Lost Ones
Michael Moran
Prof. Aiossa
122-804
April 02, 2013 Jermaine Lamarr Cole, better known by his stage name J. Cole, is a rapper, songwriter and producer from Fayetteville, North Carolina. “Lost Ones” is a single from his album Cole World: The Sideline Story, which paints a picture of a man and a woman dealing with the prospect of having an abortion of their unborn child. Cole’s father left him and his mother when he was still young, and throughout this song he explores a little about how that situation effects the decisions that he makes. Throughout the song, a conversation is taking place between the man and the woman, and the tension between the two is evident as they are both clearly approaching the argument with different points of view in regards to the hot political and moral topic of pro choice or pro life. Premature parenthood is becoming more and more common in America. All too often young girls are becoming mothers before they even graduate from High School, resulting in an increasing number of dropouts. J. Cole sums it up with, “Think about it baby me and you we still kids our self/ how we gonna raise a kid by our self” (11-12). When young people get pregnant, they don’t realize the ripple effect that it will have on their lives nor on the life of their unborn child. Far from being mature enough, or living within stable conditions with a steady income, the strain of young parenting reaches into the family to affect the grandparents and siblings. Like Cole says, how can you raise a child properly if you are, in essence, still a child yourself?
Stemming from premature parenthood, child abandonment, or the abandonment of parental duties becomes an issue. Since neither individual planned for a pregnancy, it’s quite common that the male figure abandons the family. “Did you forget all those conversations we had way back/ bout your father and you told me that you hate that nigga/ talkin’ bout he a coward and you so glad that you aint that nigga/ cause he
Prof. Aiossa
122-804
April 02, 2013 Jermaine Lamarr Cole, better known by his stage name J. Cole, is a rapper, songwriter and producer from Fayetteville, North Carolina. “Lost Ones” is a single from his album Cole World: The Sideline Story, which paints a picture of a man and a woman dealing with the prospect of having an abortion of their unborn child. Cole’s father left him and his mother when he was still young, and throughout this song he explores a little about how that situation effects the decisions that he makes. Throughout the song, a conversation is taking place between the man and the woman, and the tension between the two is evident as they are both clearly approaching the argument with different points of view in regards to the hot political and moral topic of pro choice or pro life. Premature parenthood is becoming more and more common in America. All too often young girls are becoming mothers before they even graduate from High School, resulting in an increasing number of dropouts. J. Cole sums it up with, “Think about it baby me and you we still kids our self/ how we gonna raise a kid by our self” (11-12). When young people get pregnant, they don’t realize the ripple effect that it will have on their lives nor on the life of their unborn child. Far from being mature enough, or living within stable conditions with a steady income, the strain of young parenting reaches into the family to affect the grandparents and siblings. Like Cole says, how can you raise a child properly if you are, in essence, still a child yourself?
Stemming from premature parenthood, child abandonment, or the abandonment of parental duties becomes an issue. Since neither individual planned for a pregnancy, it’s quite common that the male figure abandons the family. “Did you forget all those conversations we had way back/ bout your father and you told me that you hate that nigga/ talkin’ bout he a coward and you so glad that you aint that nigga/ cause he