Cole World

<em>Cole World: The Sideline Story</em> One Year Later

Four years. That's how long it took for Roc Nation star J. Cole to create his long-awaited debut album, <em>Cole World: The Sideline Story</em>. From the release of "Lost Ones" in 2007 to "Lights Please" being played to Mark Pitts (now his manager) in 2008 and then becoming the first artist signed to Jay-Z's emerging Roc Nation fold in 2009—not to mention the celebrated mixtapes in between (2007's <em>The Come Up</em>, 2009's <em>The Warm Up</em> and 2010's <em>Friday Night Lights</em>)—Cole went through a long tumultuous journey that eventually paid off on September 27, 2011.Weaving together struggle, tragedy and triumph—as well as occasional boasts here and there ("The ones y'all thought would save the day can't even tie my boots")—into 57 minutes and 43 seconds of pure <em>from the heart shit</em>, the lauded effort was a success. Not only did it exceed expectations with sales and landed the Fayetteville, North Carolina-bred lyricist atop the <em>Billboard</em> album charts, but it also gave more validity to the title of his mentor's 2009 <em>Blueprint 3</em> joint "A Star Is Born"—a track where Lightskin Jermaine is rightfully featured.A year later, after <em>Cole World</em>'s release, it's been quite the ride. So on the day the album celebrates its release anniversary, <em>XXL</em> went on a trip down memory lane and created a timeline of all that's happened since the arrival of the Freshman alum's debut. <em>Rise and shine...</em>—<em>Ralph Bristout</em> (@XXLRalph) and <em>Adam Fleischer</em> (@AdamXXL)

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Release And Sales Projections

<strong>Date:</strong> September 27, 2011<br />On September 28, just a day after its release (September 27), reports indicate that Cole's <em>Cole World: The Sideline Story</em> is expected to sell between 240,000 to 250,000 copies its first week. According to <em>Billboard</em>, the debut would become the biggest for a solo act since Nicki Minaj's <em>Pink Friday</em> (2010).

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<em>Cole World: The Sideline Story</em> Debuts at No. 1 on <em>Billboard</em> 200

<strong>Date:</strong> October 5, 2011<br /><br />The 2010 <em>XXL</em> Freshman sells 217, 000 copies in his first week on shelves, giving him an edge over the comeback album from Travis Barker’s pop punk outfit, Blink-182, whose <em>Neighborhoods</em> LP landed at the No. 2 spot with 151,500. “Thanks to yall, we shook the game up. No chart topping single, just 2 years of hard work, great music and real ass fans. #1 album (sic),” Cole later tweeted.<br /><br />Jay-Z also went on to congratulate the rapper's success, writing a statement, “J. Cole’s success is testament to amazing artist development and Cole’s hard work,” the Roc Nation boss said in a statement. “I want to congratulate him on a #1 album and more importantly a great body of work.”

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Appears on <em>Last Call with Carson Daly</em>

<strong>Date:</strong> October 7, 2011<br /><object width="620" height="400"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/fNphxOwCSVM?version=3&hl=en_US"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/fNphxOwCSVM?version=3&hl=en_US" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" width="620" height="400" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true"></embed></object>

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Featured on "Undercover" with Chris Brown, from DJ Drama's <em>Third Power</em>

<strong>Date:</strong>October 11, 2012<br /><iframe width="620" height="400" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/c4uCkZQXrHQ?list=UUWB4YfuJdbFGK6Cf1CWPI9w&hl=en_US" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>

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Featured on the Remix to Beyonce's "Party"

<strong>Date:</strong>October 21, 2011<br /><object width="620" height="400"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/d8YVG7NgAaM?version=3&hl=en_US"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/d8YVG7NgAaM?version=3&hl=en_US" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" width="620" height="400" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true"></embed></object>

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Appears in Nike Basketball Commercial with Kevin Durant

<strong>Date:</strong> November 22, 2011<br /><object width="620" height="400"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/PqaVK0qGqao?version=3&hl=en_US"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/PqaVK0qGqao?version=3&hl=en_US" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" width="620" height="400" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true"></embed></object>

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<em>Cole World: The Sideline Story</em> Goes Gold

<strong>Date:</strong> December 2, 2011<br />Less than three months on the shelves, Cole's debut received a gold certification for sales over 500,000 units.

