As Jermaine Lamarr Cole, he was born on an Army post in Frankfurt, Germany on January 28, 1985. For several years, Kay worked as a mail clerk while Cole’s father enlisted in the United States Army.
Controversy: At the 2013 MTV Video Music Awards afterparty in NYC, Cole and Diddy got into an argument. Kendrick Lamar was drinking when Diddy attempted to dump a drink on him after confronting him over a lyric in one of his songs.
After the release of his debut mixtape, The Come Up, in 2007, J. Cole became a household name. Another two mixtapes, The Warm-Up in 2009 and Friday Night Lights in 2010, were released by Cole (2010). They were both commercially successful for him. Earlier this year, Cole struck a deal with Jay-rock Z’s nation label.