Nas knows that people have it out for him, since “wanting to put 8 in his wig” refers to their immediate desire to shoot him in the head 8 times. Following the rules and general good practice, he cannot just let them live. It’s “Survival Of The Fittest,” after all.

Elzhi has a lot of bright ideas when he writes his rhymes, which is why his songs are so clever.

Carbon monoxide is a very dangerous compound that, in it’s gaseous state, will suffocate someone if they are exposed to a large amount of it in a confined area. So basically, it can be considered poisonous and makes people sick (from oxygen depravation). So his bars are sick.

Additionally, if there’s no oxygen, people can’t breathe. So also, his bars will take your breath away because they’re so good.

A Triple entendre, she got such a nice ass it’s stupid, but she’s in college so she’s smart. Get it?

Could also be Cole’s friend saying Cole is stupid for falling in love with her, asking him,“How’d you get into college?”

He’s also sarcastically wondering how she got to college with an ass like that, alluding to her being a stripper, which is also referenced in the previous line. And that stripping, thanks to her “stupid” ass, could be how she managed to pay for college, so it’s how she got to college.

Play on “drop the ball” meaning he messed up his chances with her. Also referring to the time he used to play basketball at St. John’s University but he quit.

Cole referenced seeing the girl in the mall in “Dreams”, which, earlier in this song, said was about the same girl

This song is also a metaphor for J.Cole’s relationship with hip-hop. It could refer to his debut album, Cole World: The Sideline Story, which, while commercially successful, was met with lukewarm critical response and viewed as disappointing in hip hop circles, especially given the hype that had been built up around Jermaine.

The use of cliche in hash tag flow was a double entendre as the use of that flow is so common.