Cole initially gained recognition as a rapper following the release of his debut mixtape, The Come Up, in early 2007 in which he also founded his record label Dreamville with label president Ibrahim Hamad. Intent on further pursuing a solo career as a rapper, he went on to release two additional mixtapes The Warm Up in 2009 and Friday Night Lights in 2010, after signing to Jay Z's Roc Nation imprint in 2009.
Cole released his debut studio album, Cole World: The Sideline Story, on September 27, 2011, which included the lead single "Work out". It debuted at number one on the U.S. Billboard 200, and was soon certified platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA).
In June 18, 2013, Cole released his second studio album Born Sinner. Born Sinner sold 297,000 copies in its first week of release, and peaked at number one in it's third week of release. The album received mostly positive reviews from critics. On September 15, 2020, Born Sinner was certified double platinum. The album was supported by the lead single Power Trip with R&B artist Miguel, which was released on February 14.
On December 9, 2014, Cole, released his third studio album "2014 Forest Hills Drive". It was also the first album in 25 years at that time that went 3 times platinum with absolutely no features. The album debuted at number one on the Billboard 200, selling 353,000 copies in its first week and was certified platinum on March 31, 2015. The latter earned him his first Grammy Award nomination for Best Rap Album. The album was later accompanied by two documentaries "J. Cole: Road to Homecoming" in the period of December 16, 2015 – January 9, 2016 & "Forest Hills Drive: Homecoming" on January 9, 2016.
On 9 December, 2016, Cole released his fourth studio album "4 Your Eyez Only". The album debuted at number one on the Billboard 200 chart with 492,000 album-equivalent units, of which 363,000 were pure album sales, becoming Cole's fourth number one album. On January 12, 2017, the album was certified gold and certified platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) on April 7, 2017.
On April 20, 2018 Cole released his 5th studio album "KOD", after he revealed the album name two days after and held a couple listening sessions. The album featured his new alter ego kiLL edward under which he released the single "Tidal Wave (just a little reference)" on April 18th, 2018, 2 days before releasing KOD. The album was recieved with positive reviews from critics and debuted atop the US Billboard 200, selling 397,000 album-equivalent units in its first week (174,000 coming from pure sales), earning Cole his fifth consecutive number-one album in the country. The album broke several streaming records at the time of the release. On December 5, 2018 the album was certified platinum.
Cole released a 2 song EP called "Lewis Street" on July 22, 2020, which included the single "The Climb Back", which would later be featured on his 6th studio album. On May 7, 2021, Cole released the lead single "Interlude" one week before releasing his 6th studio album. Cole's 6th studio album "The Off-Season" was released on May 14, 2021. The album sold 282,000 album-equivalent units in its first week and would earn Cole his sixth consecutive number-one album in the country. 4 of the 12 songs debuted on the top ten on the US Billboard Hot 100, with the song "My Life" featuring 21 Savage & Morray peaking at number 2.
Self-taught on piano, Cole also acts as a producer alongside his hip hop career, producing singles for artists such as Kendrick Lamar and Janet Jackson, as well as handling the majority of the production in his own projects. He has also developed other ventures, including Dreamville Records, as well as non-profit organization the Dreamville Foundation. In January 2015, Cole decided to house single mothers rent-free in his childhood home in Fayetteville, North Carolina.
when the party's over
J. Cole Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Just bare footing around
I said, what's up, she hopped in the truck
And we were right away running the town
She's the kinda girl that walks in to your lonely world
And everything dark just lights up
But all summers end, now she's gone with the wind
Somebody, somebody should've told her
This party, this party wasn't over
Hands up in the air, still swaying
That band she loves still playing
She had this old boy from the boondocks
Sweet talking, walking on moon rocks
I wish somebody would've told her
This party, this party wasn't over
This party, this party wa-wa-wasn't over
I still hear her laughing like it just happened
Like I was just with her here
Well, she had the magic and I had the habit
But then she just disappeared
See, I'm the kinda guy that just can't get her off my mind
No matter how hard I try, she's all I think about
Another lesson learned, but hey, the world still turns
So I guess it's time to turn another drink up
Somebody, somebody should've told her
This party, this party wasn't over
Hands up in the air, still swaying
That band she loves still playing
She had this old boy from the boondocks
Sweet talking, walking on moon rocks
I wish somebody would've told her
This party, this party wasn't over
These days, I can't even hear a wave crash
And I get carried away and go George Strait back
To a slow dance out in the sand
When the keg was still cold and she was holding my hand
Somebody, somebody should've told her
This party, this party wasn't over
Hands up in the air, still swaying
That band she loves still playing
She had this old boy from the boondocks
Sweet talking, walking on moon rocks
I wish somebody would've told her
This party, this party wasn't over
No, it wasn't over
Yeah, this party, this party, this party wasn't over
Hands still swaying, band still playing
Damn, this party wasn't over
This party, this party, this party wasn't over
This party, this party, this party wasn't over
J.Cole’s When the Party’s Over is about a girl who comes into the singer’s life and turns everything around with her presence. He describes her as a light in the darkness and someone who makes everything seem brighter. Unfortunately, she leaves just as quickly as she entered, and the singer is left alone with only memories of her. He can’t seem to shake her from his mind, even though he tries his best. The song is a reflection of his feelings of loss and how he wishes he could have told her that the party wasn’t over yet, and that they still had time together.
