic, which assigns a normalized rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream critics, the album received an average score of 71, which indicates "generally favorable reviews", based on 21 reviews. Kyle Anderson of Entertainment Weekly gave the album a B–, saying "He's a talented, nimble rapper, but diatribes like "Trouble" and "Land of the Snakes" are more exhausting than impressive... The jazz-kissed "Let Nas Down," a deeply personal tale about hearing that one of his rap idols hated his early single "Work Out", delivers far greater impact without all the high-minded posturing about love and death." Erin Lowers of Exclaim! gave the album a nine out of ten, saying "With the exception of two numbers, the self-produced 16-track project revels in Timbaland drumlines ("Born Sinner") and soulful Kanye symphonies ("Chaining Day"). However, the standout cut samples A Tribe Called Quest's "Electric Relaxation," featuring the only other rapper on the album: Kendrick Lamar. "Forbidden Fruit" embodies a silent confidence, paying homage to a legendary group while speaking on releasing an album the same day as Kanye West, bringing Born Sinner full-circle." August Brown of the Los Angeles Times gave the album two and a half stars out of four, saying "If the self-mythologizing of "Yeezus" is a little much for you, how about a rap album where the MC is bummed that he disappointed his hero? J. Cole's "Born Sinner" is at the other end of the universe from Kanye West's latest — a quieter, self-examining rap record that's short on audacity but long on workman-like singles." Julia LeConte of Now gave the album four out of five stars, saying "Born Sinner's production, Cole's own, is nuanced and varied on the whole – looped harp, careful piano, electronic elements, boom bap drums, choirs everywhere – but all impeccably orchestrated."

Ben Simms of XXL gave the album an L, saying "Born Sinner's best moments are when he embraces the persona that initially garnered him praise. "Power Trip", "Crooked Smile" and "Let Nas Down" are the album’s strongest tracks, and they feel like the rapper who created The Warm Up, which only becomes problematic at times because of Cole's insistence to produce almost all of his work. But while BS may not exhibit the growth sonically or conceptually that fans may have anticipated after hearing Cole's early work, he remains too gifted lyrically, too keen of a storyteller, and too emotionally open for his sophomore LP to be anything less than impressive, but not overly so." Phillip Mlynar of Spin gave the album a six out of ten, saying "There's a more appealing, mild-mannered side to Cole that shines when he writes songs about relationships: The Miguel-abetted "Power Trip," especially, teeters on the edge of blooming into a melancholic OutKast single. There's nothing wrong with being influenced by Nas, but pandering for an idol's approval rarely results in great music. Why should he care what Nas thinks? After all, that guy hasn't had a relationship with a truly classic album since 1994. Cole should be fired up to make his own Illmatic, his own Reasonable Doubt, or his own College Dropout. But here he seems stuck somewhere between starstruck and envious, fawning over his idols instead of trying to take their crowns. A watched throne never beckons." Corban Goble of Pitchfork Media gave the album 6.0 out of ten, saying "At its best, Born Sinner, showcases J. Cole's overall musicality, pairing his ability as a lyricist with a more broadly developed production palette. In a heat, he can rattle off some fierce rejoinders (See: "Niggaz Know"). But several releases deep into Cole's growing catalogue, we haven't been delivered the savior that Jay-Z's "A Star is Born" seemed to anoint. (The latter's current indifference to Cole has become so pronounced that Cole has to keep squashing beef rumors.)"

Ted Scheinman of Slant Magazine gave the album four out of five stars, saying "Here's the only real problem with Born Sinner: Cole's production work is elegant, but he's first and foremost a words guy, and when you're competing with the lushness of Kendrick Lamar (who makes a spooky appearance on "Forbidden Fruit") or the preening, infectious weirdness of Kanye, playing it straight is probably not sexy enough. Born Sinner doesn't match the cohesive satisfactions of Good Kid, M.A.A.D City, though it boasts better writing. Dale W. Eisinger of Consequence of Sound gave the album three out of five stars, saying "Cole is conflicted. He reveres his idols but wants to be alongside them. Elsewhere, he prays to god but names the clip of televangelist Pastor Kerney Thomas a "skit." He tries to prove you're homophobic with an anal sex joke. He doesn't know whether to settle down or to keep fucking around. He feels awkward around his boss's wife talking about expensive cars. Even so, he's got wealth now but doesn't know how to handle it, and in a way, despises it. But that's all in passing, right? Is love even real? What's all this worth? Is success worth holding onto? Can you run away from everything you've built? Do you eat the apple or don't you? "Damned if I do, damned if I don't."

