J. Cole Hosts Silent Disco Listening Party for 'Born Sinner'
UPDATE: Due to the album leaking hours after the listening party, J. Cole decided to allow anyone to stream the album at BornSinner.com
"This is a dream come true," announced J. Cole Thursday night at New York's SVA Theater, where hundreds of journalists and fans assembled to hear his latest album Born Sinner. "When we did the listening [for his 2011 debut album] before, I didn't like it because it was in a studio or club and people were just standing around talking. While the song's playing, I don't want you talking about the song. I want you to listen to every word."
To ensure that, we have all downloaded a new app called LISNR and have each been supplied Beats by Dre headphones to engage in some paradoxical individual communal listening experience. Imagine a silent disco at a festival with more technical support and less dancing.
After a 15-minute intro primarily to explain Sinner standout "Let Nas Down" (more on that later), Born Sinner begins. Cole World: The Sideline Story, the rapper's proper 2011 debut after four years of mixtapes and guest appearances, debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard 200, and was met with above average, if not stellar, critical acclaim. It was better and more ambitious than most rappers' debuts—Cole produced virtually every song—but sounded like what it was: an album recorded in fits and starts, with individual songs triumphing over thematic consistency.
46m
41m
10m
1h 23m
41m
20m
21m
44m
41m
26m
41m
1m
20m
2m
45m
4m
20m
1m
24m
8m
1m
2m
41m
1m
5m
7m
20m
22m
44m
1h 16m
24m
20m
7m
20m
1h 21m
1m
23m
42m
15m
2m
1m
3m
5m
2m
2m
1m
1m
6m
1m
7m
8m
30s
1m
9m
46m
16m
20m
41m
45m
22m
23m
23m
23m
23m
23m
22m
22m
23m
23m
22m
22m
22m
23m
19m
23m
20m
21m
23m
23m
23m
22m
23m
21m
23m
23m
22m
23m
22m
22m
22m
23m
23m
23m
23m
23m
22m
22m
22m
23m
22m