4 Your Eyez Only
by J. Cole
User Score
7.6

Generally favorable reviews- based on 323 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 255 out of 323
  2. Mixed: 43 out of 323
  3. Negative: 25 out of 323
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  1. dell221
    Apr 24, 2018
    4
    the worst album easily. neighbors and dejvue are the only things here to even talk about.rest of this **** he's singing and its garbage. he is straight up fooling fans with this no single no features **** he needs more features he needs better beats because this **** ain't it
  2. tommy1607
    Apr 17, 2017
    5
    I was a huge fan of J.Cole prior to this release and was very excited to listen to this. His last work: '2014 Forest Hills Drive' was a solid album with a good blend of storytelling and more conscious messages, and so I had high expectations for this project. The album is a very personal one, with Cole discussing his wife and daughter as well as his fears for the future across the album.I was a huge fan of J.Cole prior to this release and was very excited to listen to this. His last work: '2014 Forest Hills Drive' was a solid album with a good blend of storytelling and more conscious messages, and so I had high expectations for this project. The album is a very personal one, with Cole discussing his wife and daughter as well as his fears for the future across the album. There are also some harder tracks such as 'Immortal' and 'Neighbours' which are solid. However, to put it simply this album is a tad boring and bland when compared to Cole's previous work. Cole is often praised as a great lyricist, but honestly his lyrics are relatively surface level on this project and can't really be interpreted beyond their literal meaning. The beats are relatively uninspired throughout, particularly the rehashed and badly mixed 'Deja Vu' which sounds like a Soundcloud loosie that has just been chucked onto the project. The lowest point of the album is 'Foldin Clothes' which is a genuinely awful song. I feel like Cole still has it in him to release a classic album and this project is by no means terrible, but it is nowhere near as deep as people make it out to be and is very uninteresting at times.… Expand
  3. Trenedey
    Apr 22, 2017
    5
    As someone who wants to see J. Cole succeed in his career, I can only be honest and say this is one of Cole's weakest projects to date. For almost the entire time, I felt like I was going to doze off due to the beats not having a real personality-at some times feeling lifeless-and Cole's delivery seeming uninterested and lacking any urgency. The only song that really caught my attentionAs someone who wants to see J. Cole succeed in his career, I can only be honest and say this is one of Cole's weakest projects to date. For almost the entire time, I felt like I was going to doze off due to the beats not having a real personality-at some times feeling lifeless-and Cole's delivery seeming uninterested and lacking any urgency. The only song that really caught my attention was Neighbors, as I feel that was one of the only points where Cole inserted any real energy. On to of that, the lines on this album range from forgettable, to being corny or just outright bad, some examples like " Baby, I wanna do the right things they Feel so much better than the wrong things" on Foldin' Clothes, or "Every time you go to sleep you look like you in Heaven Plus the head game is stronger than a few Excedrin You shine just like the patent leather on my new 11's You read me like a book like I'm the Bible, you the Reverend" on She's Mine, Pt. 1. And while the album tries to tell a story, a fairly personal one at that in which he is telling the daughter of one of his friends the story of her father, it feels very scattered, with some song seeming to have no real connection to the story(eg. Neighbors) and it only really comes together of the final track due to the high amount of detail he puts into it-detail that could have been used on the 9 preceding tracks to help build the story-and leaves the listener in what I can only call a state of dissatisfaction. To end what may seem as a semi long winded rant, I want to reiterate: I want to see J. Cole succeed. It is plainly obvious that he has the ability and talent to do so, but I feel like he has been unable to do that with his art due to what I feel is not putting in his full effort, and him becoming to comfortable with a style and sound that he has already done to death. All I can hope for is that Cole does something truly unique and new for him on his new album and that he puts all his effort into it. Otherwise, I feel like I, along with other, will start to pay less and less attention when he drops a new project.… Expand
  4. C_dot
    Dec 3, 2018
    4
    Cole's most lackluster album to date. This album is best compared to a college course, intro to philosphy. Attempting to be profound, but ends up being shallow.

Awards & Rankings

29
#29 Most Discussed Album of 2016
40
#40 Most Shared Album of 2016

Critic Reviews

All reviews »
Metascore
75

Generally favorable reviews - based on 14 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 9 out of 14
  2. Mixed: 5 out of 14
  3. Negative: 0 out of 14
  1. The Wire
    Jan 27, 2017
    60
    Cutting through the tedium reveals a moderately engaging narrative of low level criminality with solid insights ranging from the cloying to mildly provocative. [Feb 2017, p.59]
  2. PopMatters
    Jan 17, 2017
    80
    He has matured into a one of the most important figures in modern hip hop and 4 Your Eyez Only is the evidence of this.
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  3. Slant Magazine
    Jan 10, 2017
    60
    4 Your Eyez Only‘s low-key production, favoring muted live-band grooves, occasionally reaches a boil, but mostly it provides scaffolding for Cole to rap. He does the heavy lifting without ever doing anything flashy--or, some might say, anything especially interesting.
    Read full review
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