J. COLE BRINGS “THE VILLE” TO KANSAS CITY
Cole pays tribute to his hometown and gives fans a chance to share the spotlight
Kansas City hasn’t gotten its fair shake from hip-hop in 2026. Baby Keem, A$AP Rocky, and Isaiah Rashad all skipped over the City of Fountains. In contrast, J. Cole made sure KC felt the love when he returned to the T-Mobile Center just two years after his back-to-back shows at the venue, headlining alongside Drake on the “Big As The What?” tour.
Fan reactions to Cole’s 2026 album The Fall-Off were mixed. It failed to live up to the decades of hype, and Cole’s claim that it was his best album was debatable at best. My biggest gripe was that certain songs – “Run A Train,” “What If,” and “Man Up Above” – created a boring, predictable atmosphere with their slow pace on an album whose run time amounts to one hour and forty minutes. The Fall-Off isn’t without its highlights; “39 Intro,” “Two Six,” and “I Love Her Again” were among them. These tracks, plus a discography from the past two decades comparable to hip-hop’s best, are what led me to the Ticketmaster queue the morning of the presale.
On August 19, after filling up on a poke bowl from Pokesan in downtown KC, I set out for the T-Mobile Center with my friend Asher.
Bas and DJ Nitrane got the party started just after eight. DJ Nitrane played songs from a wide range of artists, from Fetty Wap to Keyshia Cole. Bas did crowd work, but it was strange to see an artist of his size reduced to being a hype man for a DJ set. The pair were joined by Dreamville’s PJ, who performed songs from her upcoming debut album. Later, PFG – a hip-hop artist from Cole’s native Fayetteville, North Carolina – joined the show, along with one of the biggest names in hip-hop production, Kansas City native Conductor Williams. Bas closed out the set by finally playing some of his own work, including “Tribe,” one of my favorite songs by both Bas and Cole. Even though this opening set might have lacked the star power expected on such a big stage, relying on such a diverse group of artists created a show that was engaging and a great warm-up for the headliner to follow.
As the lights dimmed, the spotlight slowly made its way to a spot in the back row of the lower bowl, where Cole sat with a hoodie over his head, leaning forward with his face hidden from view, as the arena filled with screams and cheers. Cole looked up, lifted the microphone to his mouth, and began to sing “A spaceship lands on Mars…” – the opening lyrics to “39 Intro.” As the song progressed, Cole made his way down the stairs and onto the floor, hugging and shaking hands with fans all along the path to the stage. As the final notes played, with the crowd still in raucous applause, he began my favorite song from the show, “Two Six.”
“Two Six” is an ode to Cole’s hometown of Fayetteville, North Carolina, and a central theme of both this concert and The Fall-Off. As Cole explained early in the show, one of his biggest goals for his career was to put his city on the map. He wanted to make sure everyone who heard his music understood where he came from and how it shaped him. Even in the set design, a replica of The Market House (a historic structure and Fayetteville’s town hall) serves as a scenic centerpiece. Staying true to his roots, the set also features a replica of Cole’s 2005 Honda Civic. He drove around the country in the days following the release of The Fall-Off in his old, beat-up Honda Civic, hosting meet-and-greets and selling CDs out of his trunk, before the car eventually broke down while driving from Phoenix to Los Angeles.
I wasn’t at all excited to hear “Run A Train,” due to the dull performance Future delivers on the song’s chorus, but in action, it was replaced by an entire arena screaming the lyrics. The involvement from the crowd turned a sleepy and forgettable song into one of the strongest moments of the night.
After “Poor Thang” and “Legacy,” which saw a brief reappearance from PJ, Cole transitioned into some of his more well-known commercial hits, including “A Tale of 2 Citiez” and “Fire Squad.” Next, Cole took a moment to pay tribute to one of the greats of the Carolina hip-hop scene, Petey Pablo, who Cole credits for paving the way for his stardom and rise out of North Carolina, performing a cover of “Raise Up.”
Cole uses his famously complex verse on Benny The Butcher’s 2022 song “Johnny P’s Caddy” as a chance to allow a member of the audience to share in the spotlight; Cole picked out a young fan on her parents' shoulders for the opportunity to go bar-for-bar with him, and she delivered a flawless performance. Throughout the show, Cole made sure that we weren’t just celebrating his music – he was celebrating his fans and their continued devotion to him.
During “G.O.M.D.,” the jumbotron revealed a live band hidden from the audience, behind the stage. I think the show would have benefited from having the band in a more visible location, or allowing them a solo performance during some of the slower songs. Even an introduction to the individual members would have allowed them to establish themselves as known performers, allowing them to become part of the show.
Cole continued through his sprawling setlist with some slower love songs, “Life Sentence,” followed by “Love Yourz.” He then took a short break to explain that he had requested KC to be included on the tour after two sold-out shows with Drake in March 2024.
Cole ended the show with “Quick Stop,” a song about meeting a fan at a gas station who broke down, telling Cole the impact his songs have had on his life. For Cole, it’s a reflection of the impact his music has on everyday people. The song ends with him repeating “It’s the difference you make…”
Cole showed out for Kansas City, not just by throwing it on the tour lineup when other artists skip over it, but by creating a performance that celebrated his discography and his fans’ continued dedication and support. Cole paid homage to Fayetteville, both by bringing local artists along with him and by building a set that felt like another summer day in “The Ville.” As Cole ages, he’s been open about not having concrete plans for new music beyond The Fall-Off. You never know how many chances you have to see an artist at the height of their musical power, and for that reason, I can’t imagine having missed this show.
