Since he's arrived on the scene, J. Cole has been very open about the influence Kanye West has had on his rap career. But unlike the title of West's debut album, Cole is actually a college graduate and he recently received his diploma while performing at his alma mater, St. John's University.
As noted by XXL, Cole graduated from the prestigious university summa cum laude but never received his diploma, having failed to return a library book or pay the necessary fine.
On Thursday, Cole performed at St. John's and a group of his former professors presented the "Apparently" rapper with his diploma. The school ultimately decided to waive the fee.
"Tonight, I guess they let me slide," he laughed, according to The Village Voice.
Performing on his old stomping grounds brought on a feeling of nostalgia for the North Carolina-bred rhymer.
"There were a few moments onstage when I literally had to remember, like, 'Oh snap,'" he said. "I literally realized onstage that I wrote ["Lights Please"]. I remembered the apartment that I was in when I wrote it. I remembered the night I wrote it. I definitely probably had class the next day. I just remember that era of making music and still going to class. It's just crazy."
This month, Cole's latest album 2014 Forest Hills Drive was certified platinum. As noted by Vibe, the feature-less project, which dropped in December, boasts over 1,000,000 copies, including streaming tallies. His previous albums, Cole World: The Sideline Story and Born Sinner, pushed 735,000 and 720,000 units respectively.
J. Cole is currently gearing up for his Forest Hills Drive tour.
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