Song 33 is Noname‘s response to J. Cole‘s Snow on Tha Bluff, a record many think is critical of Noname. And they’re right. Where they’re wrong is the intention behind the song.
In a tweet a few weeks ago, Noname called out rappers who weren’t using their platform to support Black Lives Matter and the black community.
In Snow on Tha Bluff Cole let’s is sung from the perspective of Cole’s ego-driven rap persona “J. Cole”, as he lashes out at Noname for daring to call him out.
“She mad at the celebrities, low-key I be thinkin’ she talkin’ ‘bout me / Now I ain’t no dummy to think I’m above criticism / So when I see something that’s valid, I listen / But shit, it’s something about the queen tone that’s botherin’ me,”
It’s easy to think Snow on Tha Bluff is a sincere shot a Noname; it feels like a typical diss track. But digging a little deeper tells a different story, one of a person attempting to get more involved in his community, but who’s insecurities leave little room for criticism. Cole is sticking to his guns, tweeting after Snow on Tha Bluff‘s release and blow-back that he stands behind “every word of the song,” while urging fans to follow Noname, as he has not “done a lot of reading and I don’t feel well equipped as a leader in these times. But I do a lot of thinking. And I appreciate her and others like her because they challenge my beliefs and I feel that in these times that’s important.”
Follow @noname . I love and honor her as a leader in these times. She has done and is doing the reading and the listening and the learning on the path that she truly believes is the correct one for our people. Meanwhile a nigga like me just be rapping.
— J. Cole (@JColeNC) June 17, 2020
I haven’t done a lot of reading and I don’t feel well equipped as a leader in these times. But I do a lot of thinking. And I appreciate her and others like her because they challenge my beliefs and I feel that in these times that’s important.
— J. Cole (@JColeNC) June 17, 2020
