On his weekly Instagram Live stream, The Fat Joe Show, the “Lean Back” rapper shares his unfiltered thoughts on all sorts of topics, from the controversy surrounding Joe Rogan to why no one wants to see Busta Rhymes in a Verzuz hits battle. Given his status as a veteran of the rap game — his debut album Represent was released nearly 30 years ago, in 1993 — his opinions hold weight, even when his expertise isn’t always obvious. For instance, in his latest episode, he has some critiques for J. Cole’s new pro hoops career.
Although it may not seem like it, Joe’s just as heavy in the New York streetball circuit. And while ESPN’s recent And 1 mixtape documentary showed that pro ball and streetball are two very different games, Joe’s success at world-famous tournaments like Rucker Park’s gives him a certain amount of credence. “Now, is J. Cole really good?” he wonders “They say he is nice. Are you sure they say he is nice? Because this is a classic story…” He then compares Cole’s exploits and the praise he’s received from playing in the Basketball Africa League and Canadian Elite Basketball League to another rapper-turned-hooper whose success has been exaggerated in later years.
“Master P didn’t score one point at the Rucker,” he recalls. “Master P keeps showing these videos of him going to the league. I respect Master P at the highest level, but that is not true. It’s emphatically non-cipher. He came to the Rucker and stunk it up. Didn’t score one point. I don’t know how he’s going to the league.” So while Drake, Rick Ross, and others have supported Cole’s hoop dreams, it seems he has at least one peer who remains skeptical — and probably with good reason, considering the Scarborough Shooting Stars’ losing record and Jermaine’s ho-hum stat lines so far.
