New Rory & MAL — Episode 452 | Run A Train

Released: February 6, 2026
Hosts: Rory, Maul, Baby D (Damaris)

Episode Overview

This high-energy episode revolves around the immense anticipation for J. Cole’s forthcoming album "The Fall Off," dropping at midnight. The squad celebrates "Fall Off Eve" by imagining possible reactions—both over-the-top positive and highly critical—before actually hearing the album. The show is packed with witty banter on hip hop hype, double albums, music consumption habits, social media, basketball, relationship dynamics, and their famously competitive group challenge “Spread’Em.” True to the New Rory & Mal style, the episode blends music nerdery, playful roasting, and honest fan anxieties.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. “Fall Off Eve”—Anticipating J. Cole’s Album (02:38–29:57)

• The Premise: The crew records hours before “The Fall Off” releases. They decide to REVIEW IT AS IF THEY’VE HEARD IT—first, on an extreme positive, then on the opposite end, as haters.
• Hypothetical Praises:
  • "Greatest double disc that's ever existed ever."
    (Rory, 06:10)
  • Jokes about it being better than “Life After Death,” “All Eyez On Me,” even the Beatles’ White Album.
    (Rory, Baby D, 07:47–08:06)
  • Over-the-top album breakdowns: “29 Intro” and “39 Intro” as two best intros ever; “Villas” and “I Love Her Again” name-dropped as emotional high points.
  • “Run a Train” imagined as a spiritual successor to “Wet Dreams”.
• Album Dissections:
  • “He gave us the Common ‘I Used to Love H.E.R.’ flip on 'I Love Her Again.’” (Rory, 07:01)
  • "J. Cole was the greatest rapper of all.” (Maul, 11:06)
• Feature Talk: Banter about LL, Drag-On, Swiss, J. Hood all appearing as A-list features—a tongue-in-cheek because it's all imagined.

Notable Quotes:

• “You witnessing greatness in real time. How you feel in all 50 years of your life? You ain't witnessed greatness like this.”
  (Baby D, 07:30)

2. What If We Hate It?—The Satirical Hate Review (32:11–37:37)

• Overstuffed Critiques:
  • “24 tracks of Cole? That’s too much Cole.” (Maul, 16:43)
  • “His hooks are trash. He needs better hooks, bro.” (Maul, 17:08)
  • “Everything felt… really rushed too.” (Rory, 17:48)
  • “This is the worst double disc album.” (Maul, 19:03)
• Jokes about ghostwriting:
  • “Everybody knows JID is writing for Cole.” (Rory, 20:14)
• A tongue-in-cheek take that “J. Fold” could be his new name if he folds under pressure (19:38).

Notable Quotes:

• “I didn't consent to that song.”
  (Rory, 17:29)
• “Now it makes sense why he didn't battle… J. Fold. From now on, he needs to do the Folded remix.”
  (Maul, 19:39)

3. Music Consumption—How We Listen to New Albums (37:13–44:46)

• Listening Rituals:
  • Baby D prefers reading lyrics alongside the first listen:
    “I care more about the lyrics than anything else. First listen, I’m looking at my phone as J. Cole is rapping, reading his lyrics.”
    (Baby D, 39:06)
  • Maul prefers passive listening, letting the album play as background and revisiting standout moments.
  • Rory likes multitasking—listening while cleaning/doing chores.
• Headphones vs. Speakers:
  • Baby D: “Headphones, AirPods in the crib.” (39:49)
  • Maul and Rory admit headphones win now due to family/sleeping babies.

4. Music Criticism in the Social Media Age (29:57–33:14)

• Pressure to React Fast:
  • Frustration over the need to review albums only days after release.
  • “I wish I could just enjoy music as a casual fan…I miss being just a fan.”
    (Baby D, 30:11)
• Hot Takes on Double Albums:
  • Fans and critics often expect too much coherence from double albums; critique on length and lack of focus.

5. Basketball/NBA Season & Trade Deadline (52:39–56:57)

• Knicks’ hot streak and playoff hopes discussed.
• Speculation about NBA trades (Giannis, Porzingis, Luka, and more).
• Lakers’ LeBron era:
  • “I think we gotta just give LeBron his flowers, you know, but we gotta move past the LeBron era in LA.”
    (Maul, 55:10)
• Bronny’s future; “Keys to LA” debate.

