J. Cole is taking Hip-Hop back to its print roots with a limited edition magazine featuring some of rap’s biggest names before launching his worldwide tour.
J. Cole is looking backward to push Hip-Hop forward as the rapper expands The Fall-Off era with a collectible magazine that celebrates the culture’s print journalism legacy just days before launching his global tour.
The Dreamville founder announced The Fall-Off Magazine, a 144-page editorial publication created as both a companion to his latest album and a tribute to the magazines that helped shape Hip-Hop’s history. The limited-edition release arrives ahead of The Fall-Off World Tour, which spans more than 50 cities across 15 countries over six months.
Available exclusively through TheFallOff.com, the publication features conversations with Jay-Z, Lauryn Hill, RZA, GloRilla, J.I.D, Lil Yachty, Cash Cobain and several other influential voices from across generations of Hip-Hop.
Rather than serving as a traditional promotional piece, the magazine aims to recapture the spirit of classic rap publications through long-form journalism, original photography, artwork and editorial design.
Cole tapped veteran journalist Bonsu Thompson to serve as editor-in-chief. Thompson, whose career spans three decades across some of Hip-Hop’s most influential magazines, partnered with publisher and Dreamville Vice President of Creative Felton Brown to assemble a team of more than 60 writers, photographers, illustrators, designers and artists.
“Like all essential creative by and for a culture, this collector’s edition arrives when most needed by its audience,” Thompson said. “Hip-Hop journalism has somehow expanded, diversified, atrophied and become amorphous all at once. So my aim was to deploy storytelling and the humanization of starpower to educate the world on how Godly the craftsmen and innovation behind Hip-Hop commerce were, are and will forever be. No wifi needed.”
Brown said the publication was intentionally built to bridge generations of artists and readers.
“The Fall-Off Magazine documents a singular moment in time,” Brown said. “Like the sun, Hip-Hop has never stood still. Every generation has added to the culture, and this publication was built to create space for generations of old and new to commune in conversation with one another.”
He continued, “We built this publication because we believe context matters, conversation matters, critical thought matters, and original content matters. Hip-Hop has always mattered. Documenting this thing of ours to be consumed tangibly creates a cultural and educational experience that people can return to long after the moment has passed.”
The Fall-Off Magazine, a collector’s item, is being released in a limited print run.
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