"Work Out" is a song by American hip hop

recording artist A musician is a person who composes, conducts, or performs music. According to the United States Employment Service, "musician" is a general term used to designate one who follows music as a profession. Musicians include songwriters who w ...

and

record producer A record producer is a recording project's creative and technical leader, commanding studio time and coaching artists, and in popular genres typically creates the song's very sound and structure. Virgil Moorefield"Introduction" ''The Producer as ...

J. Cole, and released as the

lead single A lead single (also known as a debut single) is the first single to be released from a studio album by an artist or a band, usually before the album itself is released and also occasionally on the same day of the album's release date. Release s ...

from his debut studio album '' Cole World: The Sideline Story'' (2011). The song was officially released on June 27, 2011, through

Roc Nation Roc Nation is an entertainment agency founded by Jay-Z in 2008. The company is headquartered in Manhattan and has additional offices in Los Angeles and London. Roc Nation comprises a comprehensive talent agency, sports agency, record label, mana ...

and Columbia. Nas voiced his displeasure with the song, which inspired Cole to create the song "

Let Nas Down "Let Nas Down" is a song by American hip hop recording artist J. Cole, taken from his second studio album ''Born Sinner'' (2013). The song was produced by Cole himself as a dedication to one of his idols, fellow American rapper Nas, with whom Co ...

" for his album ''

Born Sinner ''Born Sinner'' is the second studio album by American rapper and record producer J. Cole. It was released on June 18, 2013, by ByStorm Entertainment, Columbia Records, Dreamville Records and Roc Nation. The album serves as the follow-up to his ...

''. It interpolates the chorus from " Straight Up" by Paula Abdul, and samples the ending production of " The New Workout Plan" by

Kanye West Ye ( ; born Kanye Omari West ; June 8, 1977) is an American rapper, singer, songwriter, record producer, and fashion designer. Born in Atlanta and raised in Chicago, West gained recognition as a producer for Roc-A-Fella Records in the ea ...

Background

J. Cole released "Work Out" on June 15, 2011, in honor of the second anniversary of his highly acclaimed mixtape ''

The Warm Up ''The Warm Up'' is the second official mixtape from Fayetteville, North Carolina rapper J. Cole. It was released on June 15, 2009. J. Cole produced the majority of the mixtape with help from Elite, and Syience. The mixtape has been viewed over 3, ...

''. The song, produced by Cole himself, samples " The New Workout Plan" by

and interpolates " Straight Up" by Paula Abdul. The song is featured as a

bonus track An album is a collection of audio recordings issued on compact disc (CD), vinyl, audio tape, or another medium such as digital distribution. Albums of recorded sound were developed in the early 20th century as individual 78 rpm records co ...

on '' Cole World: The Sideline Story''.

Chart performance

"Work Out" charted on the U.S. ''Billboard'' Hot 100 on the week of July 23, 2011 at number eighty-five. "Work Out" re-entered the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 on week of September 24, 2011 at number ninety-eight. The song has since peaked at number thirteen. As of September 2013, the song has sold 1,853,000 downloads in the United States. On May 6, 2013, the single was certified

double platinum Music recording certification is a system of certifying that a music recording has shipped, sold, or streamed a certain number of units. The threshold quantity varies by type (such as album, single, music video) and by nation or territory (see ...

by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) for sales of over a two million digital copies in the United States.

Charts

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

Certifications

Release history

References

External links

Official Website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Work Out (J. Cole Song) 2011 singles J. Cole songs Roc Nation singles Song recordings produced by J. Cole Songs written by J. Cole Songs written by Kanye West Songs written by Elliot Wolff Songs written by John Legend 2011 songs Columbia Records singles Pop-rap songs Torch songs