Jon Dolan of Rolling Stone gave the album three and half stars out of five, saying "Sometimes I brag like Hov/ Sometimes I'm real like Pac," J. Cole raps on his second LP. Sometimes he's both – a verbal powerhouse and a self-emptying truth-sayer. The flagship signee to Jay-Z's record label spins dervish rhymes over dazzling self-produced tracks (see the Outkast-sampling "Land of the Snakes"). His riffs on racism, homophobia and misogyny have more lyrical cunning than insight." Have fun at the next company picnic, homey." David Jeffries of Allmusic gave the album four out of five stars, saying "It's snide, smart-ass stuff and when it comes to sublime/ridiculous balancing act that his heroes Jay-Z and Nas have mastered, Cole is a little short on the sublime side here to be considered classic. Still, "Crooked Smile" with special guests TLC is a genuine, mature step in the right direction and will have no trouble reaching vintage age. A handful of other numbers carry that same weight, making Born Sinner a daring step forward for Cole and an exciting attempt at mastering Jay's Blueprint style."

Accolades

Born Sinner was nominated for Album of the Year at the 2013 BET Hip Hop Awards.

Track listing

No.	Title	Writer(s)	Producer(s)	Length
1.	"Villuminati"	Jermaine Cole, Christopher Wallace, Sean Combs, Jean-Claude Olivier, James Mtume, Robert Kelly, Sylvester Stewart, Todd Thomas	J. Cole	5:08
2.	"Kerney Sermon (Skit)"			0:46
3.	"LAnd of the Snakes"	Cole, André Benjamin, Antwan Patton, David Sheats	J. Cole, Ron Gilmore (add.)	4:15
4.	"Power Trip" (featuring Miguel)	Cole, Hubert Laws	J. Cole	4:01
5.	"Mo Money (Interlude)"	Cole, Jacob Dutton	Jake One	1:18
6.	"Trouble"	Cole	J. Cole, Ken Lewis (add.)	4:18
7.	"Runaway"	Cole, Anthony Parrino	J. Cole, Elite (add.), Ron Gilmore (add.)	5:15
8.	"She Knows" (featuring Amber Coffman)	Cole, Ryan Mattos, Madeline McKenna	J. Cole, DJ Dummy (add.), Ken Lewis (add.)	4:57
9.	"Rich Niggaz"	Cole, M. Giffts, Deborah Anderson, Fabrice Dumont, Stéphan Haeri, Christophe Hétier	J. Cole	4:36
10.	"Where’s Jermaine (Skit)"		J. Cole	0:37
11.	"Forbidden Fruit" (featuring Kendrick Lamar)	Cole, Ronnie Foster	J. Cole, Ron Gilmore (add.)	4:29
12.	"Chaining Day"	Cole, Terry Stubbs, John Wilson, Charles Still	J. Cole, Ron Gilmore (add.)	4:45
13.	"Ain't That Some Shit (Interlude)"	Cole, Reggie Perry	Syience	2:27
14.	"Crooked Smile" (featuring TLC)	Cole, Meleni Smith	J. Cole, Elite (co.)	4:39
15.	"Let Nas Down"	Cole, Elite, Fela Kuti	J. Cole, Nate Jones (add.)	4:37
16.	"Born Sinner" (featuring James Fauntleroy)	Cole, James Fauntleroy II	J. Cole, Elite (co.)	3:29
Total length:				59:47

Deluxe edition bonus tracks (Truly Yours 3) EP

No.	Title	Writer(s)	Producer(s)	Length
17.	"Miss America"	Cole, Brookln Dekker	J. Cole	3:46
18.	"New York Times" (featuring 50 Cent & Bas)	Cole, Curtis Jackson, Abbas Hamad	J. Cole, Ron Gilmore (add.)	4:32
19.	"Is She Gon Pop"	Cole, Wayne Bell	J. Cole, Irvin Washington (add.)	2:45
20.	"Niggaz Know"	Cole, Willie Chambers, Andre Goodwin, S. Jordan, Combs, Wallace, Steven Howse, Byron McCane, Anthony Henderson	J. Cole	3:37
21.	"Sparks Will Fly" (featuring Jhené Aiko)	Cole	Christian Rich	4:12
Total length:				78:39

Sample credits

• "Villuminati" samples "Juicy" performed by The Notorious B.I.G., and "I Wish (To The Homies We Lost)" performed by R. Kelly.
• "LAnd of the Snakes" contains a sample of "Da Art of Storytellin' (Pt. 1)" as performed by OutKast.
• "Power Trip" contains a sample of "No More" as performed by Hubert Laws.
• "Runaway" contains a sample of Mike Epps' stand-up comedy special "Under Rated & Never Faded".
• "She Knows" contains a sample of "Bad Things" as performed by Cults.
• "Rich Niggaz" contains a sample of "Into Everything" as performed by Télépopmusik.
• "Forbidden Fruit" contains a sample of "Mystic Brew" as performed by Ronnie Foster.
• "Chaining Day" contains a sample of "Sho' Nuff" as performed by Sly, Slick and Wicked.
• "Crooked Smile" contains an uncredited sample of "No One Gonna Love You" as performed by Jennifer Hudson.
• "Let Nas Down" contains samples of "Gentleman" as performed by Fela Kuti and "Nas Is Like" as performed by Nas.
• "Miss America" contains a sample of "Flightline" as performed by Rue Royale.
• "Is She Gon Pop" contains a sample of "Chocolate Girl" as performed by The Whispers.
• "Niggaz Know" contains samples "So Tired" performed by The Chambers Brothers, and "Notorious Thugs" performed by The Notorious B.I.G.

