What’s That Sample? 6 Songs That J. Cole Has Sampled

What’s That Sample? is VIBE Staff Writer Marc Griffin’s analytical segment that decodes hit songs, fan-favorite deep cuts, and the songs that sample and, in some instances, cover them. 

J. Cole stormed onto the scene in 2007 with his first mixtape, The Come Up. Since then, the rapper né Jermaine Cole, has lived up to his belief of being “the chosen one.” Cole inked a deal with Jay-Z’s Roc Nation in 2009, followed by two critically acclaimed mixtapes in The Warm Up and Friday Night Lights. Fayetteville, North Carolina’s finest delivered his debut album, Cole World: The Sideline Story, in 2011. 

Cole would go on to cement himself as one of the leaders of the new generation of emcees in “The Blog Era,” dropping consecutive acclaimed bodies of work. These albums included Born Sinner, 2014 Forest Hills Drive, 4 Your Eyez Only, KOD, The Off-Season, and a slew of other collaborative Dreamville projects. 

The GRAMMY Award-winning artist has since welcomed his role as one of Rap’s GOATs in the making. His skill on the mic and behind the boards as a producer has inspired many new emcees to chase their dreams. Artists such as Saba, Mick Jenkins, Chris Patrick, Reuben Vincent, Cordae, and more have cited Cole as a major influence. 

To help honor Cole’s January 28th birthday and his influential career, VIBE lists some notable songs that Cole has sampled. 

East Of Underground — “I Love You”

Image Credit: YouTube Screenshot.

East of Underground is an obscure band to some, but are still beloved by many. Their track, “I Love You,” is a classic soul song in the truest sense of the word. The seven-piece band, formed by American soldiers in Germany in the early 70s, combines elements of R&B and funk for the number. DJ Dahi chopped up the first couple of seconds of the song to create one of 21 Savage and J. Cole‘s most successful singles of their careers, “A Lot.” 

“A Lot” samples the original soul track and reimagines it into a hard-hitting ode to life. Cole and Savage both reminisce on their blessings and successes throughout their careers. The soulful cut is the intro for Savage’s 2018 LP, i am > i was. Aside from the song being a calm banger, the track is notable for being the start of Cole’s monstrous feature run.

Yes. We know. “A Lot” ain’t even Cole’s song. But this is a historic moment in Jermaine’s career. The song debuted at No. 37 on the Billboard Hot 100 and later peaked at No. 12 in 2019. 2020 saw the LP becoming certified triple-platinum by the RIAA in 2020. The song is also important for giving Cole his first-ever GRAMMY award at the 62nd Annual show. 

Ronnie Foster — “Mystic Brew”

Image Credit: Courtesy of Jen Rosenstein

Ronnie Foster is one of jazz’s true heroes and pioneers. And this Buffalo, NY native impacted Hip-Hop forever when he created “Mystic Brew.”

“Mystic Brew” was a part of his critically acclaimed 1972 debut LP, Two Headed Freap, and is historically associated with A Tribe Called Quest’s “Electric Relaxation.” Cole would follow suit and sample Foster’s iconic single for his Born Sinner cut, “Forbidden Fruit,” featuring Kendrick Lamar.

Cole sampled the track’s main bassline, which is infectious and immediately recognizable across generations at this point. While Q-Tip’s reimagining was smooth, Jermaine’s was brash, implementing a Timbaland-like bounce over Ronnie’s groove. Cole and Lamar draw inspiration from the Bible’s Book of Genesis. They use the story of Adam and Eve’s foray into temptation as a direct analogy to modern-day temptations. 

Cole talked about finding the courage to put his own spin on a classic with NPR. The North Carolina emcee revealed this track came about after a song he created was denied sample clearance from the Jimi Hendrix estate. “That was the last song I did right before I turned in the album. I literally had two days to turn in the album, and there’s one song that I did and it didn’t get cleared,” he said. “They would not clear the sample because Jimi Hendrix owned like a piece of the song. It wasn’t even his song, but he owned a piece of the publishing from the group or something like a tiny percent, and they would not clear it. So I needed something to go in that spot, to fill that void.”

“Forbidden Fruit” was the third official single for Born Sinner. It was released in August 2013 and peaked at No.40 on Billboard’s Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs.

Esther Phillips — “That’s All Right With Me”

Image Credit: YouTube Screenshot.

Esther Philliup’s “That’s All Right With Me” was released in 1971 on her album, From A Whisper To A Scream. An alluring guitar composition can be heard during the song’s intro, followed by raindrop-like keys.

