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

Gary Lewis

Gary LewisSongwriter Interviews

Gary Lewis and the Playboys had seven Top 10 hits despite competition from The Beatles. Gary talks about the hits, his famous father, and getting drafted.

Joe Ely

Joe ElySongwriter Interviews

The renown Texas songwriter has been at it for 40 years, with tales to tell about The Flatlanders and The Clash - that's Joe's Tex-Mex on "Should I Stay or Should I Go?"

16 Songs With a Heartbeat

16 Songs With a HeartbeatSong Writing

We've heard of artists putting their hearts into their music, but some take it literally.

Creedence Clearwater Revival

Creedence Clearwater RevivalFact or Fiction

Is "Have You Ever Seen the Rain" about Vietnam? Was John Fogerty really born on a Bayou? It's the CCR edition of Fact or Fiction.

Country Song Titles

Country Song TitlesFact or Fiction

Country songs with titles so bizarre they can't possibly be real... or can they?

Cy Curnin of The Fixx

Cy Curnin of The FixxSongwriter Interviews

The man who brought us "Red Skies" and "Saved By Zero" is now an organic farmer in France.