Solo Artist
Most frequent collaborator: Tyler Williams · 20 tracks
Holds writing credit on 117 of 118 tracks
Yes, and he produces most of them too. J. Cole is credited on about 99% of his catalogue, writing every lyric himself and holding a production credit on nearly every track. Songs like 'No Role Modelz,' 'Love Yourz,' and 'ATM' are his in both the words and the beat, which is rare even among rappers who write their own verses.
Across all 118 tracks: how many J. Cole wrote alone, how many they co-wrote, and how many were written by others. The bracket marks every track they hold any writing credit on.
Share of all 118 tracks where they are personally credited, by role.
J. Cole's writing credit per album, in release order. Hover any bar for the album.
Where J. Cole sits on the scale from a pure performer (0%, sings songs written by others) to a complete author (100%, writes everything). The bright marker is their catalogue authorship score, plotted against other artists on the site.
Reference artists spread across the scale, closest by genre and era.
None of the signature songs above fall in this category.
Roc Nation / Columbia
Dreamville / Roc Nation / Columbia
Dreamville / Roc Nation / Columbia
Dreamville / Roc Nation / Interscope
Dreamville / Roc Nation / Interscope
Dreamville / Roc Nation / Interscope
Cole World / Dreamville / Interscope
No albums from this decade.
Bubble size = tracks worked on together. TW Tyler Williams · T T-Minus · AP Anthony Parrino · KW Kelvin Wooten · E Elite · W Wu10
Data Insight
J. Cole produces the overwhelming majority of his own material, across seven albums, he holds a production credit on virtually every track. He also writes every word himself, making him one of the rare mainstream rappers with near-100% ownership of both the lyrical and musical content of his catalog. His reliance on outside producers has increased slightly on later albums (The Off-Season, The Fall-Off), but the core of his discography is the work of one person.
Quick Facts
Creative Fingerprint
A rare double author: J. Cole writes every word himself and produces most of his own beats, so he is credited on about 99% of his tracks in both the lyric and music columns, an unusually high ownership for a mainstream rapper.
The Story
J. Cole (Jermaine Lamarr Cole) is an American rapper, singer, and record producer from Fayetteville, North Carolina, known for deeply personal lyricism and near-total self-production. He signed to Jay-Z's Roc Nation imprint in 2009 and debuted with Cole World: The Sideline Story (2011). He has since released seven studio albums, all of which debuted at number one on the Billboard 200. He founded the Dreamville Records label, home to Bas, Ari Lennox, J.I.D., Earthgang, and others.