The Climb Back

Album: Lewis Street (2020)
Charted: 25
Play Video

Songfacts®:

  • Here, J Cole the rapper addresses the ups and downs of life and how he's persevered through critical periods to get ahead in the rap game. He's saying those traumatic times don't last forever and the good times will inevitably return.

    Everything come back around full circle
    Why do lies sound pleasant but the truth hurtful?
    Everybody gotta cry once in a while
    But how long will it take 'fore you smile?


    Cole might have in mind the criticism he received for his previous single, "Snow On Tha Bluff." He was lambasted on social media for calling out the rapper and poet Noname on the song.
  • During the outro, Cole suggests a phone number to call whenever someone has an urge to kill. You know, along the lines of the suicide prevention hotlines.
  • Cole released this along with the song "Lion King On Ice." They were packaged together as an EP titled Lewis Street, named after a street in Fayetteville where Cole grew up.
  • Cole took on production duties for "The Climb Back" himself. His previous album, Revenge of the Dreamers III, featured beats from a variety of record producers with the rapper only co-producing one track. However, Cole handled most of the instrumentation for his preceding record KOD.
  • J. Cole later included the song on his 2021 album The Off-Season.

Comments

Be the first to comment...

Editor's Picks

Lajon Witherspoon of Sevendust

Lajon Witherspoon of SevendustSongwriter Interviews

The Sevendust frontman talks about the group's songwriting process, and how trips to the Murder Bar helped forge their latest album.

Steven Tyler of Aerosmith

Steven Tyler of AerosmithSongwriter Interviews

Tyler talks about his true love: songwriting. How he identifies the beauty in a melody and turns sorrow into art.

00s Music Quiz 1

00s Music Quiz 1Music Quiz

Do you know the girl singer on Eminem's "Stan"? If so, this quiz is for you.

Justin Timberlake

Justin TimberlakeFact or Fiction

Was Justin the first to be Punk'd by Ashton Kutcher? Did Britney really blame him for her meltdown? Did his bandmates think he was gay?

80s Music Quiz 1

80s Music Quiz 1Music Quiz

MTV, a popular TV theme song and Madonna all show up in this '80s music quiz.

Experience Nirvana with Sub Pop Founder Bruce Pavitt

Experience Nirvana with Sub Pop Founder Bruce PavittSong Writing

The man who ran Nirvana's first label gets beyond the sensationalism (drugs, Courtney) to discuss their musical and cultural triumphs in the years before Nevermind.