Personnel

Credits adapted from Allmusic.

• James Fauntleroy II – featured artist
• Jessica Antonetty – choir/chorus
• Kyle Armbrust – viola
• Ronnie Artis – choir/chorus
• Jamal Kris Ashby – choir/chorus
• Chris Athens – mastering
• Wayne Barrow – management
• André Benjamin – composer
• Jay Bratten – bass
• Cedric Brown – sampling
• Canei Finch – keyboards
• Al Carty – bass
• Christine Kim – cello
• Amber Coffman – featured artist, vocals (background)
• Jermaine Cole – executive producer
• Sean "Puffy" Combs – composer
• Juro "Mez" Davis – engineer, mixing
• Stephanie De Los Santos – choir/chorus
• Yolanda DeBerry – vocals (background)
• DJ Dummy – scratching
• Sean Drew – choir/chorus
• Jacob Dutton – composer
• Nabil Elderkin – photography
• Elite – composer, producer
• Desiree Elsevier – viola
• James Fauntleroy II – composer
• Chris Feldmann – art direction
• Ari Feliciano – choir/dhorus
• Alvin Fields – choir director
• Ronnie Foster – composer
• Julius Garcia – A&R, management
• Sam Giannelli – assistant engineer
• Ron Gilmore – keyboards, string arrangements
• Jerry Grossman – cello
• Ibrahim Hamad – A&R
• Michael Harris – choir/chorus
• Rose Hart – choir/chorus
• Tyler Hartman – string engineer
• Serena Hernandez – choir/chorus
• Mario Hugo – art direction, design, illustrations
• J. Cole – composer, engineer, primary artist, producer
• Erika Johnson – choir/chorus
• Nate Jones – bass
• Shmuel Katz – viola
• R. Kelly – composer
• Brent Kolatalo – engineer
• Kendrick Lamar – featured artist
• Hubert Laws – composer
• Ann Lehmann – violin
• Ken Lewis – choir arrangement, choir production, producer, string contractor, string engineer
• David Linaburg – guitar
• Alyse Maree – choir/chorus
• Roman Marshall – choir/chorus
• Ryan Mattos – composer
• Joanna Maurer – concert master, violin
• Maureen McDermott – cello
• Madeline McKenna – composer
• Miguel – featured artist
• John Morgan – choir/chorus
• James Mtume – composer
• Tanika Myers – vocals (background)
• Tavon Nelson – choir/chorus
• K Nita – choir/chorus
• J.C. Olivier – composer
• Suzanne Ornstein – violin
• Sandra Park – string contractor
• Jessenia Peña – choir/chorus
• Mark Pitts – executive producer, management
• Annaliesa Place – violin
• Isaiah Raheem – choir/chorus
• Felix Ramos – choir/chorus
• Daniel Recinos – assistant engineer
• Adam Rodney – creative director
• Tiffany Rodriguez – choir/chorus
• Carmen Roman – choir contractor
• Courtnee Rose – percussion
• Natalis Ruby Rubero – choir/chorus
• Hanan Rubinstein – engineer, vocal engineer
• Timothy Saccenti – photography
• Fred Sladkey – engineer
• Gerald Smith – choir/chorus
• Meleni Smith – composer, cocals
• David Southhorn – violin
• Milena Pajro-Van De Stadt – viola
• Brett Sturgis – choir/chorus
• TLC – featured artist
• Marcos Tovar – engineer
• Pete Whitfield – orchestration
• Mary Wooten – cello
• William World – choir/chorus
• Jung Sun Yoo – violin
• Elite – producer

Charts

Chart (2013)	Peak position
Australian Albums Chart	14
Canadian Albums Chart	2
Danish Albums Chart	24
Dutch Albums (Album Top 100)	65
New Zealand Albums Chart	11
Swiss Top Albums Chart	27
UK Albums (OCC)	7
US Billboard 200	1
US Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums (Billboard)	1

Certifications

Region	Certification	Certified units/sales
United States (RIAA)	Gold	500,000^
* Sales figures based on certification alone. ^ Shipments figures based on certification alone.

Release history

Region	Date	Format	Label	Edition
Australia	June 14, 2013	CD, digital download	Roc Nation, Sony Music	Standard
Germany	June 17, 2013
Ireland
United Kingdom			Roc Nation, RCA Records	Standard, deluxe
United States	June 18, 2013		Roc Nation, Columbia Records
New Zealand	June 23, 2013		Roc Nation, Sony Music
Japan	June 29, 2013			Standard
Canada	July 2, 2013		Roc Nation	Standard, deluxe