cole-rihanna

As he counts down to the premiere of his HBO special “Forest Hills Drive: Homecoming,” J. Cole debuts Episode 3 of his “Road to Homecoming” documentary series. In the nearly 30-minute clip, entitled “This Is What You Wanted,” the North Carolina MC takes cameras along as he embarks on his third annual “Dollar & A Dream” tour, which celebrated his 2010 mixtape Friday Night Lights.

“I’m already in a good ass creative space, period, but doing this shit is like cheating,” he said during rehearsals. “It’s still a breath of fresh air.”

He also reflects on signing to Roc Nation at the age of 25 and releasing his debut album Cole World: The Sideline Story at 27.

“I had a realization like damn, ni**a, you really did sit on the shelf. You were the epitome of a ni**a sitting on the shelf,” he said.

 

We also get to meet some of his loyal fans, who share their favorite songs off Friday Night Lights. During the L.A. show, he was joined onstage by Wale and Kendrick Lamar, who surprised the crowd by performing “Alright.”

Rihanna, who Cole previously toured with, also showed up and was moved by what she saw.

“Very deep, but real. Honest, vulnerable, confident. It was all of that,” she told Cole. “It wasn’t on no commercial shit at all. It was so good. I love seeing you like that. And seeing you so close to the people, and seeing you in a small venue like that. This is the shit they’re gonna remember forever.”

She also joked about his dreads:

“You a Rasta now? What the fuck?”

“Forest Hills Drive: Homecoming” premieres Jan. 9 on HBO. If you missed them, catch Cole’s two previous episodes, “Ain’t Nothin’ Like That” and “F**k Money, Spread Love.”