J Cole Praises “Favorite Artist” Kanye West Amidst Ongoing Feud

J Cole is taking stock of his career and his place in the rap game. The Dreamville founder recently launched the podcast Inevitable. It will give Cole the chance to talk about the making of his most iconic songs, as well as build anticipation for his final album, The Fall Off. Naturally, the rapper kicked things off by discussing his debut mixtape, The Warm Up, Vol. 1. It was during the discussion of this tape that Cole decided to wax poetic on the importance of Kanye West. An artist who has mocked him repeatedly in the last eight months.

Kanye West’s influence on J Cole has never been a secret. The latter rapped on three West beats for The Warm Up, Vol. 1. Cole also used Ye’s classic “Last Call” as the template for his 2009 mixtape, The Warm Up, as well as his 2014 album, 2014 Forest Hills Drive. J Cole is, and always will be, a son of Kanye West, and he said as much during the first episode of Inevitable. “He became my favorite artist,” Cole recalled. “He kinda cracked my mind open. Kanye was the first time I saw myself in somebody.” J Cole went on to praise West for expanding the parameters for what a hip hop song could.

“He just made it possible to talk about your life or regular perspectives in a way that’s appealing,” J Cole added. “I didn’t know how to talk about my life. And then, f**king Kanye West happened.” It was touching to hear the Dreamville honcho reflect on such a formative moment in his career. It’s also a somewhat odd time to share this information. After all, Kanye West insulted J Cole on the “Like That” remix in April. “Play J Cole, get the p**sy dry,” he rapped. Play this sh*t back a hundred-thirty times.” West doubled down on this stance during an appearance on The Download podcast.

West felt that Cole was a “p**sy” for apologizing to Kendrick Lamar amidst the Big Three beef. “F*ck all that sh*t. Because, like that n**ga J Cole went on tour with Drake, he know what it is. You can’t put Cole and ‘up’ in the same sentence.” J Cole’s comments on the Inevitable podcast mark the first time he has spoken about Kanye West since these insults were made. Obviously, the rapper is opting to take the high ground and focus on cementing his legacy.