St. John’s grad J. Cole paid homage to Notorious B.I.G. and Tupac during his set at Bonnaroo Thursday night, performing Pac’s “I Ain’t Mad at Cha” before rapping the lyrics of his own Friday Night Lights mixtape standout “Higher” over Biggie’s “Big Poppa” backing track.
Cole might not ride the Isley Brothers-sampling beat quite as proficiently, but you can hardly fault him for either effort or taste. Known thus far for being the first to sign with Jay-Z’s Roc Nation label in 2008, Cole’s debut album is slated for release this summer.
The videos below are the first to surface from the Tennessee megafest thus far, but today Bonnaroo will begin a weekend-long webcast of a number of full sets through Vevo. You can catch Cole’s performance in its entirety at 5:45 p.m., as well as sets by New York City indie favorites the Drums and the Walkmen and many more.
