20 Best Album Covers Of 2021

As with Billie Eilish, context is necessary here. Cole wanted to give fans something to snack on while The Fall Off slow-cooks in the studio, and while it was presented as a full-blown album, The Off-Season should really be seen as the third instalment in the basketball mixtapes series after The Warm Up and Friday Night Lights (with Felton Brown admitting that Cole wanted to go “mixtape-y”).

But while the first two covers were pretty basic, this one is on some next-level symbolism. Cole has mentioned that the fire could represent his reignited passion for the game, but another interpretation is possible, one that’s actually complementary. The Fall Off will be Cole’s most anticipated album ever, the one he’s worked on the longest, and truth be told, fans would be disappointed with anything less than a magnum opus. Cole hence allowed himself one last shooting session, one last round through his favourite drills of top-notch rhymeplay and immaculate flow, but after that, he’s done playing. Loose the ball, burn the hoop: he goes back to business, and he’s hungrier than he’s ever been.

Content-wise, it’s enticing storytelling. Form-wise, the use of light is stunning. It would’ve been the best musical photograph of 2021 if it wasn’t for…