J. Cole, Big K.R.I.T. & Kendrick Lamar - "They Ready"

J. Cole will always be held to a higher standard. He's the Andrew Luck of this generation's rappers. The number one overall pick by Jay-Z, a man that many hold to be the GOAT. Cole has all the tools to surpass his mentor and like Luck will always be compared to the man he succeeded (Manning for Luck, Jay for Cole). Anything less than MVPs and rings will be viewed as a failure for Luck. It's why good will never be good enough for J. Cole or Luck. It's why Cole World--a good album in its own right--was a disappointment. Every time that Cole hops on a track, we expect a classic song or a classic album. It's an absurd expectation, but that's what he's capable of and something that he'll have to struggle to live up to.

If J. Cole is Luck then Kendrick Lamar is the RG3 of this generation--a similarly gifted rapper who was the first round pick by another classic artist--Dr. Dre. As one would expect from one following in the footsteps of former Dre proteges Snoop Feline and Eminim, Lamar can rap circles around your favorite emcee better RG3 juking out defenders. Lamar will be held to similarly high standards (but not nearly as high as J. Cole). It was not surprising at all that Lamar had the best freshman album of these three talented rappers--he's gone the furthest in living up to his immense potential so far (if only he could get some more diverse instrumentals on his next album).

For the sake of the analogy, I guess that makes Big K.R.I.T. Russell Wilson. Like Wilson, K.R.I.T. is just as talented as the other two, but where Wilson was overlooked for his height, K.R.I.T. was overlooked for his geography (aspects that neither he nor Wilson could control). Despite falling to the third round, K.R.I.T. put out a rookie album that rivaled that of his peers (If I had to rank the three debuts, I'd go Lamar-K.R.I.T.-Cole). All three emcees have very bright futures and have many fans placing their faith in them as the next best thing.

This song, off DJ Khaled's latest album (I know, stick with me), is the only one that features all three on the same track (other than the gigantic remix of "I'm On"). Blink and you might miss K.R.I.T.'s verse, but all three give great performances (and Cole even takes a shot at A$AP). It's been in rotation constantly for the past couple months. Enjoy.