2014 Forest Hills Drive
by J. Cole
User Score
8.3

Universal acclaim- based on 613 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 532 out of 613
  2. Mixed: 47 out of 613
  3. Negative: 34 out of 613
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  1. philosophorse
    Jun 21, 2015
    6
    J. Cole is a very good rapper and a very real one, too. 2014 Forest Hills Drive feels a bit shallow though, and it is impossible to listen to it more than twice. The last song is very self-indulgent and overly long. The album doesn't have a real story or concept too. Wet Dreamz is heinous.
  2. AbdulIb
    Mar 21, 2015
    6
    J. Cole is Staying true to his origin and takes you through an experience of appreciating Self Love and love for family not fame but by doing this in skill level of rapping on this project lacks the means of detailing how it will connect to others.
  3. Mannhorse
    Sep 26, 2015
    5
    Has a lot of good tracks like Wet Dreamz, January 28th, and 03 Adolescence. However, a lot of the production is too simplistic and/or generic, and the overlong last track overstays its welcome.
  4. HipHopCertified
    Jan 3, 2015
    6
    In my opinion there is only a very select club of artists who could release an album without any promotion or lead-up singles and still expect to sell well. I never would have guessed J. Cole would be one of those artists. Yet, here we are with Forest Hills Drive 2014. It sold 375,000 copies in its first week and also broke some records on Spotify.

    When J Cole dropped his first album I    In my opinion there is only a very select club of artists who could release an album without any promotion or lead-up singles and still expect to sell well. I never would have guessed J. Cole would be one of those artists. Yet, here we are with Forest Hills Drive 2014. It sold 375,000 copies in its first week and also broke some records on Spotify.

    When J Cole dropped his first album I thought he did a pretty good job of launching himself into the scene. It looked like he had it figured out who he wanted to be on that first album. I was curious about how he would develop as an artist. Perhaps Born Sinner didn’t really bring that much of a development (though I did like the album).

    Though I admit that J. Cole as a conflicted individual remains interesting. Forest Hills Drive doesn’t bring any change unfortunately. On the album J Cole is just doing more of that which he had already been doing. Just not as good. I just don’t really feel the passion of Cole here. The minor changes that are here, aren’t ones that I like.

    Cole singing his hooks shouldn’t be, because he really can’t sing. Then there is also the name dropping. Cole already had a penchant for it on his previous releases, but he takes it up a notch on this one. This way he starts to turn into the new Game. J. Cole has shown some real potential in the past, but I really feel Forest Hills Drive is a step back for him as an emcee. Mostly because doesn’t seem to be able to make any step forward.

    Forest Hills Drive is for the most part produced by J. Cole himself, though he did get some outside help for some of the tracks as well. When I listened to the album the first time I thought it started pretty good with some nice beats. Slow and atmospheric. It doesn’t take long before a lot of the production starts to sound the same though. Along the way there are even some really uninspired beats. I couldn’t find any beats that I really thought were great. Perhaps if I would listen to it as a standalone track, but as an album there is just too much that sounds the same.

    Too be honest I find Forest Hills Drive 2014 to be an uninspiring affair. It sounds for weird as Cole’s drive was what made him good on Cole World and Born Sinner. That drive seems to be gone though. This isn’t a bad album, but there isn’t anything that really stands out to me for good reasons and J Cole should be capable of more.

