"Fire burning inside my eyes this the music that saved my life, y'all be callin it hip hop I be callin it hypnotized" (Fuck Your Ethnicity)
In case you’ve been living under a
rock in the middle of the desert for the past three years, I’d like
to state the obvious. The landscape of hip-hop has changed
drastically. In this time period the genre has seen a few tons
(literally) of new artists making somewhat of a splash in
both underground and mainstream audiences. Out of this group has come
the likes of Drake, Wiz Khalifa and
Meek Mill, but I would argue that a name that should
stick out as much if not more than these names (in the case of
Khalifa especially.. no offense) is that of Compton, California
native Kendrick Lamar. For some reason, though, he seems to
be the underclassmen voted most likely to not be noticed. But for
those that have slept, as I did, it is time to wake. Kendrick is the
real deal and has put out quality material for about the last four
years including but not limited to his critically acclaimed album
Section.80.
The answer to the question 'Why has
Kendrick been slept on?' is not a simple one. It has a lot to do with
accessibility though. Many of the new artists drawing attention hail
from either the east coast or south. West coast hip-hop has not
been what it used to be, obviously with a few exceptions, and
this could have helped keep Kendrick in the background. Another key
factor is Kendrick's subject matter. Over the last decade what I
would call 'intellectual rappers' have been forced to an extent to
dumb their music down to remain relevant. Results have varied, but it
seems as though only the elite were able to not succumb to watering
down lyrics to stay popular. This complex has slowed down Lamar, but
he has the upper hand of retrospect to deal with it, and deal with it
he does.
Kendrick Lamar has taken on a
visionary role when it comes to his lyrical content. His raps address
relevant matters of the human condition from the scope of a kid from
Compton. On the track 'Ab-Soul Outro' off of Secton.80 Kendrick
addresses this issue. After his Black Hippy associate Ab-Soul tears
the track to shreads with two piercing verses about Lamar and his
collective's HiiiPower movement, Kendrick speaks and gives what I
feel is his manifesto of sorts. He proclaims..
“I
wrote this cause I was ordered to, people say I write for generation
Y, why lie, I do...
See
a lot of ya'll don't understand Kendrick Lamar. Because you wonder
how I could talk about money, hoes, clothes, god and history all in
the same sentence. You know what all the things have in common? Only
half of the truth, if you tell it. See I've spent twenty three years
on the earth searching for answers Til' one day I realized I had to
come up with my own. I'm not the next pop star. I'm not the next
socially aware rapper. I am a human motherfucking being, over dope
ass instrumentation.”
The
relevance and intellegence of his lyrics only make up half of the
equation though. The other half is attributed to the fact that Lamar
possesses an almost unparallelled flow. If you listen to rap
(which I assume is true since you are reading this) you know that
speaking in generalities there are two primary components, delivery
and subject matter. It's not just what he's saying that makes him
special but how he says it. His cadences are always concise and he
packs bars with more syllables than your garden variety rapper. He
rides what ever beat he is on to a tee and makes it almost as if his
voice is an instrument blending with and owning the track at the same
(damn) time.
"So get up off that
slave ship build your own pyramids write yo own hieroglyphs" (HiiiPower)
A
total package like Kendrick Lamar is a rareity. By now, he has gained
recognition from hip-hop elite, fans and critics alike. From his
signing to Dr. Dre's Aftermath imprint, to his inclusion in Drake's
Club Paradise Tour lineup, Kendrick's name is getting out there.
Complex Magazine has Lamar listed as the #3 best rapper 25 years old
and under, behind
only the aforemention Drake and A$AP Rocky. At only 24 years old, it
seems as though sky's the limit for the young Compton MC. On October
2, Lamar is set to release his debut studio album good
kid, m.A.A.d city.
Be on the look out for that and while you're at it download
Section.80
off
of iTunes now.
-L. Reels
@L_Reels919
Enjoy these two tracks by Kendrick Lamar, both to be apart of the upcoming good kid, m.A.A.d city
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