J Cole’s Manager Confirms Dreamville Fest 2025 Will Be Last One Ever

J Cole has been teasing his retirement for years. He’s repeatedly said that he will step back from rapping after he drops The Fall Off. The thing is, every rapper has threatened to retire at one point or another. None of them have. It’s almost a signifier of an artist’s success if they are able to spin a narrative out of a possible retirement. That said, J Cole is really selling the bit. The rapper has launched a podcast looking back on his previous releases. Now, he’s claiming the upcoming Dreamville Fest will be his last.

Dreamville Fest released its 2025 dates via social media. It was a standard rollout, as far as previous announcements have gone. Except for one crucial detail. The unveiling of dates came with confirmation that the fifth Dreamville Fest will be the last one ever. “What a ride it’s been,” the official Twitter account wrote. “We can’t thank y’all enough for the memories we’ve shared.” There was a general sense of confusion over the announcement. Some hoped there was a misunderstanding, or maybe even a technicality that would allow the fest to continue in a different form.

J Cole’s manager, Ibrahim Hamad, confirmed this was not the case. Dreamville Fest is done after 2025, plain and simple. “Let’s run it back one last time and have a special weekend in North Caroline,” he tweeted. “Love y’all for real y’all have always supported us and made this weekend special.” Hamad, who co-hosts J Cole’s podcast, also thanked everybody who has made the festival possible. “I love y’all for real y’all don’t know how hard and how much work it takes to bring all this event,” he wrote. “But just know y’all make it more than worth it every year.”

The last Dreamville Fest was not the rousing success many anticipated. J Cole took the stage and apologized for dissing Kendrick Lamar on the song “7 Minute Drill.” He dubbed the song the “wackest sh*t” he’d ever recorded, and promised to take it down from streaming. Fans were genuinely perplexed by the rapper’s decision. J Cole’s admittance of being wrong overshadowed the rest of the festival. J Cole has done a spectacular job of reframing his narrative since the beef died down, however. We hope Dreamville Fest 2025 is the grand finish fans are expecting.