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Who Is J. Cole?
J. Cole is a famous American songwriter, record producer, singer, and rapper. He became famous after launching his first mixtape, “The Come Up,” in 2007. Motivated to pursue a rapper career, he released two additional mixtapes, “The Warm Up” in 2009 and “Friday Night Lights” in 2010.
Personal Details
- Celebrity Name: J. Cole
- Full Name: Jermaine Lamarr Cole
- Gender: Male
- Birth Date: January 28, 1985
- Birth Place: Frankfurt, Germany
- Age: 35
- Height: 1.88m
- Weight: 91 kilos
- Nationality: American
- Sexual Orientation: Straight
- Status: Married
- Wife: Melisa Heholt, married since 2015
- Children: 1 son
- Profession: American songwriter, record producer, singer, and rapper
- Net Worth: $35 million
Early Life
Jermaine Lamarr Cole was born on January 28, 1985, in Frankfurt, Germany to mother, Kay, and African-American veteran father. His mother worked as a postal service employee in the US Postal Service while his father served in the US army. J. Cole’s father left his family during his youth. While he was only eight months old, along with his mother and older brother, Zach, he moved to Fayetteville, North Carolina.
He started to rap while he was only 12 years old and started a good profession in 2000. This was when his mother bought an ASR-X music sampler for his Christmas gift. In his teen years, he expressed interest in both music and basketball and was a first-chair violinist in the Terry Sanford Orchestra until 2003.
After graduating from high school, he achieved a 4.2 GPA. He believed that he will have better chances of getting a recording contract in New York. He then transferred there and got a scholarship at St. John’s University. At first, he took a major in Computer Science but later transferred to business and communications after seeing the lonely life of a computer science teacher. He graduated from college in 2007 as a magna cum laude.
Personal Life
In a January 2016 interview, J. Cole shared that he was already married. His wife is Melissa Heholt, the Executive Director of the Dreamville Foundation. He also shared in a May 2018 interview that they have a son.
Career
Before he officially got into music, J. Cole was a bill collector, file clerk, and newspaper salesman. His music career became promising when he launched his mixtape, “The Come Up,” which was followed by his two other mixtapes, “The Warm Up” and “Friday Night Lights.”
He made collaborations with various musicians, such as Kanye West, Trey Songs, Drake, B.O.B, Talib Kweli, Wales, and Jay Z among others.
In 2011, he released his first album, “Cole World: The Sideline Story” in 2011. The album reached #1 on the Billboard 200. It is certified gold with more than 800,000 copies sold.
In 2013, he released his second album, “Born Sinner,” which was accompanied by two EPs, “Truly Yours 2” and “Truly Yours 3.” His second album reached the #2 spot on the Billboard 200, with more than 795,000 copies sold. Some of the hit songs include “Forbidden Fruit,” “Crooked Smile,” and “She Knows.”
He also released other studio albums, such as “Forest Hills” in 2014 and “4 Your Eyez Only” in 2016. Furthermore, he launched a live album, “Forest Hills: Live” in 2016, and a compilation album titled “Revenge of the Dreamers II” in 2015.
Aside from his music career, he is also an actor. He made appearances in various television shows and films, such as “Raising Bertie” in 2017, “Eyez” in 2016, and J. Cole: 4 Your Eyez Only in 2016.
Awards and Achievements
In his entire career, J. Cole has won various awards. These include 1 Billboard Music Award and 5 BET Hip-hop Awards.
Total Net Worth 2020
To date, J. Cole is believed to have a total net worth of $35 million. Most of his fortune came from his music career, where he sold countless albums. He also earns from his tours as well as the brands he endorses. He is also a shareholder in Tidal.
