Going Back to 2014 Forest Hills Drive 

from a light 6 to a decent 6, that's what we call evolution 🙏

Doing this whole video just to have the same opinion from 10 years ago is hilarious

Obviously I’m far from the first person to point out how badly the Jada and Will lyric aged but it’s so poetically ironic that in his song about how all these LA celebrities are so fake not once does it occur to him that maybe their relationship wasn’t as happy as it seemed. It both negates and proves his point

Anthony why are you going back there? The family that lives on 2014 Forrest Hills Drive has made it very clear they want you to stop coming around uninvited.

Him accepting “Wet Dreamz” was the last thing I was expecting him to do.

Clearly you're taking Kendrick's side in the beef, but you didn't have to doxx Cole like that and put his adress out there

Holy shit it’s been 10 years

Fantano your background set is nice and I like the lighting

“Your best work is a light pack”

I’d love to see more of these “redux review” type videos on this channel. No score, no hyper analysis, just talking about an album you previously reviewed and talking about how you feel now. It’s nice to hear how your thoughts change on records over time, maybe you pick up on something, or maybe something grows off of you. Obviously you can’t do this for every record, but doing it for records that you feel like giving another test or records that have a controversial score would be great. Something I would love to see for the next one would be a more direct comparison to your review. Maybe when you have a noticeable change in your opinion of a song, or maybe it’s aged in a weird way, it would be cool to see what exactly you said before, so we can get a more direct compare and contrast of what’s changed or how your taste has differed. Either way I enjoyed seeing this and hope to see more in the future.

Anthony exposes old address for the internet!!

0:31 NL spotted

I don't know why but I have never an intense desire to return to J.Cole's music. I'm saying this as somebody who listenened to him quite a bit in the beginning of his emergence.

I was def curious on your take on Love Yourz. While I can see where you can get the idea of it being tone deaf, but at the same time I think the point he was trying to drive home in the track is a concept that I've come across many times in therapy is not comparing yourself to others and appreciating what you have is a driving force for mental wellness, and in a genre that glorifies materialism to the point that this comes across as tone deaf speaks to how against the grain this track is. I feel like, you underscore songs with these themes more often than not. Good music touches the soul. Also, yeah he had a really hard time staying on subject and prob fumbled a ton of classics that way.

thanks for giving it a 10 this time appreciate you

Love that the thing that ties Fantano and NorthernLion together is that they are both bald white dudes with glasses

This album came out when I was 14 and was one of the first albums where i actually listened and liked every song. So many great memories with me and my friends will always be one of my favorites

To me it’s a solid hip-hop record with somewhat bland production but some great iconic bangers too. It drives me crazy though because people legitimately talk like it one of the greatest rap albums ever when it is just no where near that. I can only imagine it’s because people want to pretend that Cole has a classic rap album under his belt when he doesn’t… I think his best is yet to come.

0:30 wait melon knows egg???

Jesus christ I need a life I'm here before its been up for a full minute

I'm surprised you didn't mention the biggest reason why this album was popular - it was meant for people in high school in 2014. If you listened to this album in your later 20s, 30s, and so on, it wouldn't resonate with you. Of course as J Cole has matured, he has made more mature music that better resonates with Fantano. My only issue is that I wish Fantano would recognize that while he tries to come across as someone impartial to records, he really has much more personal bias towards the way music should sound than he explains in his videos.

0:30 The period-accurate NL pic is a nice touch, Austen

I agree the “Love Yourz” contains some contradictions but given this album is abt his journey through life I think those clashing view points represent a shift in his perspective as he got older. Context is also important. In “03 adolescences” is more abt the advice he is receiving based on where he is at maturity wise. Conversely “love yourz” seems more like him giving advice to ppl who are unable to appreciate the greatness they are already surrounded by.

the northernlion pic LOL

Why do you give Future on autopilot for an hour a 7 but one of the most iconic albums of the 2010s a 6 😭

0:30 mad respect to NL gotta love our RU-vid Eggs

Lets see what innovative ways Fantano can hate on Cole this time

HE'S BALD?!?!?!

Balls

Hearing Melon talk positively about wet dreamz was NOT on my 2024 bingo card.