    3/5

    Hiphopcertified.com    … Expand
  5. Spangle
    Dec 12, 2014
    4
    There is no rap artist out there now who I want to love more than J. Cole. He seems like a great guy who is very open, which I love in a rapper. For example, I love guys like Drake, 808's Kanye, and Kid Cudi. I have no problem with rappers being a bit "soft" to get stuff off their chest, but damn does he struggle when he does this. He cannot sing to save his life and whenever he has someThere is no rap artist out there now who I want to love more than J. Cole. He seems like a great guy who is very open, which I love in a rapper. For example, I love guys like Drake, 808's Kanye, and Kid Cudi. I have no problem with rappers being a bit "soft" to get stuff off their chest, but damn does he struggle when he does this. He cannot sing to save his life and whenever he has some great, personal bars, he always follows them up with something incredibly corny. For example, the track "Wet Dreamz" is very personal and I appreciate his openness on it, but it just comes off as corny and I cannot help but laugh at the thought he decided to put it on his album. The track and "St. Tropez", "Hello", and "Note to Self", are undoubtedly the worst ones here, largely thanks to the singing on those latter three. He cannot sing, yet decides to basically just sing on all three of them. Whose decision was that? Who told him he could sing? If anybody ever complimented his singing, they were lying. The beats are also just ok here. None of them are overly interesting, aside from on the four tracks that really stood out to me, "A Tale of 2 Citiez", "Fire Squad", "GOMD", and "No Role Modelz", where the beats are all very good. Otherwise, this one is a classic Cole release. Cole shows flashes of potential to drop a classic album one day, but gets bogged down in nods to legends, terrible hooks, his singing, mediocre beats, corny lyrics, and a general lullaby-type feeling. While I liked Cole World and Born Sinner when they first dropped, I eventually came to not really like either of them for the same reasons I did not enjoy this release. I was really hoping this one would be the Cole album that i would like when it drops and then continue to like for the foreseeable future, but that is sadly not the case. As I write this, the disappointment I feel is immense, as I just really want to like Cole, but I just cannot.… Expand
  6. shivanimshah
    Dec 11, 2014
    6
    I've been an avid Cole fan since the 2009, but I can't front, I'm really disappointed with this album. Its a good album, but I am by no means blown away. Why has Cole simplified his lyrics so much? We have become accustomed to his clever wordplay and 2014FHD massively lacked in this. I fell in love with Cole's music due to his story telling ability- FHD only has 2 tracks that tell a story-I've been an avid Cole fan since the 2009, but I can't front, I'm really disappointed with this album. Its a good album, but I am by no means blown away. Why has Cole simplified his lyrics so much? We have become accustomed to his clever wordplay and 2014FHD massively lacked in this. I fell in love with Cole's music due to his story telling ability- FHD only has 2 tracks that tell a story- Wet Dreamz and '03 Ad. Love Yourz saved me from rating this album as 4/10, as that song is truly heartfelt and the only emotion provoking song on this album.

    I disagree with a lot of people who say this reminds them of a Friday Night Lights Cole. The FNL Cole was HUNGRY, you can't mistake the passion and determination in his voice. For me, the 2014FHD Cole is complacent. Cole is in a different place in his life right now and you can't fake that hunger. But could also be due to the lack of the competition in the rap game in 2014 perhaps (?). Who knows.

    I think the production is better on this album than his previous ones, and his decision to work with other producers was definitely a good one.

    Finally the singing- I liked it on the Intro and A Tale of 2 Citiez, but after that it was overkill. Jermaine- Hire some professional singers please!!    … Expand
  7. bsosajr
    Dec 30, 2014
    6
    J. Cole's new "2014 Forest Hills Drive" LP surprised me with no singles and features. However, I feel like were given the same old bland Cole. The first half of the album goes strong with "January 28th", "Wet Dreamz", "03' Adolescense", and "Fire Squad." Once the second half of the album hits, we get annoying and corny songs such as "St. Tropez", "G.O.M.D", and "Hello." It's hard not toJ. Cole's new "2014 Forest Hills Drive" LP surprised me with no singles and features. However, I feel like were given the same old bland Cole. The first half of the album goes strong with "January 28th", "Wet Dreamz", "03' Adolescense", and "Fire Squad." Once the second half of the album hits, we get annoying and corny songs such as "St. Tropez", "G.O.M.D", and "Hello." It's hard not to like Cole, he's one of the purest and realest rappers of this new era of hip hop. "2014 Forest Hills Drive" has its moments, but it felt rushed, corny, and plain out boring compared to his hunger on "The Warm Up", and his refreshing radio hit "Work Out."… Expand
  8. mrgarcia
    Mar 9, 2016
    4
    The album was dull and boring. Its an album that would be forgotten quickly. If cole does collab with kendrick, imma feel bad for him because Kendrick is just going to keep outshining him on every track.
  9. Bleat0124
    Dec 9, 2014
    5
    Ok, that was better than the intellectual miscarriage that was Born Sinner. The involvement of other producers helped. All crimes are forgiven; J Cole can go back to making his way up the ladder of rap history. Good!
  10. nereed678
    May 23, 2019
    5
    Although coming through with a few notably good cuts, the majority of this album is cliché and unimpressive. With the right producer and someone hanging around telling him to cut out the cringier lines Cole could craft a truly good rap album
  11. Jackson889
    Sep 2, 2022
    6
    Decent mixtape, far from bad but nothing special. Great intro but everything else is decent.

Awards & Rankings

12
#12 Most Discussed Album of 2014
7
#7 Most Shared Album of 2014

Critic Reviews

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Metascore
67

Generally favorable reviews - based on 17 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 8 out of 17
  2. Mixed: 9 out of 17
  3. Negative: 0 out of 17
  1. Uncut
    Feb 3, 2015
    60
    You long for a bit more of the ardour of "Fine Squad." [Mar 2015, p.73]
  2. Rolling Stone
    Jan 5, 2015
    60
    He speaks some incisive truths about class, race ("Fire Squad") and relationships ("Wet Dreamz"), but those insights are too often undercut by crass humor. The production falls short, too, with dull beats to match his languid flow.
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  3. NOW Magazine
    Dec 18, 2014
    60
    Consistent, yes, but not the king yet.
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