It’s inaccurate to say that J. Cole spent his Saturday night set in Austin standing on a soapbox. No, his center-stage setup at the Frank Erwin Center was more like an elevated boxing ring outfitted to resemble a small-scale prison yard, replete with spotlights and surveillance cameras and surrounded by coiled barbed wire. For added effect, the 32-year-old rapper/singer was escorted by a squad of mock-guards through the audience to the raised b-stage, where he performed the first few tracks of 2016 No. 1 album, 4 Your Eyez Only—including a massive, all-in audience shout-along during the defiant chorus of “Neighbors”—before addressing the crowd with an extended speech.
Referring to the origins of that hit song, Cole spent almost 15 minutes telling the tale of how, upon moving home to buy a house-studio in Raleigh, North Carolina, his older, white neighbor called the police on him for suspicious, possibly drug-related activity, which was enough to convince the local SWAT team to break down his front door—a scandalous scene he captured on his own home security system. There were no drugs in the house; just the prominent stench of racism still thriving in Southern suburban North America. It felt like almost too much talking for an arena show—a nearly Kanye-length interlude—but it was necessary to hammer home the message of his production: Cole played the archetype of many of this country’s black citizens, largely still treated unfairly and effectively under 24-hour surveillance by those still supporting elitist and racist socio-political agendas.
Kudos to Cole for addressing deeper, timely issues while simultaneously showing mastery over the varied essential strokes of a top-notch entertainer. He made the room feel far more intimate than it’s 12,000-person capacity by spotlighting one fan up in the nosebleeds for a head-to-head rap-along challenge during “Lights Please,” stirred in some sweetness with songs about true love (“Foldin Clothes”) and the incomparable joy of raising a child (“She’s Mine, Pt. 1”) and sent the crowd into a form of frenzied karaoke for bangers “Wet Dreamz,” “A Tale of 2 Citiez” and the finale of “4 Your Eyez Only.”
All photos by David Brendan Hall
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