I decided to write this week about the song "Love Yourz" off of hip-hop artist J Cole's most recent album, 2014 Forest Hills Drive. You can watch the music video here on YouTube.
In our materialistic society, people tend to chase a life of luxury, wanting the nicest car, the biggest house, and the trendiest brands to put on a display of wealth and success. DreamVille rapper J Cole speaks on this track to say that when he was young and up and coming in the rap game, he thought that having all the accolades, the money, and buying his mom a house would bring him happiness. Now that he has reached that level, after years of hard work and finally becoming a platinum-record selling artist, he is still unhappy. He thinks that maybe being broke was better. In the music video, we are given the perspective of two teenagers on the same block, one from a wealthy family and one from a poor family. On the outside, the richer kid seems happier because he's rocking the sickest brands and wearing a nice watch while the poorer kid gets made fun of for his cheap clothes. However, we see that their home lives are very different. The rich kid is lives in a big house with a depressed, alcoholic mother, and a neglectful, abusive father. This is similar to Cole's relationship with his parents. While he was out in LA enjoying his life, his parents back home had problems, which lead to his father leaving and his mother becoming depressed. The poor kid in the music video lives in a small house but he is welcomed home by his loving parents. Their lives at home parallel the truth in the line "Its beauty in the struggle, ugliness in the success". He is right, we love the story of overcoming hardship, persevering through a bad situation, it's just in our nature to empathize with someone who is struggling but fighting.
J Cole explains to us that at the end of the day, all of that awesome stuff that you've got or still want doesn't mean anything. It's all about taking the time to appreciate what you have right now.
Always gon' be a bigger house somewhere, but nigga feel me
Long as the people in that motherfucker love you dearly
Always gon' be a whip that's better than the the one you got
Always gon' be some clothes that's fresher than the ones you rock
Always gon' be a bitch that's badder out there on the tours
But you ain't never gon' be happy till you love yours
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