J. Cole Continues To Put Rappers On Hook Duty On The 50 Cent-Assisted “New York Times” (Listen) Posted by Danielle Harling on 06/13/13 | Filed under J. Cole, 50 Cent

Now that we've accepted the fact that J. Cole will likely be the only big-name rapper to drop a verse on his "Born Sinner" album, how does that feature formula work on the rapper's newest release, "New York Times?" The record boasts an appearance from 50 Cent who lends his help on the song's hook and on top of verses from Cole we're hit with a verse from Dreamville emcee and Queens native, Bas.

Quite frankly, 50 Cent's verses have been so hit or miss as of late that I was pretty relieved knowing the rapper would merely serve as hook-man on "New York Times." As far as Bas' verse is concerned, it would have been pretty hilarious if he outshined Cole, since the rapper was obviously pretty intent on not being outdone by his fellow rap brethren while crafting "Born Sinner." That obviously didn't happen, but I can appreciate the fact that Cole chose to give one of his Dreamville artists a rare guest verse on his album.

I tend to be pretty anti-feature when it concerns studio albums, so I can appreciate the fact that Cole keeps the features few and brief on "Born Sinner." After all, solo albums aren't meant to be collaborative projects.

See Also:  This Is Not an Album Review of J. Cole’s “Born Sinner”, Or Nothin Like That