Who hears the words "I think J. Cole has gotten better since the release of this album" and go "he's obviously meat riding kendrick"

I watched your review at the time and you were right then and now :)

NL jumpscare be warned

Its aged well. I get some of fantanos points but its about how the music connects with people over the 10 years. I think Cole captures too many great moments for this to be not considered a strong classic. I would maybe take off 3 songs. still 8/10 for me. To a 18-24 year old at the time this was easier to listen to and enjoy over TPAB for the average fan.

Fantano doesn't get it man. This album shaped so many lives man. He won't ever get it. I've listened to this album maybe over 100 times, can still play it straight through

Where is the librarian????

1 view in 13 seconds you feel off and your getting old

ngl i think this an instance of fantano just not being able to fully relate to Cole on this album. I’m a few yrs younger than Cole and idk this album always hit for me bc everything he was saying just felt so relatable to my life-minus the rapper stuff lol but still… it felt like he was putting music to my thoughts at that time in my life. Even if his songs aren’t fully fleshed out.. I was still in my early 20s, and my ideas weren’t fully formed then either. Cole and Dot’s albums and themes always kinda progressed with my own life’s journey and inner thoughts. My generation really lucky to have these guys grow with us and share their stories. 10 yrs ago tho… damn.. we old af

I just listened to it again, and I think it's value is that it put J Cole out there, and even though he had some better stuff on Friday Night Lights, ultimately the style in this album is pretty cool and seeing it solidify in the next few projects is dope 😊

I don’t think this album is his best work, I think 4 Your Eyez only is a more complete concept, and The Off Season while maybe not being as catchy, has better rapping and flows, so they’re similar quality. However, I think it’s a very solid project for me. I only skip 2 or 3, which is a low amount of skips for my standards. I enjoy his performance on most tracks, and there’s a lot of different sounds between each track. The instrumentals are nice on the ears, Cole is very Smooth and adapts well to whatever beat he’s on. And while his message isn’t the most profound, he delivers it well. Tracks like Fire Squad, No Role Modelz, G.O.M.D, and Love Yourz are still very constant in my rotation. Overall, I enjoy this project. It’s far from a favorite, but I think it’s a great body of work that deserves praise, and I can understand somebody liking every song. And outside of a few bars, I enjoy this album as much as I first heard it. I’m Feeling A Mild 7

J Cole is the only rapper who I can think of who has been doing this for more than decade but is still improving. Kinda impressive ngl

Born sinner was a better and more focused album than 2014. I’ve always said Cole made me cry in the first verse of apparently with how vulnerable he was about his mother. Then made me never want to listen to the song again in the 2nd verse with shit like “I’m hot dog ketchup to me” he’s a great feature artist because he is focused on one verse where he can stay consistent on one idea.

Wow, a random Northernlion appearance @0:30 😆

This album is 10 years old for me too

I was just listening to this album.

I love this album and so Idc thank you melon

6/10 is pretty crazy. Gotta be an 8 brother

Still my favorite album

I don’t know if you knew, Melon, but Cole rides a bicycle. He’s just like us

PLEASE reflect on Danny Browns XXX!!! It aged SO well

i was just listening to and reminiscing about this album a few days ago. im actually not a huge cole fan but this album was like a whole damn movement when it came out man. i remember hearing no role modelz and wet dreams every where back then and that beat on no role modelz takes me down such a nostalgia trip it's hard not to reminisce on when life was less shit or when i was younger and less messed up, especially considering how much of a turning point 2014 actually ended up being in my life.

I think something that should be acknowledged is that this album also acts as a story of his life up until that point. So while A Tale of 2 Cities can seem a bit redundant thematically, it’s symbolically the moment in the story where he leaves his hometown and shows up in New York. The song can be seen as him talking about what he saw and experienced, and what his friends/acquaintances/people around him saw and experienced during that time. That why firing squad, the next song, should be thinked about as the “king kunta” moment of the story, where j Cole now has buzz in the industry and feels more confident, hence the shots he takes in that song.

You would give it a 10 if it was called “2014 Bald sexy fantano hills drive”. Yet you would give it a 0 if it was called “2014 cal chuchesta drive.” Logic?

Personally still one of my favorite albums OAT. Regardless of how Fantano feels, he gives credit when it’s due and you gotta respect it

Would like a 4 your eyez only review plz❤️😊

Wet dreamz is very weird but in an artistic way. Its not meant to be creepy, its meant to be a story about how kids always think other cool kids are more than they really are, and how they both are equally hesitant and unconfident about a major point in their life when they think the other isnt. Also, more like kendrick lamer.

