Elle Varner, J. Cole and Bridget Kelly at SupperClub in LA. Photo: Wire Image
One of the standouts from J. Cole’s Born Sinner — included as a Truly Yours 3 bonus track — almost made history. Speaking with VIBE, Cole reveals that he originally planned on reuniting Nas and 50 Cent on “New York Times” but Mr. Jones couldn’t get his verse done in time.
I made that song and didn’t write the hook, I just did the melody. On the original reference I’m humming the melody, but all I did was steal a 50 Cent melody—some shit I would hear 50 singing. I had that song for a year before the album came out. I was like, “Damn, I’d love to get 50 or Nas on this.” Nas was my original plan but he didn’t get the verse done in time. So we had this other kid from Queens named Bas.
Wow, reuniting 50 and Nas could’ve been huge.
Exactly. For hip-hop, period. But really for New York. I wanted that to be a real New York record. This down South nigga coming and putting on for the city because I have a connection. So 50 came to the studio in L.A. to lay the verse and he heard the melody and he was like, “I could tell you was thinking about me when you were doing that melody.” He wrote that shit in five minutes, maybe. It was crazy to see that melody that was in my head come to life with the actual person who I wanted to do it. He gave us three hours worth of game that night, just talking.
Cole also shared that Sha Money XL wanted Fif to sign him before Roc Nation, says he’d love to sign Chance the Rapper and more. Read the full interview here.
