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The 24-year-old rapper, the first artist signed to Jay-Z’s fledging new label Roc Nation, now faces the task of making hit music under the wing of his boss, who brought to the world superstars Kanye West and Rihanna.

“I studied the game and I studied the greats and I studied people’s movements and the mistakes they made and the pitfalls. And he just did everything so close to perfect,” Cole said about Jay-Z, during an interview with ABC News. “If I wanted to do it like anybody or better than anybody, it would be him,” Cole said.

But just two years ago, he feared that chance would never come. In September 2007, after reading about Jay-Z’s upcoming album “American Gangster” on a rap Web site, Cole thought he could get his break by making beats for a record that would ultimately top the Billboard charts.