Cole’s new album, The Off-Season, will be released on Friday, May 14th.
On Tuesday, May 4th, the rapper revealed the new album on Twitter, posting what appears to be the album cover and a short note that reads, “Just know this was years in the making.” There was no other information, such as a track list, available right away.
The Off-Season will be J. Cole’s sixth studio album, following KOD from the year 2018 and Revenge of the Dreamers III from Dreamville Records in 2019.
Cole recorded two songs last year: “The Climb Back” and “Lion King on Ice.” He said the two tracks will feature on his next album, The Fall Off, at the time; it’s uncertain whether they’ll now appear on The Off-Season, or whether The Fall Off will be released separately.
Cole launched “Snow on the Bluff” in the midst of last summer’s protest against police violence and systemic racism, before releasing “The Climb Back” and “Lion King on Ice.” The song claimed to be a diss track directed at Noname, a Chicago rapper. Noname retaliated with “Song 33,” a track she later admitted she wasn’t proud of releasing, and Cole later apologised for his remarks about Noname.
