Rapper J. Cole signs with Chinese professional

Hip-hop star J. Cole is taking his basketball goals abroad — again.

When ESPN reported Wednesday that the two-time Grammy winner has signed to play for the Nanjing Monkey Kings in the Chinese Basketball Assn., it may need gave the impression of an April Fool’s Day prank.

But it’s no joke. Cole’s longtime supervisor and business companion Ibrahim Hamad reposted the ESPN report on X and wrote that basketball “is still Life for my boy, even at 41.”

Videos and pictures posted on social media, some of which have been reposted by Hamad, show Cole at a Monkey Kings recreation sporting staff gear and warming up with the other gamers. The “Work Out” rapper reportedly didn’t play in the sport. One video exhibits Cole autographing an album for an excited fan.

Cole posted a video to the Chinese social media website Douyin saying he was in China and “excited” to be there.

Born Jermaine Lamarr Cole, the multiplatinum artist performed basketball at Terry Sanford High in North Carolina and tried out for the hoops staff at St. John’s as a walk-on while attending the college on an tutorial scholarship. Throughout his music profession, Cole has included basketball photographs and references into his lyrics, performances and cowl artwork.

This shall be Cole’s third stint as a professional basketball participant. In 2021, the 6-foot-3 guard performed three video games for Rwanda’s Patriots Basketball Club of the Basketball Africa League, averaging 1.7 factors and 1.7 rebounds in about quarter-hour a recreation.

The following 12 months, he performed 5 video games for the Scarborough Shooting Stars of the Canadian Elite Basketball League, averaging 2.4 factors and less than one rebound and help in about 10 minutes a recreation.

On a current episode of “Talk with Flee,” Cole spoke with fellow rapper Cam’ron about his lifelong “love and passion for basketball” even though he’s never been the best participant on the court at any given time. He said enjoying professionally abroad has been “like me trying to scratch a last itch.”

“Like, yo, let me see if I could do this,” Cole said. “Could I train and be able to go play professional? Because these teams and these leagues are looking at it like, you know what, he not a—. He could come be on the court, and he could give our league some publicity.”

Cole talked about the upcoming alternative to play for Nanjing.

“I’m looking at the clock like, boy, I’m getting older. Like, this might be my last shot,” Cole, whose “The Fall-Off” album dropped Feb. 6 and tour begins July 10, said. “So I’m going to keep my word to them and show up and play in a couple games, although I know I’m not in the best of shape because of the album. But I’m going to go out there and have fun with it.”