J. Cole looped the first ten seconds of the cut for the foundation of 2014’s “St. Tropez.” Jermaine flipped the sample similar to how Q-Tip did originally for Mobb Deep’s “Give Up The Goods.” However, Cole crafted his song at 84 beats per minute as opposed to Tip’s 94 for a modern take on Phillips’ soulful song. Thumping drums and a gooey bassline are also present on “St. Tropez,” with a slight jazz influence to take the song home. “St. Tropez” was released on Cole’s critically acclaimed album, 2014 Forest Hills Drive. 

2014 Forest Hills Drive was met with praise upon release in December 2014. The LP sold 353, 000 copies during its first week and debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard 200. As of 2019, Cole’s LP has become certified triple platinum by the RIAA. It also won Album of the Year at the BET Hip-Hop Awards the following year and Top Rap Album at the Billboard Music Awards. 

Tha Manhattans — “Hurt”

Image Credit: YouTube Screenshot.

The Manhattan’s “Hurt” from their 1976 self-titled album is a track that penetrates the soul. The soulful R&B number finds the guys promising to never hurt the love of their lives. Cole, back in his producer bag, samples the song, and repurposes a couple of the group’s lyrics. “You said your love was true and we’d never part/Now you’ve found someone new/And it breaks my heart” is chopped up and pitched, repeating on the one beat. 

Jermaine’s “Kenny Lofton” was born of the sampled bits— a track playing off of the career of former Major League Baseball star, Kenny Lofton. The rhymer enlisted Jeezy for the song, which found both men rapping about the side effects of being Black and success in America.

If you aren’t an OG Cole fan, then this song may be new to you. The track isn’t on streaming platforms at the moment. It was featured on J. Cole‘s Truly Yours 2, a project used to satisfy fans before he dropped his highly anticipated sophomore LP, Born Sinner. 

Yōko Shimomura — “Darkness of the Unknown”

Image Credit: YouTube Screenshot.

Yōko Shimomura is one of the most profound video game composers ever. The Japanese musician is a world-renowned pianist who graduated from Osaka College of Music in 1988 to perfect her craft. She got her start in the video game industry working for Capcom that same year. The musician crafted compositions for Street Fighter II, Final Fight, and the lesser-known King of Dragons. However, she has become almost synonymous with the Kingdom Hearts video game franchise and its soundtrack. One track in particular, “Darkness of the Unknown,” appearing on 2006’s Kingdom Hearts II, became one of her most beloved songs. 

J. Cole repurposed the orchestral number for “Dollar and a Dream III”—the intro to his 2012 debut album, Cole World: The Sideline Story. Cole produced the track himself, lifting the cinematic choir for his beat’s foundation. Cole repurposed the crying violins and crashing cymbals for his Roc Nation debut, giving his first LP a classic “hero’s journey” vibe. Along with Yōko’s compositions, “Dollar and a Dream III” also lifted the drums from Led Zeppelin’s “When The Levee Breaks” and even interpolated lyrics from his own song in “Dollar and a Dream I.”

OutKast — “Da Art of Storytellin’ (Pt. 1)”

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OutKast‘s Aquemini is thought of by many as one of the greatest Hip-Hop albums of all time. And for good reason. The production, themes, verses, lyricism, and vibe are undeniable. These attributes can be felt on “Da Art of Storytellin’ (Pt. 1).” The song served as the final single from the LP, released in 1999. Mr. DJ produced the single and found Big Boi and Andre 3000 sliding over thumping 808s and razor-sharp snares. Big Boi raps about a woman he had a previous relationship with, while 3K documents a woman who died tragically.

J. Cole repurposed the legendary single for a hypnotic cut of his own. “LAnd of the Snakes” is almost a remake of the song, production-wise. Cole’s rendition follows the original song’s BPMs and Key (D Major), creating a similar musical atmosphere. He even pays homage to Big Boi and André’s verses by thematically rapping about a woman. However, unlike Big Boi, Cole’s third verse reveals he was the promiscuous one in the relationship and acted like a snake for “hitting and quitting” her. J. Cole spoke to HardKnockTV about the song’s concept back in 2014. He elaborated on his decision to make himself the villain in the story and how being in Hollywood made him evaluate his relationship with women.

“I’m the snake that I was supposed to be watching out for, and ironically I’m meeting that girl in LA,” he said. “The whole song is just about being in LA, the place where people can lose themselves…But on the third verse, I meet this girl in LA who reminds me that ‘Yo, I’m no better. I’m the snake to her. I did her dirty. To some people that might seem like a trivial thing, but to her that’s real like ‘Yo, I f**ked, you never called me, and I never forgot that. That was ten years ago and I still didn’t forget.’ But never saying that, but I know you’re thinking that, so I’m the snake to her, I’m the sh*tty dude. Meanwhile, I’m walking around nervous about everybody else being sh*tty, or being fake.”