On Wednesday (Oct. 9), J. Cole decided to surprise everyone with a new single titled “Port Antonio,” a laid-back offering that sampled Lonnie Liston Smith's “A Garden of Peace” and Cleo Sol's "Know That You Are Loved." On its second verse, the North Carolina emcee finally decided to address his role in Kendrick Lamar and Drake's rap battle.

Regarding his decision to bow out of the situation, Cole rapped, “I pulled the plug because I seent where that was about to go, they wanted blood, they wanted clicks to make they pockets grow, they see this fire in my pen and think I'm dodgin' smoke, I wouldn’t have lost a battle, dawg, I would’ve lost a bro, I would’ve gained a foe, and all for what?” A few lines later, the Dreamville head honcho added, “They strip me of my spot, now I'm finally free, my n**ga, they say I'm pickin' sides, don't try to lie on me, my n**ga, to start another war, hey Drake, you'll always be my n**ga, I ain't ashamed to say you did a lot for me, my n**ga...”

Unsurprisingly, many took to social media to give their thoughts on the reflective offering, with many taking a critical stance. “[The song has] mixed messages. J. Cole wants to be the bigger man, but there’s inconsistency,” said Twitter user Z4DRO. “He claims he can out-rap anyone, then avoids beef for friendship, and now says he could’ve won, but didn’t want to lose a bro? You can’t have it both ways, and that’s what put him in this position.”

Others had a different perspective on the matter, including storymodebae. “If J. Cole saw the direction the beef was going in and decided to gracefully bow out before it got nasty, what did y’all really want him to do?” she asked. Meanwhile, OhhMar24 wrote, “No matter what approach J. Cole took, it’d be a problem for the internet.”

Check out plenty of other takes to "Port Antonio" below.