J. Cole released a surprise five-track compilation of freestyles entitled Birthday Blizzard ’26 ahead of his 41st birthday on Wednesday. The mixtape, available on the rapper’s website for $1 or any amount fans choose to pay, has gone viral, and Cole addresses his earlier apology to Kendrick Lamar on the opening track.
What did J. Cole say about Kendrick Lamar in the new freestyle?
The newly released project opens with “Bronx Zoo Freestyle,” a track just over three minutes long in which Cole reflects on his prior apology to Lamar, taking himself out of the initial “Top 3” discussion and removing himself from the cutthroat rap beef between the “Not Like Us” rapper and Drake.
“The top ain’t really what I thought it would be/ So I jumped off and landed back at the bottom and restarted at a level where I wasn’t regarded as much/ Just to climb past them again and tell them all to keep up,” Cole delivers on the freestyle before declaring, “I used to be top, see, the apology dropped me way out of the top 3/ No problem, I’m probably my best when they doubt me,” Cole raps in the song, according to Rolling Stone.
As of now, the website crashed with many purchasing the new project. “Bronx Zoo Freestyle” and the full mixtape can be found on YouTube.
Cole’s apology to Lamar at Dreamville, explained
Cole’s lyrics on the track are a follow-up to his “7 Minute Drill” diss to Lamar, which was part of his Might Delete Later mixtape, released in April 2024.
In the song, he said the Compton rapper’s music was boring after Lamar initially dissed both him and Drake on Future and Metro Boomin’s “Like That.” However, Cole later regretted hopping on the rap beef bandwagon and making those remarks about Lamar.
During his Dreamville Festival, Cole publicly addressed his feud with Lamar on stage, stating that he loved the “Squabble Up” musician and that caving into the rap pressure was “the lamest, goofiest s**t.” Cole also said “he pray that God will direct his path” and that he hoped Lamar didn’t “feel no way” during the rap feud, according to Blavity.
The Birthday Blizzard ’26 mixtape sets the tone for Cole’s forthcoming eighth studio album, The Fall-Off, which is set to be released Feb. 6. He released a trailer for the new project earlier in January, leaving fans wondering what the album will be like and if there will be features on it.