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J. Cole has debuted a new album cover for his anticipated LP, The Fall-Off, and you'll never believe why.
On Thursday night, January 29, the North Carolina native shared a new image that will appear on the front cover of the CD version of his "final" album. The fresh cover is a simple photo of him looking downward with his eyes closed. In a statement he posted to his website, Cole explains why he decided to replace the original cover, which showed his first-ever studio setup in his childhood home, with the new image. He says he was "re-inspired" after he apologized to Kendrick Lamar in 2024.
"The picture of where it all started for me felt fitting for an album that I made with the ending in mind," Cole writes. "It has been the cover of The Fall-Off for about the past 7 years. Perfect in my mind. However, 2 years ago, after the events that still feed the algorithm til this day, I became incredibly re-inspired, and the album slowly blossomed into a double-disc as the concept expanded. I felt there should be an additional cover that represented that. Something just as strong as the first, with my face on it, so that when I look back in 20 years, I can see an image of who I was at the time I released the project I worked on for so long."
J. Cole dropped the new album cover, along with the pre-order for the CD version of The Fall-Off, days after he delivered his Birthday Blizzard '26 EP, Hosted by DJ Clue?, the project comes with four freestyles over hits by Diddy, The Notorious B.I.G., The LOX, and Black Rob. It arrived on his 41st birthday and a week before The Fall-Off is scheduled to arrive. J. Cole's anticipated album drops February 6.
See what DJ Clue? had to say about working with J. Cole on the EP below.