There are a lot of J Cole fans living in London. An obvious statement but not one fully appreciated until you see fans rush from all over this huge city to see him listen to his own work. This was my first listening party so I have nothing to compare it to but as experiences go, this was a great one.

Cole first announced the party through twitter stating that you had to get tickets at Old Castle in East London. Then someone at there told you to go to another, secret venue where the party was being held, which ended up being Village Underground in Shoreditch. Is this normal? Yes? No? The answer to that question I received was either "no! This is way too complicated for any real fan to get tickets!" or "I don't care, I got in." Luckily, my answer was the latter.

The venue itself was a nice, intimate space with a capacity of 750 people. By the time Cole came on stage the venue was filled to the brim with fans hyped up the incredible DJ Manny Norte of Capital Xtra.

Cole came out and the crowd went wild. He talked for some time about the process of creating the album, the meanings of KOD, the different emotions he was feeling at the time, and some deeper thoughts that he wanted to share with the London audience. Then he set the tone by controlling the lights until they were just right, asked the crowd if we're ready (of course we were) then proceeded to play his new album.

I won't go into explicit detail about the album because, well it's out in 3 days and I hate spoilers. I will say however that there are definitely two halves to KOD. One half is filled with head-bopping-bangers; the type of music you could hear in a club or get hyped to with your friends. The other half has songs that contain some of the most poignant, socially relevant messages i've ever heard in my life. He doesn't disappoint in giving fans more of his epic story telling, even bringing some to tears with his recollections. He manages to give out wisdom at many points throughout the album, with most of the songs revolving around a specific idea.

One of the most talked about songs will be the final one, 1985. The song that - in his own words - isn't the outro but leads onto 'something else entirely,' which I am hoping will either be a mixtape or a back-to-back album. This song is an unapologetic statement, a message and (maybe most importantly) a warning to all the new up and coming rappers on the dangers of fame and what they could become, especially if the cross him.

The evening came to an end with a special thank you from J Cole to all the fans who came out and an awesome message of motivation. This left the lucky fans who heard the album wanting more, while stirring up anticipation for the rest of the world, waiting patiently to hear J Cole's 5th Studio album.

KOD is out 20/04. Have you ever been to a listening party for a great artist?

Let me know your experiences in the comments.