President Joe Biden is the J. Cole of Politics

Salute

This week, President Joe Biden announced that he was not running for reelection. After much speculation and a very divided Democratic party, Biden said that he would be stepping down for the good of America. “Nothing, nothing can come in the way of saving our democracy,” he said. “And that includes personal ambition.”

It was the finale to 50 years spent in public office. A selfless moment that will be remembered in history. In this moment, I couldn’t help but thinking about another man who stepped aside for the good of humankind: J. Cole.

The title of “best rapper alive” among Kendrick, Lamar, Drake and Cole was debated for years. It finally seemed like we would get that following Kendrick Lamar’s “Like That” verse. J. Cole dipped his toe and then quickly exited. He made the embarrassing apology at the Dreamville Festival in his hometown, saying that he “felt terrible” after dissing Kendrick.

At the time, I was very vocal about how cowardly the rapper had appeared. “J. Cole famously said he let Nas down in a song many years ago, and with this move he’s let hip-hop down,” I told The Washington Post. “It’s disappointing to see that somebody who, as an athlete himself, understands healthy competition and sportsmanship and also is a true lover of the art form of hip-hop, would come out with a diss record and then 48 hours later, rescind it.”

Being the GOAT rapper isn’t quite as hard as being leader of the free world. One regrettable “7 Min Drill” diss isn’t the same as one term in office (especially following Donald Trump).

However, J. Cole had to step down in order for hip-hop to win.

Once he was out of the way, we could focus on the main event: Kendrick Lamar vs. Drake. Since 2013, the two had thrown subliminal jabs at each other. Many of us didn’t believe that both would directly get into the ring. We were wrong. We were fed with records on records. For the first time in a long time, lyrics, metaphors and punchlines were being discussed on a mainstream level. What a time to be alive…

The Kendrick Lamar and Drake beef is the most exciting thing to happen in hip-hop in years. “Not Like Us” is the song of the summer and become a cultural movement. I’ve wrote about the whole beef a lot (and posted analysis videos on YouTube).

In the same way, Biden bowing out allowed Vice President Kamala Harris to step up and take his place. Harris vs. Trump is the real event. Young vs. old. Women vs. misogynist. Prosecutor vs. felon. It is a necessary changing of the guard. This has reinvigorated and energized voters in a way we haven’t felt in a long time. That slow moving dread of another four years of Donald Trump has been replaced with a new feeling: Hope.

Sometimes, someone has to take a personal L for the greater good.