Before choosing what would be his next effort, J. Cole repeatedly advised Morray to discard his record.
Morray discussed his friendship with Cole in a recent interview with HipHopDX, describing how the Dreamville head isn’t scared to express his views on music.
“I can call Cole right now and he’ll be like, ‘What’s the issue?’ But I gotta be prepared for the answer,” he started. “That’s the thing about Cole, he gon’ give you Cole. But I love that because he’s not afraid to tell you what you don’t wanna hear to make you better.
“I’ve presented hella albums, I’ve been ready for an album, don’t get me wrong, I’ve been ready. I’ve presented to Cole, he told me, ‘N-gga, you’re not ready.’ Do you know how hard it is to take that from somebody you look up to? I think I’m done and you’re telling me I’m not? Back to the drawing board? But I appreciate him because this album is staying.”
Although Morray had previously given J. Cole several albums, he is keeping the final body of work a surprise.
“I didn’t give it to him yet,” he said. “This is how I know this is the one. I want him to be surprised. I want him to hear it and be like, ‘Oh, n-gga, you did what the fuck I told you to do? Oh shit, you listened, n-gga?’ Like, ‘Yeah big bro, I really fuck with you!’
“I feel like him being a solid mentor is more than anything. It doesn’t matter if we never do anything else, it don’t matter if no opportunities come with J. Cole, the fact that I can call him and get quick advice, and the fact that you answer the phone… salute, big bro.”
When J. Cole saw Morray’s “Quicksand” music video in October 2020, he responded by saying on Instagram, “this shit is AMAZING.”
Cole and Morray later worked again on the song “My Life” from Cole’s The Off-Season, which also included 21 Savage. At the 2022 Grammy Awards, the song was ultimately nominated for Best Rap Song and Best Rap Performance.
In 2021, he also embarked on The Off-Season Tour alongside Cole and Savage. Morray discussed the moment he learned he would be joining them on tour in an interview with GRM Daily.
“I was in L.A. in a hotel and I got a phone call like, ‘Cole’s thinking about doing a tour and he said do you want to be on the tour?’” he recalled. “I’m like, Why Cole asking? He know damn well I want to do the tour!’
“It was life-changing to be on a tour with someone from your city, that should be on the Mount Rushmore of rap that comes from the same place where I come from. It was mind-boggling!”
Morray, one of HipHopDX’s Rising Stars for 2021, released his debut album Street Sermons in April of 2016. It was released by Interscope Records and made its Billboard 200 chart debut at No. 41.
