"Hood Gone Love It" is a song by American hip hop recording artist

Jay Rock Johnny Reed McKinzie Jr. (born March 31, 1983), better known by his stage name Jay Rock, is an American rapper, singer and songwriter from Los Angeles. He signed to indie label Top Dawg Entertainment (TDE), in 2005. Under TDE, Rock secured a rec ...

. It was released as the second single from his debut studio album '' Follow Me Home'' (2011). The song features Rock's Black Hippy cohort

Kendrick Lamar Kendrick Lamar Duckworth (born June 17, 1987) is an American rapper and songwriter. Known for his progressive musical styles and socially conscious songwriting, he is often considered one of the most influential hip hop artists of his generat ...

and was produced by American production team J.U.S.T.I.C.E. League. It was also used in promotion for and included in the game '' Grand Theft Auto V''. The song peaked on the US ''Billboard''

Bubbling Under R&B/Hip-Hop Singles The Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart ranks the most popular R&B and hip hop songs in the United States and is published weekly by ''Billboard''. Rankings are based on a measure of radio airplay, sales data, and streaming activity. The chart had 100 p ...

at number 18.

Background

After having performed the song for months while on tour, the full CDQ version of the song featuring

's verse was premiered on June 21, 2011. The song's

production Production may refer to: Economics and business * Production (economics) * Production, the act of manufacturing goods * Production, in the outline of industrial organization, the act of making products (goods and services) * Production as a stati ...

was handled by hip hop

production team A production team is the group of technical staff who produce a play, television show, recording, or film. Generally the term refers to all individuals responsible for the technical aspects of creating of a particular product, regardless of wher ...

J.U.S.T.I.C.E. League. In the song, Jay Rock sketches a picture of hood life, while Lamar raps circles around the slow soul instrumental. Lamar also shouts out "Thug Life," a nod to his

Tupac Shakur Tupac Amaru Shakur ( ; born Lesane Parish Crooks, June 16, 1971 – September 13, 1996), also known as 2Pac and Makaveli, was an American rapper. He is widely considered one of the most influential rappers of all time. Shakur is among the b ...

fandom, while he raps in knotty double time. The song samples "Easy Days" by the Pointer Sisters. The song was included in a trailer for '' Grand Theft Auto V'', profiling the character of Franklin Clinton. It was then additionally included on the Radio Los Santos station on the in-game radio.

Critical reception

"Hood Gone Love It" was met with generally positive reviews from music critics. Jeff Weiss of ''

Los Angeles Times The ''Los Angeles Times'' (abbreviated as ''LA Times'') is a daily newspaper that started publishing in Los Angeles in 1881. Based in the LA-adjacent suburb of El Segundo since 2018, it is the sixth-largest newspaper by circulation in the U ...

'' said, "Compton and Watts rappers rhyming about their roots and their version of old-time religion. But great rap is usually some variation of that theme. They make their own stories synonymous with their hood, and along the way, more than just the hood will love it. Andres Vasquez of HipHopDX called the song an "anthemic banger that any hood could appreciate." Nathan S. of DJBooth.net said, "If ''Follow Me Home'' has a manifesto it’s "Hood Gone Love It", a declaration of Rock’s loyalties to the block that raised him. With Kendrick throwing down on a guest verse, "Hood Gone Love It" is the sound of the next standing on the shoulders of those who came before with Jay at his more lyrically complex, revealing a deeply personal undercurrent that runs throughout his music." Ayo of Soul Culture also praised the song saying, "To say the least both Jay and the emcee formally known as K.Dot lyrically black out on J.U.S.T.I.C.E. League's near breath taking instrumental, but it's Lamar who predictably steals the show with his verse." Adam Fleischer of '' XXL'' praised Kendrick Lamar's appearance on the song.

Music video

Three days after single's release, on June 24, 2011, the music video featuring Kendrick Lamar was premiered on MTV2's Sucka Free Countdown. The video was filmed in Nickerson Gardens, the rest of

Watts Watts is plural for ''watt'', the unit of power. Watts may also refer to: People *Watts (surname), list of people with the surname Watts Fictional characters *Watts, main character in the film '' Some Kind of Wonderful'' *Watts family, six chara ...

, and Compton, California and paid homage to Dr. Dre and Snoop Dogg's video for "

Nuthin' but a 'G' Thang "Nuthin' but a 'G' Thang" is a song by American rapper Dr. Dre, featuring fellow American rapper Snoop Doggy Dogg, on Dre's debut solo album, ''The Chronic'' (1992). The album's first single, "Nuthin' but a 'G' Thang," reaching number 2 on the ' ...

Remix

On July 16, 2011, just prior to the release of ''Follow Me Home'', Jay Rock released the remix to "Hood Gone Love It" featuring rappers Rick Ross and Birdman.

Charts

References

{{authority control 2011 singles 2011 songs Kendrick Lamar songs Songs written by Kendrick Lamar Top Dawg Entertainment singles Song recordings produced by J.U.S.T.I.C.E. League Songs written by Jay Rock Songs written by Erik Ortiz Songs written by Kevin Crowe