J. Cole Takes Aim At Future On Surprise EP ‘Might Delete Later’

J. Cole takes aim at Future on a new song off of his surprise EP Might Delete Later. 

"Yes, sir, it’s me, not two, not three/ The uno, G-O-A-T, I need my fee, f--- kudos/ G4 at least, these flights ain’t cheap as you know/ They sound faded, they downgraded, they Pluto/ I’m bigger than Mars, this n---- a star, I’m Bruno," he raps on "Crocodile Tearz."

"Pluto" plays two roles in the line. It is part of Cole's rapping about the solar system, but Pluto is also a nickname for Future. It derives from his debut studio album. It wouldn't be far-fetched for Cole to come for Future, as he seemingly came for Drake on his latest album, We Don't Trust You. 

"Fake written all over you/Hate written all over you," Future raps in the intro to the title track.

"You a n---- number one fan, dog/Sneak dissin', I don't understand, dog/Pillow talkin', actin' like a fed, dog/I don't need another fake friend, dog/Can't be 'bout a h-, 'cause we sharin', dog/In you feelings, n----, why you playin', dog?" Future raps in the second verse.

Fans believe Future's bar was a response to Drake's "What Would Pluto Do" from For All The Dogs. 

"What would Pluto do?/He'd f--- a h-/So did it (Yeah, yeah)," Drake rapped on "What Would Pluto Do."

Future wasn't the only one that was targeted on Might Delete Later. He also responded to Kendrick's diss on "Like That."

"Yeah, get up with me, f--- sneak dissing/'First Person Shooter,' I hope they came with three switches," Kendrick raps.

He adds, leaving no room for confusion: "Think I won't drop the location? I still got PTSD/Motherf--- the Big 3, n----, it's just big me."

"N----a, bum, what? I'm really like that/And your best work is a light pack/N----, Prince outlived Mike Jack'/N----, bum, 'fore all your dogs gettin' buried/That's a K with all these nines, he gon' see Pet Sematary n----, bum," he raps.

Cole responded to Kendrick on "7 Minute Drill."

"Your first s--- was classic, your last s--- was tragic/ Your second s--- put n----- to sleep, but they gassed it/ Your third s--- was massive and that was your prime/ I was trailin’ right behind and I just now hit mine."

"One was nah, the other was Illmatic/That's a one hot album every ten year average," Jay rapped on "Takeover" which he used to diss Nas.

Cole continues: "Now I’m front of the line with a comfortable lead/ How ironic, soon as I got it, now he want somethin’ with me/ Well, he caught me at the perfect time, jump up and see."

"He averagin’ one hard verse like every 30 months or somethin’/ If he wasn’t dissin’, then we wouldn’t be discussin’ him," he raps.

He adds inspiration from another line of "Takeover" with: "Four albums in 12 years, n----, I can divide/ S---, if this is what you want, I’m indulgin’ in violence."

Jay rapped: "Four albums in ten years, n----? I could divide/That's one every, let's say two, two of them s---- was doo."

"Lord, don’t make me have to smoke this n---- ’cause I f--- with him/ But push come to shove, on this mic, I will humble him/ I’m Nino with this thing, this that ‘New Jack City’ meme/ Yeah, I’m aimin’ at Gee Money, cryin’ tears before I bust at him," Cole raps referencing the film New Jack City.

"My text flooded with the hunger for a toxic reply/ I’m hesitant, I love my brother, but I’m not gonna lie/ I’m powered up for real, that s--- would feel like swattin’ a fly.”

Listen to "Crocodile Tearz" below:

J. Cole has mentioned The Fall Off, which is supposed to be his "last album," several times in his lyrics. Last year, Cole's manager Ibrahim Hamad hinted about The Fall Off. When Dreamville's official account asked what album would fans like to see the North Carolina rapper perform in its entirety, Hamad answered The Fall Off.

His reply garnered almost 10,000 likes and several hundred retweets.

The Fall Off was originally announced in 2018 on social media. Before The Fall Off is to be released, Cole has a number of projects that will eventually lead to it. He's dubbed these projects "The Fall Off Era." In that list of projects, he has already completed and released The Off-Season, which dropped in 2021.

Last year, Cole cleared his Instagram account, and fans believed that he would be dropping It's A Boy, the next album on his list from 2018. However, there have not been any updates on that album either.

In 2020, the North Carolina native spoke to SLAM Magazine and wrestled with the idea of retirement but says he'll never actually reveal when he will stop creating music.

"Oh, bro, I’m super comfortable with the potential of being done with this s---. But I’m never going to say, Oh, this is my last album," he told the publication. He added the reason behind that is because he doesn't know how he'd feel in years to come. But says he's "doing all this work for a reason."

In 2023, he had a phenomenal feature run and one included his guest verse on J-Hope's "On the Street," where he rapped about continuing to create music.

"I contemplate if I should wait to hand over the crown/And stick around for a bit longer, I got a strange type of hunger/The more I eat, the more it gets stronger."

Take a look at five times J. Cole has mentioned The Fall Off below:

One of J. Cole's first mentions of The Fall Off is from 2018 on "1985." While he doesn't mention the forthcoming album in the lyrics, he mentions it in the subtitle of the song. The full name of the song is "1985 (Intro To The Fall Off)" seemingly marking the beginning to the end. The song closes out Cole's 2018 album KOD.

While it was three years since Cole mentioned The Fall Off, there was no subtitling like he did in 2018. In the song, "my.life" Cole gives fans a direct response to the album. "After The Fall Off, I promise I'm comin' and sellin' out Wrigley's," Cole raps referring to his album and the Chicago Major League Baseball field. Although Cole mentions the album he doesn't give any clarity to fans on what or when to expect the project. "my.life" was nominated for Best Rap Song and Best Rap Performance in 2022.

In one of the first songs from Drake and J. Cole together in years, the North Carolina native takes the grand opportunity to mention his album. "I'm namin' the album The Fall Off, it's pretty ironic 'cause it ain't no fall off for me," Cole raps. While, he mentions the album as he flexes about his rap skills, fans are still without answers.

The KOD rapper earned his first No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 with the track. He later commented on the song during his interview on Lil Yachty's A Safe Place Podcast. "I love Drake and I love that I’m a part of that moment with him with Michael Jackson. But it’s like, bruh, I’m grateful I’m a part of it, but if that other song ["IDGAF"] would’ve went number one, n----, I’m still grateful I’m a part of it." "IDGAF" featuring Yeat took the No. 2 spot on chart. Drake is tied with Michael Jackson for the most number of singles by a male solo artist on the Billboard Hot 100 with 13.

In "To Summer From Cole (audio hug)," Cole praises Summer Walker for her artistry, being a good mother, and holding R&B down. He also uses his verse to speak on The Fall Off. "They sit around waitin' for you to fall off/Like the album I'm makin,'" he raps comparing his album title to how fans hate on the R&B singer. "To Summer From Cole (audio hug)" is the first track on Clear 2: Soft Life. Walker earned her first solo Grammy nomination for Clear 2: Soft Life for Best R&B Album at the 2024 GRAMMYS.

Cole and his Dreamville signees soundtracked Creed III starring Michael B. Jordan and Johnathan Majors. On "Adonis Interlude (The Montage)" Cole raps, "Just cop The Fall Off and he'll explain." Unlike the other mentions of the album it seems that Cole gives a little more insight for the project with the following lines, "Is it the end of the chapter, happily ever after?/Bet this gon' be the year that fulfill his reign, mane." The last line ends the song and any other information lyrically about the project at this time.