6. Group Dynamics, Bets, and Challenges (“Spread’Em” Segment) (62:45–66:43)

• Lighthearted trash talk about previous and future bets.
• Wager escalations: Naming 1,000–2,000 rappers, eating sour grapes, mozzarella stick challenges.
• “I don’t think 2,000 rappers exist!” (Baby D, 64:04)
• “If you scared, go to church!” (Rory, 64:59)

7. Super Bowl & Halftime Show Predictions (67:00–76:00)

• Betting on Patriots vs. Seattle and Cardi B making a surprise appearance during Bad Bunny’s half-time show.
• Bad Bunny expected to make political statements; concerns about ICE presence at the stadium.
• Jokes about competing “All-American” halftime show with Kid Rock and other acts.

8. Social Media, Virality & Live Reactions (47:02–50:05)

• Rory considers live-tweeting every song on release night.
• “Remember that used to be fun, though, on Twitter, when you would just live tweet of what was like, happening at the moment.”
  (Rory, 48:43)
• Discussing their social team’s athletic prowess, challenging other podcasts.

9. Music, Streaming and TV Culture (33:14–37:10)

• How binge-watching has changed replay value for shows and music vs. “back in the day.”
• Watching beloved shows like “Grey’s Anatomy,” “The Sopranos,” “The Wire” with new people to recapture the old magic.

10. Women, Relationships, and “Staying Through Cheating” (79:20–82:14)

• Topic surfaces via recent show comments about staying with partners who cheat.
• “Humans stay through cheating. I don’t even want to make that…It’s the men, too.” (Baby D, 80:55–81:00)
• Maul: “I know dudes that stay…they’ll stay through it.” (Maul, 82:01–82:07)

11. Super Bowl Media Day “Fit Controversy” (68:53–73:17)

• Generica Owens’ outfit at Media Day and internet reactions.
• “I mean, what did Damaris say during our teacher debate? Like, she can’t change how her body is shaped.” (Rory, 70:07)
• Tangent about whether women in media are judged unfairly for attire.
• Group spelling bee with the word “poignant” devolves into laughs.

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• [06:10] Rory: “Greatest double disc that's ever existed ever.”
• [07:30] Baby D: "You witnessing greatness in real time. How you feel in all 50 years of your life? You ain't witnessed greatness like this."
• [17:08] Maul: “His hooks are trash. Can we just admit that?”
• [20:14] Rory: “Everybody know Cole don't write his own rhyme.”
• [39:06] Baby D: “First listen, I'm looking at my phone as J. Cole is rapping, reading his lyrics, sitting in the bed, just like this, reading, excited.”
• [80:55] Baby D: "Humans stay through cheating. I don't even want to make that..."
• [43:22] Rory: “So you gonna be dreaming about Cole?”
• [64:59] Rory: "If you scared, go to church!"

Timestamps for Key Segments

• 02:38 – Start “Fall Off Eve” anticipation & J. Cole album speculation
• 04:58–11:06 – Imagined praise for Cole (best double disc, features, intros, concepts)
• 16:40–20:49 – The imagined “hate” review, complaints, and jokes about ghostwriting
• 29:57–33:14 – Critiques on music reviewing speed, being forced to react, double albums
• 37:13–44:46 – Album listening rituals; lyrics vs. music, headphones, multitasking
• 52:39–56:57 – NBA chat: Knicks, Lakers, trades, Porzingis, Giannis, Bronny
• 62:45–66:43 – “Spread’Em” challenge bets: naming rappers, eating sour grapes, pushups
• 67:00–76:00 – Super Bowl/halftime show; predictions; ICE/security; Bad Bunny
• 68:53–73:17 – Media Day fit debate & spelling bee with “poignant”
• 79:20–82:14 – Relationship talk: why people stay through cheating, honesty, and social media

Tone & Style

• Language & Tone: Unfiltered, funny, hip hop-centric, and self-aware. The hosts openly satirize both their own fandom (and bias) and the nature of public music criticism.
• Dynamic: Jokes overlap with honest takes; “playing both sides” is part of the fun and critique.

This episode is a must for J. Cole fans, hip hop heads awaiting “The Fall Off,” and anyone who loves music hype, group antics, and the unpredictable tangents that come from the New Rory & Mal crew. Whether you want exaggerated stan energy, tongue-in-cheek criticism, or just great banter about music, sports, and life—this “Fall Off Eve” episode has it all.