The song’s chorus is a reminder of what they could have had if someone had told her to stay. The singer reminisces about her and how she made everything seem better, even when things felt bleak. He misses her and wishes that he had the chance to tell her that the party wasn’t over yet.
One interesting fact about the song is the sample used in its production is taken from “Outside My Window” by Yaki Kadafi, a part of Tupac Shakur’s Outlawz crew. Another that, the song was slated as the album's second single after "Snow on tha Bluff," but J.Cole decided against releasing it as one. Also, J. Cole paid tribute to Tupac's son in this track by using a vocal sample of him. Additionally, the song was produced and co-written by Timbaland. Moreover, the song was first teased by J. Cole in an Instagram post that teased The Off-Season. Furthermore, the chorus of the song is similar to the chorus of Ice Cube's song "It Was a Good Day". The song is one of more than 45 songs that J. Cole recorded for The Off-Season project. The song features the Fender Rhodes Keyboard and the Tines Electric Piano. Additionally, the song contains a gospel choir which the writer believes offers a twinge of nostalgia. Finally, the song wasn't inspired by a real person or event but Coleman has admitted to it likely being inspired by someone or something in his past.
The chords for this song are G, Em, C, and D.
Line by Line Meaning
There she was, little blue jean buzz
He saw a girl wearing blue jeans and she caught his attention
Just bare footing around
She was walking around barefoot
I said, what's up, she hopped in the truck
He approached her and she got in his car
And we were right away running the town
They went around town and had fun
She's the kinda girl that walks in to your lonely world
She's the type of girl that can brighten up anyone's life
And everything dark just lights up
Her presence makes everything seem brighter and better
But all summers end, now she's gone with the wind
Their time together was short and now she's gone
And the reason I spend so many nights up
He can't stop thinking about her and it keeps him up at night
Somebody, somebody should've told her
He wishes someone had told her that the party wasn't over yet
This party, this party wasn't over
He feels like there was still more fun to be had
Hands up in the air, still swaying
People were still dancing and having fun
That band she loves still playing
The music she enjoyed was still being played
She had this old boy from the boondocks
She was with him, a guy from a rural area
Sweet talking, walking on moon rocks
They were walking and talking romantically
I still hear her laughing like it just happened
He remembers her laughter as if it was recent
Like I was just with her here
He feels like he was just with her
Well, she had the magic and I had the habit
She had something special and he was used to his routine
But then she just disappeared
She left suddenly and without warning
See, I'm the kinda guy that just can't get her off my mind
He can't stop thinking about her
No matter how hard I try, she's all I think about
He can't stop thinking about her, no matter how he tries
Another lesson learned, but hey, the world still turns
He has learned from the experience, but life goes on
So I guess it's time to turn another drink up
He decides to drown his sorrows with another drink
These days, I can't even hear a wave crash
He's so preoccupied with thoughts of her that he can't even enjoy simple things
And I get carried away and go George Strait back
He listens to George Strait's music to reminisce about the past
To a slow dance out in the sand
He remembers dancing with her slowly by the beach
When the keg was still cold and she was holding my hand
He remembers being with her when the beer was still cold and they were holding hands
No, it wasn't over
He believes that there was still more to come
Yeah, this party, this party, this party wasn't over
He emphasizes that the party wasn't truly over
Damn, this party wasn't over
He expresses his frustration and regret that the party ended too soon
This party, this party, this party wasn't over
He reiterates that the party wasn't really ended
Lyrics © BMG Rights Management, Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Written by: COLE SWINDELL, CANAAN SMITH, BRIAN KELLEY, TYLER HUBBARD
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
KenzKenz
2022 and this song is still one of my favorites ❤️
SemjayFn
Ong 📌📌
ImCris_0hO
Why do y’all mention the year everytime
Tessianna Simeon
@ImCris_0hO it’s nice to see that people are still coming back to this song even if it was from 5 years ago.
𝑪𝒂𝒉’𝑴𝒂𝒓𝒊 𝑳𝒂𝒏𝒆𝒔𝒆 💋.
Yuppp❤12/14/22
Brian Sevilla
J.Cole nasty verse in this song is fucking incredible 🤯
Ricardo Mendoza
Lol then why everyone making fun of this song on fb that his verse is trash?
Thé One
@Ricardo Mendozanot everyone, some 😊
Destiny Smith
My favorite part
Jadon Garner
Right absolutely killed it