How is the hip hop industry growing and changing through the work of individual artists?
http://www.complex.com/music/2014/11/j-cole-announces-forrest-hills-drive-album
On December 9, 2014, popular hip hop artist J. Cole released his third studio album, nostalgically titled after the address of his childhood home, 2014 Forest Hills Drive. The release of the album was uncharacteristic of typical rap releases, as J. Cole announced the album three weeks before its release simply by tweeting, "My new album. 2014 Forest Hills Drive. 12/9" with a trailer for the album. Atypical to the industry, J. Cole insisted on dropping no singles before the album's release, choosing instead to drop the album as a total package.
Generally, artists drop singles before the album because it generates hype for the album and encourages album sales. In my opinion, this breeds an industry focused only on monetary growth and numbers, and distracts from the artistic expression of the artist and the album's greatness. Showcasing the work as a whole contributes integrity to the piece as well. J. Cole stepping away from this single-releasing tradition shows that he is willing to take financial risks in order to focus the attention on his art, rather than his monetary success.
J. Cole's risk paid off, as he set the highest mark for Spotify streams in a week, with 15.7 million recorded at the time, and he sold 371,228 copies in the first week. J. Cole responded to the success by tweeting, "The #'s are humbling, It's a win for all artists and fans and a clear message to the industry. No singles no features. Stop serving trash."
I personally thought the album was amazing and I appreciated its value as a complete piece more because I knew that that's what J. Cole intended it to be heard as. As far as what this means to the industry, I expect to see more rappers focusing on their art form rather than dropping the cheesy singles that get radio play and garner attention for the album release. As exemplified by J. Cole's albums, fans will pay for and appreciate good albums in their entirety without artists practicing the current norm of sellout singles and financial focus.
Future Question: How and why have hip hop artists become so influential?
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