Middle Child Explained

Middle Child
Cover:J. Cole - Middle Child.png
Type:single
Artist:J. Cole
Album:Revenge of the Dreamers III
Released:January 23, 2019
Recorded:December 2018[1]
Studio:The Sheltuh, Raleigh, North Carolina
Genre:Hip hop, trap
Label:
Producer:
  • T-Minus
  • Cole
Chronology:J. Cole
Prev Title:A Lot
Prev Year:2019
Next Title:Shea Butter Baby
Next Year:2019

"Middle Child" is a song by American rapper J. Cole. The song was released on January 23, 2019, through Dreamville Records, Roc Nation and Interscope Records, as the first single from Dreamville's 2019 compilation album, Revenge of the Dreamers III. The song was written by J. Cole, T-Minus, Allan Felder, & Norman Harris, and produced by the former two.[2] [3] It was serviced to rhythmic and urban contemporary radio on February 5, 2019. The track contains a sample from "Wake Up to Me", written by Felder and Harris, as performed by First Choice. On the song, J. Cole explores "his place between the old and new generations of hip hop, making him the 'middle child' of rap."[4]

Background and release

On January 20, 2019, J. Cole cleared his Instagram page, the next day Cole cryptically posted a series of posts with lines from the song. They read: I'm Counting My Bullets, I'm Loading My Clips, I'm Writing Down Names, and I'm Making A List, J Cole later deleted the posts.[5] Then, later that same day, Cole announced on social media that he was releasing "Middle Child" on January 23, 2019, at 9:00 PM EST, and uploaded the cover art which featured the song's title capitalized over a static grey background.[6]

On January 25, 2019, in an interview with Complex, producer T-Minus revealed that they made the song about two months before the highly promoted Dreamville recording sessions, which were held the same month "Middle Child" was released. He also spoke about the process he and Cole took making the song:

Production

"Middle Child" was produced by both J. Cole and Canadian hip-hop producer T-Minus. The song includes an exclusive multi-track sample of the horns section from "Wake Up to Me" by '70s Philadelphia trio First Choice, which was found and cleared through music licensing site Tracklib.[7] [8] This allowed them to isolate horns before adding in the drums. In an episode of Genius' Deconstructed, T-Minus explained he "put some reverb on [the horn sample] to give it that effect of it being a little bit more airy, a little bit bigger". Next was the addition of drums to the song, which T-Minus said was reminiscent of KOD "'cause a lot of it's very like stuttery kind of hats, very short but rhythmic". The drums added a variety of sounds, but J. Cole wanted to add an 808 pattern to the song, with the beat going from high to low. T-Minus noted the 808 for being "really hard" and also incorporated hi-hats to add "more energy to the song when it drops". The last production detail was including T-Minus' signature "trippy vibe", which he previously utilized on song like Kendrick Lamar's "Swimming Pools (Drank)" and Lil Wayne's "She Will"—"at the end of the record, we kind of added this effect to make everything kind of sound dark and kind of trippy".

Commercial performance

With only one day of tracking, the song debuted at number 26 on the US Billboard Hot 100. The following week, the song peaked at number 4, later becoming J. Cole's best performing track and highest-charting song until the release of My Life with 21 Savage & Morray, which peaked at number two.[9] [10] The song also peaked at number 2 on the US Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart.

Music video

An accompanying music video for the track was uploaded to Cole's official YouTube channel on February 25, 2019.[11] Cole announced the video via Twitter on February 22, 2019.[12] The video was shot in Georgia, and was directed by fellow North Carolina rapper Mez, and features cameos from Dreamville artists Lute, Omen, and Cozz.[11] The video serves as Mez' first directed video.[13] In an interview with Complex, Mez spoke about the creation of the video, he said:

Reviewing the music video, Laura Dzubay of The Michigan Daily said, "The visuals used in the "MIDDLE CHILD" video are very evocative: Between the lit-up marching band, the covered dead bodies, the stuffed rappers' heads on the mantle and the woman at the end picking a Saran-wrapped head out of a sale freezer at the grocery store, it's almost hard to land on which theme (if any) might be the most significant. What does seem clear is that J. Cole is asserting his readiness to dominate the music scene no matter which direction it takes next."[14] Writing for The Fader, Jordan Darville described the video as "a fun, symbolic, and provocative set of visuals."[15]

Live performances

J. Cole performed "Middle Child" at the 2019 NBA All-Star Game halftime show on February 17, 2019, in Charlotte, North Carolina.[16]

Remixes

Many remixes have been made, including by rappers Deante' Hitchcock, released on January 28, 2019,[17] Reason, released on March 8, 2019,[18] and Montana of 300, released on March 24, 2019.[19]

Awards and nominations

YearOrganizationAwardResultRef.
2019BET AwardsCoca-Cola Viewer's Choice Award
Impact Track
Soul Train Music AwardsRhythm & Bars Award
2020Grammy AwardsBest Rap Performance

Charts

Weekly charts

Chart (2019)Peak
position
Greece (IFPI)[20] 4
Latvia (LAIPA)[21] 4
Lithuania (AGATA)[22] 4
US Rolling Stone Top 100[23] 21

