Alter Ego

10.5.20

Kill Edwards circa 2018

Many artists have their alter egos, where the energy and aggression typically tend to turn it up a notch. There is T.I. vs TIP, Eminem vs Slim Shady, Nicki Minaj vs Roman, and many others. One that you may have to be a super-fan to catch, is J. Cole’s alter ego, Kill Edward. Kill Edward made his debut on J. Cole’s 2018 album KOD, as the lone feature on the project, appearing twice.

Fans initially were shocked to see the feature on the album. This album was supposed to have no features, and no one knew who Kill Edward even was. Ultimately, we were left to listen and guess, that this is fact was J. Cole, and perhaps a new alter ego. The voice is a bit eery and autotune. On the first track, The Cut Off, it actually reminds me of Eminem when he does this devil robot voice in Be Careful What You Wish For, and a few others. Friends, which is the second track, has a similar feel but a bit more emotional singing than the robot aggression.

Typically I think of J. Cole as more of a conscious, positive rapper. This alter ego does not feel like this, at all. However, he does speak on some serious situations, and perhaps this new persona allows him to get a bit more eery than he typically would in his tunes. The whole point of alter egos in music is to try new things, so I definitely see J. Cole using this here. However, the sound is not easy on the ears, in my opinion. I could probably do without it, but it sounds like Kill Edward has some new music up his sleeve.

The alter ego has an Instagram page with over thirty-two thousand followers. With just three posts, that all come from touring for KOD back in 2018, it does make sense that J. Cole made this page to draw hype and interest around who this character really is. The images all show him standing away from the camera, or with a black hood on in a dark background, so we could not be so certain.

Just last night, around midnight, the page posted on their IG stories, alluding to new music coming by the end of the year. The description in the page’s bio also shares “The Fall of 2020…”. This sounds like new music is on the way. Though, some fans are not so sure this alter ego page is legit. J. Cole has dropped three new singles this year, and has alluded to more music on the way. After the way Snow On Tha Bluff went over with the people, it might not be a bad time to break out the alter ego and let him speak his mind.