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J. Cole may have taken trap rap to task on his latest hit album, KOD on songs like “ATM,” “KOD,” and “1985,” but that hasn’t stopped him from also flashing appreciation for the subcategory of hip-hop. Even so, the North Carolinian standard bearer for conscious, lyrical hip-hop turned heads with his recent announcement that the opener on his upcoming KOD Tour would be none other than trap rap standout Young Thug.
Thugger, best known for his 2017 collaboration album with Future, Super Slimey, and his unusual fashion choices, including his samurai-influenced outfit from the cover of his 2016 mixtape Jeffery, is an unexpected choice for the much more traditional J. Cole to take on a tour — especially considering the old joke about J. Cole’s fans’ reticence to accept more pop-oriented acts like Thug.
However, the cross-pollination of their respective fanbases may be just the thing hip-hop needs to begin to close the rifts that have formed over the past few years that have found traditionalists increasingly rankled by the skyrocketing popularity of trap rap and so-called “mumble rap.” Fans of both sides can be exposed to one of the top representatives of each, possibly learning to appreciate each other a little more and see that it’s a lot bigger than hip-hop.
Check out the tour dates for J. Cole’s KOD Tour below.
8/9 Miami, FL @ AmericanAirlines Arena
8/11 — Tampa, FL @ Amelia Arena
8/12 — Atlanta, GA @ Infinite Energy Center*
8/13 — New Orleans, LA @ Smoothie King Center
8/14 — Houston, TX @ Toyota Center
8/17 — San Antonio, TX @ AT&T Center
8/18 — Dallas, TX @ American Airlines Center
8/21 — Phoenix, AZ @ Talking Stick Resort Arena*
8/22 — San Diego, CA @ Viejas Arena at Aztec Bowl SDSU
8/24 — Los Angeles, CA @ Staples Center
8/29 — Oakland, CA @ Oracle Arena
9/2 — Boise, ID @ Taco Bell Arena
9/4 — Sacramento, CA @ Golden 1 Center
9/5 — Anaheim, CA @ Honda Center
9/7 — Las Vegas, NV @ T-Mobile Arena
9/8 — Salt Lake City, UT @ Vivint Smart Home Arena
9/10 — Denver, CO @ Pepsi Center
9/12 — Little Rock, AR @ Verizon Arena*
9/13 — Birmingham, AL @ Legacy Arena at The BJCC
9/17 — Nashville, TN @ Bridgestone Arena
9/18 — Kansas City, MO @ Sprint Center
9/19 — Minneapolis, MN @ Target Center
9/21 — Detroit, MI @ Little Caesar’s Arena
9/22 — Chicago, IL @ Allstate Arena
9/23 — Columbus, OH @ Schottenstein Center
9/25 — Buffalo, NY @ KeyBank Center
9/26 — Hartford, CT @ XL Center
9/28 — University Park, PA @ Bryce Jordan Center
10/1 — New York, NY @ Madison Square Garden*
10/4 — Toronto @ Air Canada Centre
10/5 — Montreal @ Bell Centre
10/6 — Philadelphia, PA @ Wells Fargo Center
10/8 — Washington, DC @ Capital One Arena*
10/10 — Boston, MA @ TD Garden
*Dates with asterisk denote shows Young Thug will not be performing