Year-end charts

Chart (2019)Position
Australia (ARIA)[24] 63
Canada (Canadian Hot 100)[25] 36
Latvia (LAIPA)[26] 43
New Zealand (Recorded Music NZ)[27] 30
Portugal (AFP)[28] 83
US Billboard Hot 100[29] 25
US Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs (Billboard)[30] 8
US Rhythmic (Billboard)[31] 17
US Rolling Stone Top 100[32] 7

Notes and References

  1. Web site: The Making Of J. Cole's MIDDLE CHILD With T-Minus, Deconstructed . . February 22, 2019.
  2. Web site: MIDDLE CHILD by J. Cole on iTunes . . January 27, 2019.
  3. Web site: BMI Repertoire Search. repertoire.bmi.com. May 15, 2019.
  4. Web site: The Making of J. Cole's "MIDDLE CHILD" with T-Minus.
  5. Web site: Cole . Alexander . J. Cole Comes Back To Instagram, "I'm Counting My Bullets" . HotNewHipHop . January 21, 2019.
  6. Web site: Findlay . Mitch . J. Cole Announces New Single "Middle Child" Dropping Wednesday . HotNewHipHop . January 21, 2019.
  7. Web site: How J. Cole and T-Minus sampled exclusive multitracks for "Middle Child". Tracklib. March 8, 2023. January 24, 2019.
  8. Web site: The Making Of J. Cole's "MIDDLE CHILD" With T-Minus. Fu. Eddie. Genius. July 16, 2019.
  9. Web site: J. Cole's "MIDDLE CHILD" Is Now the Highest-Charting Billboard Hot 100 Song of His Career . Complex . February 5, 2019.
  10. Web site: J. Cole. May 27, 2021. Billboard.
  11. Web site: Espinoza . Joshua . Watch J. Cole's New Video for "MIDDLE CHILD" . . February 26, 2019 . February 25, 2019.
  12. Web site: Ch . Devin . J. Cole Set To Debut "Middle Child" Music Video On Monday . HotNewHipHop . February 26, 2019 . February 23, 2019.
  13. Web site: King Mez . Crazy...I wrote and directed the Middle Child video... . https://ghostarchive.org/iarchive/s/instagram/BuUARJynI8g . December 24, 2021 . registration. . February 26, 2019 . February 25, 2019. King Mez .
  14. Web site: Dzubay . Laura . J. Cole balances past and future in 'MIDDLE CHILD' . . March 2, 2019 . February 27, 2019.
  15. Web site: Jordan . Darville . J. Cole shares music video for "Middle Child" . . March 2, 2019 . February 25, 2019.
  16. Web site: J. Cole . J. Cole - Middle Child (2019 NBA All Star Halftime Performance) . . February 23, 2019 . February 18, 2019.
  17. Web site: Y.N.S *MIDDLE CHILD FREESTYLE* . SoundCloud . May 22, 2019.
  18. Web site: Commandeur . Jordan . Reason Adopts J. Cole's Middle Child And Makes It His Own (Audio) . Ambrosia for Heads . April 25, 2019 . March 9, 2019.
  19. Web site: Montana Of 300 - Middle Child (Remix) (Official Video) . . April 25, 2019 . March 24, 2019.
  20. Web site: IFPI Greece International Digital Singles Chart . April 13, 2019 . https://web.archive.org/web/20190516060932/https://www.ifpi.gr/digital_ien.html . May 16, 2019 . dead .
  21. Web site: Mūzikas Patēriņa Tops/ 13. nedēļa. Latvian. LAIPA. November 28, 2019. https://web.archive.org/web/20191010115123/https://www.parmuziku.lv/muzikas-zinas/latvija/muzikas-paterina-tops-13-nedela-7874. October 10, 2019.
  22. Web site: Savaitės klausomiausi (TOP 100). Lithuanian. AGATA. February 1, 2019. December 4, 2019.
  23. Web site: Top 100 Songs. Rolling Stone. July 5, 2019. January 1, 2020.
  24. Web site: ARIA End of Year Singles Chart 2019. Australian Recording Industry Association. January 10, 2020.
  25. Web site: Canadian Hot 100 – Year-End 2019. Billboard. December 6, 2019.
  26. Web site: Digitālās Mūzikas Tops 2019. LAIPA. lv. January 3, 2020.
  27. Web site: Top Selling Singles of 2019. Recorded Music NZ. December 21, 2019.
  28. Web site: Top AFP - Audiogest - Top 3000 Singles + EPs Digitais. Associação Fonográfica Portuguesa. Portuguese. August 11, 2020.
  29. Web site: Hot 100 Songs – Year-End 2019. Billboard. December 6, 2019.
  30. Web site: Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs – Year-End 2019. Billboard. December 6, 2019.
  31. Web site: Rhythmic Songs – Year-End 2019. Billboard. December 6, 2019.
  32. Web site: Top 100 Songs of 2019. Rolling Stone. January 10, 2020. January 17, 2020.
  33. Web site: Middle Child / J. Cole TIDAL . Tidal . January 23, 2019.