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Featured on Remix to Red Cafe's "Fly Together" with Wale and Trey Songz

<strong>Date:</strong>December 8, 2011<br /><iframe width="620" height="400" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/gTRxLz6XeMw?list=UUWB4YfuJdbFGK6Cf1CWPI9w&hl=en_US" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>

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Performs “Work Out” on <em>The Late Show with David Letterman</em>

<strong>Date:</strong>December 21, 2011<br /><object width="620" height="400"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/l1GHHOx_u78?version=3&hl=en_US"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/l1GHHOx_u78?version=3&hl=en_US" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" width="620" height="400" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true"></embed></object>

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Performs “Work Out” on MTV's New Years Eve Countdown

<strong>Date:</strong>December 31, 2011<br /><object width="620" height="400"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/6uda6JnmCy8?version=3&hl=en_US"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/6uda6JnmCy8?version=3&hl=en_US" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" width="620" height="400" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true"></embed></object>

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“Work Out” Goes Platinum

<strong>Date:</strong> January 11, 2012<br /><object width="620" height="400"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/6PN78PS_QsM?version=3&hl=en_US"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/6PN78PS_QsM?version=3&hl=en_US" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" width="620" height="400" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true"></embed></object>

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Performs on <em>Late Night With Jimmy Fallon</em>

<strong>Date:</strong> January 31, 2012<br /><object width="620" height="400"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/3NKYHJHGzp0?version=3&hl=en_US"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/3NKYHJHGzp0?version=3&hl=en_US" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" width="620" height="400" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true"></embed></object>

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Appears on Trae Tha Truth's Star-Studded “I'm On 2.0”

<strong>Date:</strong> February 3, 2012<br /><object width="620" height="400"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/Qaj3BjUNKE0?version=3&hl=en_US"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/Qaj3BjUNKE0?version=3&hl=en_US" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" width="620" height="400" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true"></embed></object>

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Nominated for Best New Artist at 54th Grammy Awards

<strong>Date:</strong> February 12, 2012 (Day of Grammys)<br /><object width="620" height="400"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/SRkRKkbbR2c?version=3&hl=en_US"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/SRkRKkbbR2c?version=3&hl=en_US" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" width="620" height="400" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true"></embed></object>

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Featured on "Let It Show" from Tyga's <em>Careless World: Rise of the Last King</em>

<strong>Date:</strong> February 21, 2012<br /><iframe width="620" height="400" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/Qub0-BYYGEY?list=UUWB4YfuJdbFGK6Cf1CWPI9w&hl=en_US" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>

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Hits 2 Million Followers on Twitter, Drops “Grew Up Fast”

<strong>Date:</strong> February 22, 2012<br /><object width="620" height="400"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/rtAla35QhFY?version=3&hl=en_US"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/rtAla35QhFY?version=3&hl=en_US" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" width="620" height="400" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true"></embed></object>

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Plays in the NBA All-Star Celebrity Game

<strong>Date:</strong> February 24, 2012<br /><object width="620" height="400"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/BR9BCjnSOZ4?version=3&hl=en_US"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/BR9BCjnSOZ4?version=3&hl=en_US" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" width="620" height="400" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true"></embed></object>

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Holds Inaugural Dreamville Weekend, Drops “Visionz of Home”

<strong>Date:</strong> March 1, 2012<br /><object width="620" height="400"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/ELMoPX_iv9w?version=3&hl=en_US"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/ELMoPX_iv9w?version=3&hl=en_US" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" width="620" height="400" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true"></embed></object>

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Drops “Drank in My Cup (Freestyle)”

