J. Cole had quite a chaotic weekend, as did his loyal fan base.  

Last Friday, J. Cole released a surprise project, Might Delete Later. The 12-song project, which included an array of impressive features from the likes of Central Cee, is already projected to debut at No. 1 on the Billboard 200. 

It was the last song on the project though, “7 Minute Drill”, that seemed to garner nearly as much attention as Might Delete Later did altogether.  

On it, J. Cole finally responded to Kendrick Lamar’s verse on “Like That” which came out in late March. You can read all about the “Like That” saga here.  

The overwhelming consensus was that “7 Minute Drill” missed the mark, failing to match the energy that Lamar delivered on “Like That”, and the content of Cole’s bars started a contentious discourse on social media comparing the careers of Lamar and Cole.  

Remarkably, it took only 48 hours for J. Cole to publicly apologise for releasing “7 Minute Drill”, a decision that went completely against the traditional nature of rap beef.  

It was at the Dreamville Festival, which Cole created and headlined, that he addressed his fans on Sunday night in a heartfelt confession. He explained that the decision to release the response track was inspired by outside influences and did not sit right with his spirit.  

You can watch the full apology here.

J. Cole’s shock 180-degree turn has split opinion within the hip-hop community, with some people praising his vulnerability as a sign of maturity, and others feeling like he’s damaged his legacy by backing down from a beef that he had a role in fueling. 

Which side do you consider yourself to be on?