On His Song “Let Go My Hand,” J. Cole Confirms His Rumored Fight With Diddy

J. Cole’s latest project The Off-Season, which came more than three years after his last solo effort, has fans all over the world rejoicing. Although some speculated that the album would be released without features, it turns out that the project’s guests — 21 Savage, Cam’ron, Lil Baby, and others — were simply not included on the tracklist. Many fans are taking a ride down memory lane as they listen to the new album, with one of the tracks transporting them back to the summer of 2013.

On “Let Go Of My Hand,” J. Cole raps, “My last scrap was with Puff Daddy, who would’ve thought it? / I bought that n**** album in seventh grade and played it so much / You would’ve thought my favorite rapper was Puff.” This, of course, confirms a rumored fight that Cole had with Diddy at an after-party event for the MTV VMAs. Diddy himself appears on the outro of the song to deliver one of his signature prayers, “Lord, please guide our steps / Watch us, cover us / So that every move we make is in alignment with your will.”

Although the exact cause of the brawl was never revealed, rumors say it began when Diddy, who was heavily intoxicated at the time, got into an argument with Kendrick Lamar at the party about his notorious “Control” verse and the TDE rapper’s assertion that he was the “King of New York.” Diddy later attempted to spill a drink on Kendrick, which angered Cole, Kendrick’s close friend. As a result, Cole is said to have taken it upon himself to battle Diddy for supposedly attempting to douse Kendrick, resulting in their respective crews fighting. It’s nice to see that they’ve patched things up almost eight years later.