<strong>Date:</strong> March 22, 2012<br /><object width="620" height="400"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/nxE_I9AoyEg?version=3&hl=en_US"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/nxE_I9AoyEg?version=3&hl=en_US" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" width="620" height="400" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true"></embed></object>

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Performs “This Time” with Melanie Fiona on <em>Tonight Show with Jay Leno</em>

<strong>Date:</strong>March 23, 2012<br />

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“Can't Get Enough” Goes Gold

<strong>Date:</strong> May 24, 2012<br /><object width="620" height="400"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/p0L4lA6bS2E?version=3&hl=en_US"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/p0L4lA6bS2E?version=3&hl=en_US" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" width="620" height="400" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true"></embed></object>

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"Nobody's Perfect" Hits No. 3 on the <em>Billboard</em> R&B/Hip-Hop Songs Chart

<strong>Date:</strong> July 7, 2012<br /><object width="620" height="400"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/9Pt0RHz_tno?version=3&hl=en_US"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/9Pt0RHz_tno?version=3&hl=en_US" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" width="620" height="400" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true"></embed></object>

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Kicks New Verse from Song “Chaining Day”

<strong>Date:</strong> July 25, 2012<br /><object width="620" height="400"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/rKzRZAtMZaM?version=3&hl=en_US"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/rKzRZAtMZaM?version=3&hl=en_US" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" width="620" height="400" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true"></embed></object>

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Drops “The Cure” Over The Throne's “Lift Off”

<strong>Date:</strong> July 26, 2012<br /><object width="620" height="400"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/bXjnaxbtlBw?version=3&hl=en_US"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/bXjnaxbtlBw?version=3&hl=en_US" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" width="620" height="400" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true"></embed></object>

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Performs at Lollapalooza in Chicago

<strong>Date:</strong>August 5, 2012<br /><object width="620" height="400"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/uzzYEdjUtcg?version=3&hl=en_US"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/uzzYEdjUtcg?version=3&hl=en_US" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" width="620" height="400" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true"></embed></object>

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Featured on DJ Khaled's “They Ready” Alongside Kendrick Lamar and Big K.R.I.T.

<strong>Date:</strong> August 15, 2012<br /><object width="620" height="400"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/9K5GMAhxjR4?version=3&hl=en_US"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/9K5GMAhxjR4?version=3&hl=en_US" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" width="620" height="400" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true"></embed></object>

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Debuts “I'm a Fool” at Rock The Bells

<strong>Date:</strong> August 18, 2012<br /><object width="620" height="400"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/YWBPc89K5-s?version=3&hl=en_US"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/YWBPc89K5-s?version=3&hl=en_US" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" width="620" height="400" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true"></embed></object>

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Featured on Rita Ora's Single “Love & War”

<strong>Date:</strong> August 23, 2012<br /><object width="620" height="400"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/1n2Ojt3TU80?version=3&hl=en_US"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/1n2Ojt3TU80?version=3&hl=en_US" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" width="620" height="400" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true"></embed></object>

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Featured on "Green Ranger" from Lil Wayne's <em>Dedication 4</em>

<strong>Date:</strong> September 3, 2012<br /><object width="620" height="400"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/5CTbIu1p7xg?version=3&hl=en_US"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/5CTbIu1p7xg?version=3&hl=en_US" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" width="620" height="400" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true"></embed></object>

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Comes Out at Kendrick Lamar Show in N.C., Takes Lyrical Shots at Diggy Simmons

<strong>Date:</strong> September 11, 2011<br /><object width="620" height="400"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/opmXhaeMTsQ?version=3&hl=en_US"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/opmXhaeMTsQ?version=3&hl=en_US" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" width="620" height="400" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true"></embed></object>

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Drops “I'm a Fool”

<strong>Date:</strong> September 16, 2012<br /><object width="620" height="400"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/qn47k4_rPG4?version=3&hl=en_US"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/qn47k4_rPG4?version=3&hl=en_US" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" width="620" height="400" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true"></embed></object>