Growing up J. Cole idolized American rapper Nas, even posting his rap verses on his wall.
[2] Cole explained that soon after all these dead ends, One night I was in this hotel room after a show and I was listening to The College Dropout, as I do.
[1]"Work Out" would become the highly successful lead single from his debut album, peaking within the number 13 on the Billboard Hot 100.
Cole was devastated upon hearing that, which made him write the tribute song to his idol, "Let Nas Down" the following year.
[2][3] Less than a week after creating and recording the song, Cole ran into Nas at a Houston airport at six in the morning boarding the same flight as him.
[5][6] The song has been compared to Kanye West's "Big Brother" and Nas' "Unauthorized Biography of Rakim".
XXL called the song the album's most honest moment, and its best track along with the two singles "Crooked Smile" and "Power Trip.