Dreams are a tricky thing. Dream too big and you could be disappointed with what you get. Dream too small and you might not ever experience your own potential. Then there's the American dream, which tells you if you work hard enough, no matter who you are or where you are from, you'll attain the dream you have.  J. Cole was fortunate enough to have his dream realized. With a supportive mother, who believed in his dream and bought him samplers and drum machines in his youth, he started rapping at 14 and after some time in New York as a student at St. John's University, he wound up on a Jay-Z 2009 track called "A Star Is Born." This exposure began his rocket to the top of the charts as the hot new thing, with his first two albums, "Cole World: The Sideline Story" & "Born Sinner" including features from rap legends, such as Jay-Z, Missy Eliot, 50 Cent, TLC, and Kendrick Lamar. Cole was on top of the world and his dream was now reality, but at the top of the charts, he started to realize that he still was not fulfilled. In New York, no matter how successful he continued to be, he still felt like an outsider, a transplant. For Cole, it was time to go home to Fayetteville, North Carolina, and reassess. In "2014 Forest Hills Drive," Cole lays out his emotional journey as he buys his childhood home and all the memories attached to it. He thinks about all the people that he grew up with and where their lives took them, as well as the differences in childhood and education he had being from living in a better neighborhood and going to a better school. J. Cole proved with this album that he hadn't forgotten about his roots and gave everyone in his community the hope that dreams can come true, as well as putting Fayetteville on the map. Join Brad, Jon, and returning guest Trevor Kolden as we break it down on THE ALBUM CONCEPT HOUR!

COMING UP: (09-04-20) BONUS EPISODE!!! Sufjan Stevens - Illinoise; with very special guest, Kristin Peterson, Director of RINGOLEVIO, an indie film featured in the 2020 DWF:LA film festival!!! (watch it tonight at 6pm or Thursday at 5:30PM here: https://dwfla.com/2020/movies/ringolevio/)

(09-07-20) The Who - Tommy (part 1)

SPOTIFY PLAYLIST NUMBER ONE: https://open.spotify.com/playlist/6Z67Ka5xedSfYIvWw6YNt4?si=GG5CAvtUQ0CWpr74gRn-_A

Links:

www.twitter.com/RevoloverAudio

www.anchor.fm/AlbumConceptHour

www.twitter.com/AlbumConceptPod

www.myspace.com/AlbumConceptHour

www.ko-fi.com/RevoloverAudio

Link to support important cause in the Madison area:

https://freethe350bailfund.wordpress.com/(Madison bail fund)

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Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/albumconcepthour/support