We need one of these for LP1 by FKA twigs definitely a classic at this point

03 adolescence is my favorite J Cole song of all time as well

"Forest Hills Drive, More like Forest Hills 5🤓"

St Tropez is so beautiful

One of my favorite albums ever. It’s fun, bombastic, great lyrics, great flow, great production and a shit ton of hits.

wet deamz is one of the best music storytelling I've ever seen, I actually feel like I'm in a "film" listening to it, and it also has a brilliant plot (mixing with the chorus)

When this album dropped, I was all about it. My score then probably would have been an 8.5. Going back years later? I'd say it's more like a 7. Still a solid album, imo :) To this day, the intro track transports me to another place, w/ the "Do y'wanna, do y'wanna be... happy?" where his voice cracks...

I remember listening to this album the day it came out. I had a four mile walk to work, and a friend I worked with was hyping it up prior as a Friday Night Lights fan. We talked about the record every time we crossed paths at the workplace that day. I would listen to it a lot with an ex as we drove to and from college all the time. I've spent a lot of time sharing different lyrics and ideas from this record with people over the years. This record is a good one. Not every song is amazing, and sometimes it makes you go "eh?", but I have so many memories and pleasant thoughts attached to every song on it with so many people. It's got a lot of value for me because of that. I don't listen to it a lot these days, but I think about it often.

Thank you mr.melon for the review

To me this project was an masterpiece 🙌🏾

I love revisits

i always loved the album for how relatable it was for its time

great review but why are you holding two pens in the same hand

TO BE KIND 10 YEARS ARE COMING TOO FANTY

Damn just these past days I had been wondering what you thought about this album today compared to your review video

Is it 'the light pack'?

I crank it to wet dreamz idk about you guys

6 to 10 has got to be the biggest score swing of yours. Glad you came around to the genius of this album.

The slightly crooked glasses dug into my brain throughout the video

11:11 I think the fact that depression and suicide is more prevelent in wealthy societies isn't a mistake or a glitch in the system. Yes wealth is better in contrast to poverty, but as far as finding happiniess and meaning life is concerned, money is a very small and often negligible prerequisite. There are plenty unhappy rich prople just as there are happy poor people - that's not a mistake, it's by design As someone who was raised in a 3rd world country and as someone who has read LIFE AT THE BOTTOM by Theodore Dalrymple, the point J.Cole makes on Love Yours isn't lost on me J.Cole isn't "tone deaf". Maybe...just maybe, either you're just too ignorant about things like loneliness & mental health problems (which is the one health problem all the money in the world does very little to solve) or your negatively bias towards Cole and his music is so strong it blinds you when he makes a good point

i have zero interest in listening to this album all the way through but tale of two cities was the first cole song i listened to and actually really enjoyed. its great!

Love this album, but what stands the most is how much better he is now lyrically

Let’s remember how he gave lil pumps album a higher score than a class album like forest hills drive

You should do an NFR 5 years later

I literally re-listened to the album yesterday, damn

Northernlion jumpscare

Being in high school when wet dreamz dropped was so great everyone knew the lyrics

NL MENTIONED

Cole is one of my favorite rappers and I do think that this is his best album, but I never really understood the massive praise this album gets from his fans. A very strong 7/very light 8 IMO

St Tropez???? A snoozer????? Get a grip

what is that album in the top right with the four faces?

FAV TRACKS: '03 ADOLESCENCE, FIRE SQUAD, WET DREAMZ, A TALE OF 2 CITIEZ LEAST FAV TRACK: ST. TROPEZ

Evolution

God. I graduated high school in 2014. I am old

The look on my face when fantano said “honestly I’m still not crazy about this album” and we needed 10 minutes for you to reach that conclusion??

Kendrick's diss made melon want to revisit Cole's work

Fantano should make a new channel where he reviews his own reviews.

Come on Melon, St Tropez is a vibe!

Jadethony willtano here

"Love Yourz is another confusing moment for me"... 💔😭

I can't believe NL ate vegan chicken wings and then out of nowhere gave j cole a 6

Fantanos got faith by the cure my dude that is the crème de la crème right there

what are the vinyls on the back wall? specifically top left and right.

St Tropez slaps 🤷‍♂️