In a recent interview J Cole named six hip hop artists who fuelled his ambition and inspired to reach higher, and Marshall is among them.
J Cole sat down with Kevin Hart and answered a question about is hip hop heroes, people who showed him what a talent and dedication could do. Cole not only named the biggest of his inspirations but also mentioned artists who captured his attention on the way and contributed to his evolution:
I got a list of people who are the “why” I’m here. They don’t even know it but they are the North stars that I was following. Obviously, that was Pac when I was, like, forever, from the earliest months. Jay, Nas, Eminem, André 3000, Lil Wayne. And these are the big bullets. But then I’ve also had Royce da 5’9 moments. I had Canibus moments. I had Boom Boom moments. But in terms of people that really fuelled my ambition, that showed me what was really possible — that first names I named, those are the highest ones. So these are the people that I was like, “Yo, I’m tryna get up there!” In terms of skill, in terms of success, all of that — they fuelled it.
It is a poetic and a honest way to see the hip hop culture not as a pyramid of influence and success but as a starry sky where every flickering light has its meaning and value, and contributes to the glory of the universe.
Watch the video below:
