Kendrick Lamar Duckworth (born June 17, 1987) is an American rapper and songwriter. Known for his

progressive Progressive may refer to: Politics * Progressivism, a political philosophy in support of social reform ** Progressivism in the United States, the political philosophy in the American context * Progressive realism, an American foreign policy par ...

musical styles and socially conscious songwriting, he is often considered one of the most influential hip hop artists of his generation. Born and raised in

Compton, California Compton is a city in southern Los Angeles County, California, United States, situated south of downtown Los Angeles. Compton is one of the oldest cities in the county and, on May 11, 1888, was the eighth city in Los Angeles County to incorporate ...

, Lamar began his career as a teenager performing under the stage name K.Dot. He quickly garnered local attention which led to him signing a recording contract with Top Dawg Entertainment (TDE) in 2005. After becoming a founding member of the hip hop supergroup Black Hippy, Lamar dropped his stage name and started using his first and middle names professionally. In 2011, he released his debut studio album '' Section.80'', a

conscious hip hop Political hip hop is a subgenre of hip hop music that was developed in the 1980s as a way of turning hip hop into a call for political and/or social action and a form of social and/or political activism. Inspired by 1970s political artists ...

record. The album was met with positive reviews and included his debut single " HiiiiPower". In 2012, Lamar secured a record deal with Dr. Dre’s

Aftermath Entertainment Aftermath Entertainment is an American record label founded by hip hop producer and rapper Dr. Dre. It operates as a subsidiary of, and is distributed through, Interscope Records. Current acts include Dr. Dre himself, Eminem, Kendrick Lamar, ...

, under the aegis of Interscope Records, and released his second studio album '' Good Kid, M.A.A.D City''. The West Coast and gangsta rap influenced album garnered widespread critical recognition and commercial success, while including the singles " Swimming Pools (Drank)", " Backseat Freestyle" and " Bitch, Don't Kill My Vibe". A visit to South Africa inspired Lamar’s

jazz Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, with its roots in blues and ragtime. Since the 1920s Jazz Age, it has been recognized as a majo ...

-flavored third studio album '' To Pimp a Butterfly'' (2015). It received universal acclaim and became his first number-one album on the ''Billboard'' 200. The same year, he topped the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 for the first time with the remix of " Bad Blood" by

Taylor Swift Taylor Alison Swift (born December 13, 1989) is an American singer-songwriter. Her discography spans multiple genres, and her vivid songwriting—often inspired by her personal life—has received critical praise and wide media coverage. Bo ...

. Lamar experimented with R&B,

pop Pop or POP may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Music * Pop music, a musical genre Artists * POP, a Japanese idol group now known as Gang Parade * Pop!, a UK pop group * Pop! featuring Angie Hart, an Australian band Albums * ''Pop'' (G ...

and psychedelic soul in his fourth studio album ''

Damn Damnation (from Latin '' damnatio'') is the concept of divine punishment and torment in an afterlife for actions that were committed, or in some cases, not committed on Earth. In Ancient Egyptian religious tradition, citizens would recite ...

'' (2017). It spawned his first solo number-one single " Humble" and became the first non-classical and non-jazz work to be awarded the Pulitzer Prize for Music. Following a four-year hiatus, Lamar released his minimalist fifth studio album '' Mr. Morale & the Big Steppers'' (2022), which served as his swan song from TDE. He has directed and produced several music videos and films with his creative partner Dave Free, with whom he founded the creative collective PGLang. Having sold over 70 million records in the United States alone, all of Lamar’s studio albums have been certified platinum or higher by the

Recording Industry Association of America The Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) is a trade organization that represents the music recording industry in the United States. Its members consist of record labels and distributors that the RIAA says "create, manufacture, and/ ...

(RIAA). He has received numerous accolades throughout his career, including 14

Grammy Awards The Grammy Awards (stylized as GRAMMY), or simply known as the Grammys, are awards presented by the Recording Academy of the United States to recognize "outstanding" achievements in the music industry. They are regarded by many as the most pres ...

, a

Primetime Emmy Award The Primetime Emmy Awards, or Primetime Emmys, are part of the extensive range of Emmy Awards for artistic and technical merit for the American television industry. Bestowed by the Academy of Television Arts & Sciences (ATAS), the Primetime ...

, two American Music Awards, six ''Billboard'' Music Awards, 11

MTV Video Music Awards The MTV Video Music Awards (commonly abbreviated as the VMAs) is an award show presented by the cable channel MTV to honour the best in the music video medium. Originally conceived as an alternative to the Grammy Awards (in the video category ...

, a Brit Award, and a nomination for an

Academy Award The Academy Awards, better known as the Oscars, are awards for artistic and technical merit for the American and international film industry. The awards are regarded by many as the most prestigious, significant awards in the entertainment in ...

. He was named MTV’s Hottest MC in the Game in 2012. In 2015, Lamar received the

California State Senate The California State Senate is the upper house of the California State Legislature, the lower house being the California State Assembly. The State Senate convenes, along with the State Assembly, at the California State Capitol in Sacramento. ...

’s Generational Icon Award. He has been featured in listicles such as the ''Time'' 100 and ''Forbes'' 30 Under 30. Three of his studio albums were included on ''

Rolling Stone ''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner, and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. It was first known for its co ...

''’s 2020 ranking of the

500 Greatest Albums of All Time * Rolling Stone's 500 Greatest Albums of All Time * NME's The 500 Greatest Albums of All Time "The 500 Greatest Albums of All Time" is a 2013 special issue of British magazine '' NME'', available digitally or in newsstands on October 23. The li ...

Early life

Kendrick Lamar Duckworth was born in

, on June 17, 1987, the son of a couple from

Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = List of sovereign states, Count ...

.Born and raised in Compton, Kendrick Lamar Hides a Poet's Soul Behind "Pussy & Patron"
. LA Weekly (January 20, 2011). Retrieved May 3, 2011. Although not in a gang himself, he grew up around gang members; with his closest friends being Westside Piru Bloods and his father, Kenny Duckworth, being a

Gangster Disciple The Gangster Disciples are an African American street and prison gang, which was formed in the South Side of Chicago in the late 1960s, by Larry Hoover, leader of the Supreme Gangsters, and David Barksdale, leader of the Black Disciples. The two ...

. His first name was given to him by his mother, Paula Oliver, in honor of singer-songwriter Eddie Kendricks of The Temptations. He grew up on welfare and in Section 8 housing. In 1995, at the age of eight, Lamar witnessed

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 ...

and Dr. Dre film the music video for their single " California Love", which proved to be a significant moment in his life.(2011-08-31
Kendrick Lamar: Origins Of Excellence Pt. 3
. YouTube. Retrieved September 12, 2011. As a child, he attended McNair Elementary and Vanguard Learning Center in the Compton Unified School District. He has admitted to being quiet and shy in school, his mother confirming he was a "

loner A loner is a person who does not seek out, or may actively avoid, interaction with other people. There are many potential reasons for their solitude. Intentional reasons include introversion, mysticism, spirituality, religion, or personal cons ...

" until the age of seven. Lamar was further educated at Centennial High School, where he graduated in 2005 as a straight-A student.

Career

2003–2009: Career beginnings

In 2003, at the age of 16, Lamar released his first full-length project, a mixtape titled ''Youngest Head Nigga in Charge (Hub City Threat: Minor of the Year)'', under the pseudonym K.Dot. The mixtape was released under Konkrete Jungle Muzik and garnered local recognition for Lamar. The mixtape led to Lamar securing a recording contract with Top Dawg Entertainment (TDE), a newly founded

independent record label An independent record label (or indie label) is a record label that operates without the funding or distribution of major record labels; they are a type of small- to medium-sized enterprise, or SME. The labels and artists are often represented ...

based in Carson, California. He began recording material with the label and subsequently released a 26-track mixtape two years later, titled ''Training Day'' (2005). Throughout 2006 and 2007, Lamar would appear alongside other up-and-coming West Coast rappers, such as Jay Rock and Ya Boy, as opening acts for veteran West Coast rapper

The Game The Game or The Games may refer to: Sports and games * The Game (dice game) (German: ''Das Spiel''), a dice game designed by Reinhold Wittig * The Game (mind game), a mind game, the objective of which is to avoid thinking about The Game itself * ...

. Under the moniker K.Dot, Lamar was also featured on The Game's songs "The Cypha" and "Cali Niggaz". After receiving a co-sign from Lil Wayne, Lamar released his third mixtape in 2009, titled '' C4'', which was heavily themed around Wayne's album '' Tha Carter III''. Soon after, Lamar decided to no longer go by the stage name of K.Dot and opted to use his birth name. He subsequently released a self-titled extended play in late 2009.Kendrick Lamar - Kendrick Lamar (EP)
009 2dopeboyz (September 14, 2010). Retrieved May 3, 2011. That same year, Lamar along with his TDE label-mates: Jay Rock, Ab-Soul and ScHoolboy Q formed Black Hippy, a hip hop supergroup.

2010–2011: ''Overly Dedicated'' and ''Section.80''

Throughout 2010, Lamar toured with

Tech N9ne Aaron Dontez Yates (born November 8, 1971), better known by his stage name Tech N9ne (pronounced "tech nine"), is an American rapper. In 1999, he and business partner Travis O'Guin founded the record label Strange Music. He has sold over two ...

and Jay Rock on ''The Independent Grind'' tour. On September 14, 2010, he released the visuals for "P&P 1.5", a song taken from his mixtape, '' Overly Dedicated'', featuring his Black Hippy cohort Ab-Soul. On the same date, Lamar released ''Overly Dedicated'' to digital retailers under TDE, and later on September 23, released it for free online. The project fared well enough to enter the United States '' Billboard''

Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums is a music chart published weekly by ''Billboard (magazine), Billboard'' magazine that ranks contemporary R&B, R&B and hip hop music, hip hop albums based on sales in the United States and is compiled by Nielsen SoundScan. Th ...

chart, where it peaked at number 72. KendrickLive

The mixtape includes a song titled "Ignorance Is Bliss", in which Lamar highlights gangsta rap and street crime, but ends each verse with "ignorance is bliss", giving the message "we know not what we do;" it was this song specifically that made hip hop producer Dr. Dre want to work with Lamar after seeing the music video on YouTube. This, and a conversation between Dre and J. Cole. J Cole helped introduce Lamar to Dre which led to Lamar working with Dr. Dre and

Snoop Dogg Calvin Cordozar Broadus Jr. (born October 20, 1971), known professionally as Snoop Dogg (previously Snoop Doggy Dogg and briefly Snoop Lion), is an American rapper. His fame dates back to 1992 when he featured on Dr. Dre's debut solo single, ...

on Dre's often-delayed '' Detox'' album, as well as speculation of Lamar signing to Dr. Dre's record label,

. In December 2010, '' Complex'' magazine spotlighted Lamar in an edition of their "Indie Intro" series. In early 2011, Lamar was included in ''XXL'''s annual Top 10 Freshman Class, and was featured on the cover alongside fellow up-and-coming rappers Cyhi the Prynce, Meek Mill, Fred the Godson, Mac Miller, Yelawolf and Big K.R.I.T., Lil B, and Diggy Simmons. On April 11, 2011, Lamar announced the title of his next full-length project to be '' Section.80'', and the following day the first single " HiiiPoWeR" was released, the concept of which was to further explain the HiiiPoWeR movement. The song was produced by fellow American rapper J. Cole, marking their first of several collaborations. On the topic of whether his next project would be an

album An album is a collection of audio recordings issued on compact disc (CD), Phonograph record, vinyl, audio tape, or another medium such as Digital distribution#Music, digital distribution. Albums of recorded sound were developed in the early ...

or a mixtape, Lamar answered: "I treat every project like it's an album anyway. It's not going to be nothing leftover. I never do nothing like that. These are my leftover songs you all can have them. I'm going to put my best out. My best effort. I'm trying to look for an album in 2012." In June 2011, Lamar released "Ronald Reagan Era (His Evils)", a cut from ''Section.80'', featuring

Wu-Tang Clan Wu-Tang Clan is an American hip hop group formed in Staten Island, New York City, in 1992. Its original members include RZA, GZA, Ol' Dirty Bastard, Method Man, Raekwon, Ghostface Killah, Inspectah Deck, U-God, and Masta Killa. Close a ...

leader

RZA Robert Fitzgerald Diggs (born July 5, 1969), better known by his stage name the RZA ( ), is an American rapper, actor, filmmaker, and record producer. He is the ''de facto'' leader of the hip hop group Wu-Tang Clan, having produced most albums ...

. On July 2, 2011, Lamar released ''Section.80'', his debut studio album. The album features guest appearances from GLC, Colin Munroe, Schoolboy Q, and Ab-Soul, while the production was handled by TDE in-house production team Digi+Phonics as well as Wyldfyer, Terrace Martin and J. Cole. ''Section.80'' went on to sell 5,300 digital copies in its first week, without any television or radio coverage, and received mostly positive reviews. In August 2011, while performing at a

West Los Angeles West Los Angeles is an area within the city of Los Angeles, California. The residential and commercial neighborhood is divided by the Interstate 405 freeway, and each side is sometimes treated as a distinct neighborhood, mapped differently by di ...

concert, Lamar was dubbed the "New King of the West Coast" by Snoop Dogg, Dr. Dre and Game. On August 24, 2011, Lamar released the music video for the ''Section.80'' track, " ADHD". The video was directed by

Vashtie Kola Vashtie Kola (often stylized as Va$htie; born April 23, 1981) is an American music video director, filmmaker, artist, designer, creative consultant and disc jockey. She has been active in the downtown New York City scene for over a decade. Early ...

who had this to say of the video: "Inspired by "A.D.H.D"'s dark beat and melancholy lyrics which explore a generation in conflict, we find Kendrick Lamar in a video that illustrates the songs icuniversal and age-old theme of apathetic youth. (...) Shot in New York City during the sweltering July Summer heat". In October 2011, Lamar appeared alongside fellow American rappers B.o.B, Tech N9ne, MGK, and Big K.R.I.T., in a cypher at the

BET Hip Hop Awards The BET Hip Hop Awards are an annual awards show, airing on BET, showcasing hip hop performers, producers and music video directors. The awards ceremony began in 2006; it was held on November 12, 2006 at the Fox Theatre in Atlanta, Georgia, a ...

. Also in October, Lamar partnered with

Windows Phone Windows Phone (WP) is a discontinued family of mobile operating systems developed by Microsoft for smartphones as the replacement successor to Windows Mobile and Zune. Windows Phone featured a new user interface derived from the Metro design lan ...

, and crafted an original song with producer Nosaj Thing entitled "Cloud 10", to promote

Microsoft Microsoft Corporation is an American multinational corporation, multinational technology company, technology corporation producing Software, computer software, consumer electronics, personal computers, and related services headquartered at th ...

's new product. During 2011, Lamar appeared on several high-profile albums including Game's ''

The R.E.D. Album ''The R.E.D. Album'' is the fifth studio album by American rapper Game. It was released on August 23, 2011, by DGC Records and Interscope Records, which serves as Game's first release under the label. Recording sessions for the album took place f ...

'', Tech N9ne's ''

All 6's and 7's ''All 6's and 7's'' is the eleventh studio album by American rapper Tech N9ne. It was released on June 7, 2011, through Strange Music. The album was released to universal acclaim by music critics, and peaked at number four on the '' Billboard 2 ...

'',

9th Wonder Patrick Denard Douthit (born January 15, 1975),
better known as 9th Wonder, is a The Wonder Years (9th Wonder album), The Wonder Years'' and Canadian recording artist Drake's

Grammy Award The Grammy Awards (stylized as GRAMMY), or simply known as the Grammys, are awards presented by the Recording Academy of the United States to recognize "outstanding" achievements in the music industry. They are regarded by many as the most pre ...

-winning '' Take Care'', which featured Lamar on a solo track.

2012–2013: ''Good Kid, M.A.A.D City'' and controversies

On February 15, 2012, a song by Lamar titled " Cartoon and Cereal", featuring fellow American rapper Gunplay, was leaked online. Lamar later revealed that the track was for his major-label debut studio album and that he had plans to shoot a video for it. Although the song would later be ranked No. 2 in ''Complex'''s Best 50 Songs of 2012 list, it would ultimately fail to appear on Lamar's debut. In February 2012, it was announced that '' Fader'' had enlisted both Kendrick Lamar and Detroit-based rapper

Danny Brown Daniel Dewan Sewell (born March 16, 1981), better known by his stage name Danny Brown, is an American rapper, singer, and songwriter. He has been described by MTV as "one of rap's most unique figures in recent memory". In 2010, after amassing ...

, to appear on the cover of the magazine's Spring Style issue. In February, Lamar also embarked on Drake's

Club Paradise Tour The Club Paradise Tour was the second headlining tour by Canadian recording artist Drake. The tour came following the release of Drake's second studio album, '' Take Care''. The tour's name spins off from the 2011 song "Club Paradise", a promotio ...

, opening along with fellow American rappers

ASAP Rocky Rakim Athelaston Mayers (born October 3, 1988), known professionally as ASAP Rocky ( ; stylized as A$AP Rocky), is an American rapper, music producer and record executive. Born and raised in Harlem, he embarked on his musical career as a membe ...

and 2 Chainz. In March 2012, MTV announced that Lamar had signed a deal with Interscope Records and

, marking the end of his career as an independent artist. Under the new deal, Lamar's projects, including his album '' Good Kid, M.A.A.D City'', would be jointly released via TDE, Aftermath, and Interscope. Also in March, Lamar appeared on '' Last Call with Carson Daly'', where he spoke on Dr. Dre and his hometown of Compton, California. On April 2, 2012, Lamar premiered his commercial debut single " The Recipe", on Big Boy's Neighborhood at Power 106. The song, which serves as the first single from ''Good Kid, M.A.A.D City'', was released for digital download the following day. The song was produced by West Coast producer Scoop DeVille and features vocals from his mentor Dr. Dre, who also mixed the record. On May 14, 2012, J. Cole again spoke on his collaborative effort with Lamar. In an interview with Bootleg Kev, Cole stated: "I just started working with Kendrick the other day. We got it in, finally, again. We got maybe four or five ongstogether." On May 21, Lamar made his '' 106 & Park'' debut alongside Ace Hood, joining Birdman and Mack Maine on stage to perform "B Boyz". Lamar also talked about his style and sound, Dr. Dre and Snoop Dogg, and his upcoming collaborative LP with J. Cole. On the same date, Lamar released "War Is My Love", an original song written and recorded for the video game '' Tom Clancy's Ghost Recon: Future Soldier'', for which he appeared in a mini promotional clip earlier that month. On July 31, 2012, TDE, Aftermath, and Interscope serviced " Swimming Pools (Drank)" as the lead single from Lamar's debut album. The song's music video, directed by Jerome D, premiered on August 3, 2012, on ''106 & Park''. The song peaked at number 17 on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 in its thirteenth week of gradually climbing up the chart. On August 15, 2012, singer

Lady Gaga Stefani Joanne Angelina Germanotta ( ; born March 28, 1986), known professionally as Lady Gaga, is an American singer, songwriter, and actress. She is known for her image reinventions and musical versatility. Gaga began performing as a teenag ...

announced via Twitter that both had recorded a song titled "PartyNauseous" for his debut album. However, Gaga withdrew from participation in the last moment, citing that it was due to artistic differences and had nothing to do with Lamar. On August 17, 2012, Lamar released a song titled "Westside, Right on Time", featuring Southern rapper

Young Jeezy Jay Wayne Jenkins (born September 28, 1977), known by his stage name Jeezy (or Young Jeezy), is an American rapper. Signing to Def Jam Recordings in 2004, his major label debut, '' Let's Get It: Thug Motivation 101'', was released the followi ...

. The song was released as part of the "Top Dawg Entertainment Fam Appreciation Week". During 2012, Lamar also toured with the rest of Black Hippy and MMG rapper, Stalley, on BET's Music Matters Tour. Lamar's major-label debut, '' good kid, m.A.A.d city'', was released on October 22, 2012. The album debuted at number two in the US, selling 242,100 copies in its first week. Later that year,

Fuse TV Fuse is an American pay television channel launched in 1994 which was originally dedicated to music. After merging with the Latino-oriented NuvoTV in 2015, Fuse shifted its focus to general entertainment and lifestyle programming targeting multi ...

listed Lamar's single, " Backseat Freestyle" among the top 40 songs of 2012. In a few months' time, the album was certified

gold Gold is a chemical element with the symbol Au (from la, aurum) and atomic number 79. This makes it one of the higher atomic number elements that occur naturally. It is a bright, slightly orange-yellow, dense, soft, malleable, and ductile ...

by the

(RIAA).

HipHopDX ''HipHopDX'' is an online magazine of hip hop music criticism and news. The website's current president and publisher is Sharath Cherian and the Head Of Content is Jerry L. Barrow. ''HipHopDX'' is the flagship publication of Cheri Media Group. ...

named Lamar "Emcee of the Year" for their 2012 Year-End honors. In November, after Cole posted pictures of himself and Lamar working in the studio, the latter revealed that the two are still working on a project, but an exact release date was not given for the joint album: "We are going to drop that out the sky though. I don't want to give dates. I'm just going to let it fall" in an interview with the LA Leakers. Kendrick-lamar-1360479601

On January 26, 2013, Lamar performed the album's first singles "Swimming Pools (Drank)" and " Poetic Justice" on NBC's sketch comedy and variety show, ''

Saturday Night Live ''Saturday Night Live'' (often abbreviated to ''SNL'') is an American late-night live television sketch comedy and variety show created by Lorne Michaels and developed by Dick Ebersol that airs on NBC and Peacock. Michaels currently serve ...

''. In the same episode, Lamar also appeared alongside guest host Adam Levine and comedy band

The Lonely Island The Lonely Island is an American comedy trio, formed by Akiva Schaffer, Andy Samberg, and Jorma Taccone in Berkeley, California, in 2001. They have written for and starred in the American TV program ''Saturday Night Live'' (''SNL''). The three ...

, in an SNL Digital Short, which spawned the single " YOLO". On February 22, 2013, Lamar released the video for "Poetic Justice", the

Janet Jackson Janet Damita Jo Jackson (born May 16, 1966) is an American singer, songwriter, actress, and dancer. She is noted for her innovative, socially conscious and sexually provocative records, as well as elaborate stage shows. Her sound and choreog ...

-sampling collaboration with Canadian rapper Drake. On February 26, Lamar performed "Poetic Justice" on the '' Late Show with David Letterman''. Just nine months after its release, ''good kid, m.A.A.d city'' was certified

platinum Platinum is a chemical element with the symbol Pt and atomic number 78. It is a dense, malleable, ductile, highly unreactive, precious, silverish-white transition metal. Its name originates from Spanish , a diminutive of "silver". Pla ...

by the RIAA, Lamar's first platinum certification. In August 2013, Lamar's verse on the

Big Sean Sean Michael Leonard Anderson (born March 25, 1988), known professionally as Big Sean, is an American rapper. Anderson began his music career in 2007 and gained popularity in 2010 with his third mixtape '' Finally Famous Vol. 3: Big''. He then s ...

track " Control", made waves across the hip-hop industry. In the verse, Lamar vows to lyrically "murder" every other up-and-coming rapper, namely J. Cole, Big K.R.I.T.,

Wale Wale or WALE may refer to: Places *Wale, Devon, a hamlet in England *Wale, Tomaszów Mazowiecki County, a village in Poland People *Wale (surname) *Wale (rapper), stage name of American rapper Olubowale Victor Akintimehin Radio and television ...

, Pusha T, Meek Mill,

, Drake, Big Sean,

Jay Electronica Elpadaro F. Electronica Allah (born Timothy Elpadaro Thedford; September 19, 1976), known professionally as Jay Electronica (stylized as J A Y E L E C T R O N I C A), is an American rapper and record producer. Born and raised in New Orleans, he ...

, Tyler, The Creator and Mac Miller. During the song, Lamar also calls himself the "King of New York", which caused controversy among several New York-based rappers. Many New York rappers, including Papoose, The Mad Rapper, Mickey Factz, JR Writer, Mysonne, Joell Ortiz and more, took offense to this. Furthermore, fellow American rappers such as Meek Mill, Lupe Fiasco, Cassidy, Joe Budden,

King L Louis King Johnson, Jr. (born December 27, 1987), better known by his stage name King Louie (or King L), is an American rapper from Chicago. Spin Magazine attributed King Louie as being one of the Chicago rappers who made Chicago the "hottest ...

Bizarre Bizarre may refer to: *Bizarre (rapper) (born 1976), an American rapper and member of hip hop group D12 * Bizarre (band), a Spanish rock band * ''Bizarre'' (TV series), a Canadian sketch comedy television series * ''Bizarre'' (magazine), a siste ...

and B.o.B, among many others, released a response or diss track, within a week. In the days following the track's release, Lamar's Twitter account saw a 510% increase in followers. On September 6, 2013, American recording artist and record producer

Kanye West Ye ( ; born Kanye Omari West ; June 8, 1977) is an American rapper, singer, songwriter, record producer, and fashion designer. Born in Atlanta and raised in Chicago, West gained recognition as a producer for Roc-A-Fella Records in the ea ...

announced he would be headlining his first solo tour in five years, in support of his sixth album '' Yeezus'' (2013), with Kendrick Lamar accompanying him on tour.

The Yeezus Tour The Yeezus Tour was a concert tour by American rapper Kanye West in support of West's sixth solo studio album, ''Yeezus'' (2013). The venture served as West's first solo concert tour in five years. Kendrick Lamar, A Tribe Called Quest, Travis Sc ...

began in October. In October, it was also revealed that Lamar would be featured on

Eminem Marshall Bruce Mathers III (born October 17, 1972), known professionally as Eminem (; often stylized as EMINƎM), is an American rapper and record producer. He is credited with popularizing hip hop in middle America and is critically acclai ...

's eighth studio album ''

The Marshall Mathers LP 2 ''The Marshall Mathers LP 2'' is the eighth studio album by American rapper Eminem. It was released on November 5, 2013 by Aftermath Entertainment, Shady Records, and Interscope Records. The album is Eminem's last to have the involvement of inde ...

''. On October 15, 2013, Lamar won five awards at the

, including Album of the Year and Lyricist of the Year (the latter of which he had also won the year before). At the award show, Lamar performed "

Money Trees "Money Trees" is a song by American rapper Kendrick Lamar, taken from his major label debut studio album ''Good Kid, M.A.A.D City'' (2012). The song, which appears as the fifth track on the album, features a guest appearance from his Black Hippy ...

", and was also featured in a cypher alongside his Top Dawg label-mates Jay Rock, Schoolboy Q, Isaiah Rashad, and Ab-Soul. During an October 2013 interview with ''XXL'', Lamar revealed that following The Yeezus Tour, he would begin to start working on his next album. Kendrick Lamar Yeezus

In November 2013, he was named '' GQ'' "Rapper of the Year," and was featured on the cover of the magazine's "Men of the Year" issue. During the interview, he stated that he would begin recording his second major-label studio album in January 2014. Following the issue's release, TDE's CEO Anthony "Top Dawg" Tiffith pulled Lamar from performing at ''GQ''s party that accompanies the issue, calling out writer Steve Marsh's profile for its "racial overtones." ''GQ'' editor-in-chief Jim Nelson responded with the following statement: "Kendrick Lamar is one of the most talented new musicians to arrive on the scene in years. That's the reason we chose to celebrate him, wrote an incredibly positive article declaring him the next King of Rap, and gave him our highest honor: putting him on the cover of our Men of the Year issue. I'm not sure how you can spin that into a bad thing, and I encourage anyone interested to read the story and see for themselves." Lamar received a total of seven Grammy nominations at the 56th Annual Grammy Awards (2014), including Best New Artist,

Album of the Year Album of the Year, often abbreviated to AOTY, may refer to: Awards * ARIA Award for Album of the Year, Australia * Brit Award for British Album of the Year, UK * Grammy Award for Album of the Year, US * Juno Award for Album of the Year, CA * Lati ...

, and Best Rap Song, but did not win in any category. Many publications felt that

The Recording Academy The Recording Academy (formally the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences; abbreviated NARAS) is an American learned academy of musicians, producers, recording engineers, and other musical professionals. It is famous for its Grammy A ...

snubbed Lamar, as well as

Seattle Seattle ( ) is a port, seaport city on the West Coast of the United States. It is the county seat, seat of King County, Washington, King County, Washington (state), Washington. With a 2020 population of 737,015, it is the largest city in bo ...

-based rapper Macklemore, who won Best Rap Albumcategory for which Lamar was also nominated. At the ceremony, Lamar performed " M.A.A.D City" and a remix of "

Radioactive Radioactive decay (also known as nuclear decay, radioactivity, radioactive disintegration, or nuclear disintegration) is the process by which an unstable atomic nucleus loses energy by radiation. A material containing unstable nuclei is consi ...

" in a mash-up with American rock band Imagine Dragons at the awards ceremony. The remix was again performed by Lamar and the band on February 1, 2014, during the airing of ''Saturday Night Live'', marking Lamar's second appearance on the show.

2014–2016: ''To Pimp a Butterfly'' and ''Untitled Unmastered''

In an interview with '' Billboard'' in February 2014, Lamar stated he was planning to put out a new album the next September. During the same interview, which also included Schoolboy Q, Tiffith, and Dave Free, the possibility of a debut effort from the Black Hippy collective appearing in 2014 was announced. On July 31, 2014, it was announced that Lamar would premiere his short film ''m.A.A.d'' at

Sundance A Sun Dance is a Native American ceremony. Sun dance or Sundance may also refer to: Places ;Canada *Sundance, Calgary, Alberta, a neighbourhood *Sundance, Manitoba, a ghost town ;United States * Sundance, New Mexico, a census-designated place ...

's inaugural NEXT Fest in Los Angeles on August 9. The film is inspired by ''good kid, m.A.A.d city'', and was directed by Kahlil Joseph, who had previously worked with Lamar on the Yeezus Tour. Lamar featured on the

Alicia Keys Alicia Augello Cook (born January 25, 1981), known professionally as Alicia Keys, is an American singer, songwriter, and pianist. A classically trained pianist, Keys started composing songs when she was 12 and was signed at 15 years old by Colu ...

song " It's On Again", which was written for the film ''

The Amazing Spider-Man 2 ''The Amazing Spider-Man 2'' (internationally titled ''The Amazing Spider-Man 2: Rise of Electro'') is a 2014 American superhero film based on the Marvel Comics character Spider-Man. The film was directed by Marc Webb and produced by Avi ...

'' (2014). On September 23, 2014, Lamar released " i" as the first single from his third album. On November 15, 2014, Lamar once again appeared on ''Saturday Night Live'' as the musical guest, where he performed "i" and " Pay for It", appearing alongside Jay Rock. Through his appearance, with blackout contacts and his braids partly out, Lamar paid homage to New York-based rapper

Method Man Clifford Smith, Jr. (born March 2, 1971), better known by his stage name Method Man, is an American rapper, songwriter, record producer, and actor. He is known as a member of the East Coast hip hop collective Wu-Tang Clan. He is also half of ...

, whose debut album '' Tical'' celebrated its 20th anniversary that day. On December 17, 2014, Lamar debuted a new untitled song on one of the final episodes of '' The Colbert Report''. In early 2015, Lamar won Best Rap Performance and Best Rap Song for his song " i" at the 57th Annual Grammy Awards. On February 9, 2015, he released his third album's second single, titled " The Blacker the Berry". Originally expected to be released on March 23, 2015, his new album '' To Pimp a Butterfly'' was released a week early on March 16, 2015, to rave reviews. The album debuted atop the US ''Billboard'' 200 chart selling 324,000 copies in its first week, and established

Spotify Spotify (; ) is a proprietary Swedish audio streaming and media services provider founded on 23 April 2006 by Daniel Ek and Martin Lorentzon. It is one of the largest music streaming service providers, with over 456 million monthly active us ...

's global first-day streaming record (9.6 million). Lamar was later featured on the cover of ''

'', with editor Josh Eells writing he's "arguably the most talented rapper of his generation." Kendrick Lamar 3 F

On May 17, 2015, Lamar featured on the official remix of American singer-songwriter

's song " Bad Blood", as well as appearing in the music video. The original song is in Swift's fifth studio album '' 1989''. The single reached number one on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 and the music video won them a Grammy Award for Best Music Video and a MTV Video Music Award for Video of the Year. ''To Pimp a Butterfly'' produced three other singles with accompanying music videos, " King Kunta", " Alright" and " These Walls". The music video for "Alright" received four nominations at the 2015 MTV Video Music Awards, including Video of the Year and Best Male Video. The song " For Free? (Interlude)" also featured a music video, as did " u" with "For Sale" as part of the short film "God Is Gangsta." In October 2015, Lamar announced the Kunta's Groove Sessions Tour, which included eight shows in eight cities. In early 2016,

released the track "No More Parties in L.A." on his official SoundCloud, a collaboration featuring Lamar and produced by West and Madlib. Lamar also performed a new song, " Untitled 2" on ''

The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon ''The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon'' is an American late-night talk show hosted by Jimmy Fallon that airs on NBC. The show premiered on February 17, 2014, and is produced by Broadway Video and Universal Television. It is the seventh in ...

'' in January. '' Billboard'' critics commented at the end of the year, "twenty years ago, a conscious rap record wouldn't have penetrated the mainstream in the way Kendrick Lamar did with ''To Pimp A Butterfly''. His sense of timing is impeccable. In the midst of rampant cases of police brutality and racial tension across America, he spews raw, aggressive bars while possibly cutting a rug," while '' Pitchfork'' editors noted it "forced critics to think deeply about music. It's an album by the greatest rapper of his generation." Producer Tony Visconti stated

David Bowie David Robert Jones (8 January 194710 January 2016), known professionally as David Bowie ( ), was an English singer-songwriter and actor. A leading figure in the music industry, he is regarded as one of the most influential musicians of the ...

's album '' Blackstar'' (2016) was influenced by Lamar's work, "we were listening to a lot of Kendrick Lamar ..we loved the fact Kendrick was so open-minded and he didn't do a straight-up hip-hop record. He threw everything on there, and that's exactly what we wanted to do." Visconti also stated this about Lamar while talking about "rule-breakers" in music.

"His album ''To Pimp A Butterfly'' broke every rule in the book and he had a number one album glued to the top of the charts. You'd think certain labels would learn from that. But they take somebody who is out there and say, 'That's what people want.' No, people want that for one week. You don't want the same song every single day of your life."

Lamar won five Grammys at the 58th ceremony, including Best Rap Album for ''To Pimp a Butterfly''. Other nominations included Album of the Year and Song of the Year. At the ceremony, Lamar performed a medley of " The Blacker the Berry" and "Alright". ''

'' and '' Billboard'' called it the best moment of the night, with the latter writing "It was easily one of the best live TV performances in history." On March 4, 2016, Lamar released a compilation album '' Untitled Unmastered'', containing eight untitled tracks, each dated. The tracks were unfinished demos from the recording of ''To Pimp a Butterfly''. The compilation album debuted atop the US ''Billboard'' 200.

2017–2018: ''Damn'', ''Black Panther'' soundtrack and hiatus

On March 23, 2017, Lamar released a promotional single "

The Heart Part 4 "The Heart Part 4" is a song by American hip hop recording artist Kendrick Lamar. It was released on March 23, 2017, by Top Dawg Entertainment. The track features uncredited vocals from American singer Khalid. The song contains samples from ...

". A week later, Lamar released the lead single, titled " Humble", accompanied by its music video. On April 7, 2017, his fourth studio album was made available for pre-order and confirmed to be released on April 14, 2017. On April 11, Lamar announced the album title, ''

'' (stylized as ''DAMN.''), as well as the track list, which confirmed guest appearances by

Rihanna Robyn Rihanna Fenty ( ; born February 20, 1988) is a Barbadian singer, actress, and businesswoman. Born in Saint Michael and raised in Bridgetown, Barbados, Rihanna auditioned for American record producer Evan Rogers who invited her to t ...

, Zacari, and U2. The album was released on April 14, 2017, to rave reviews, with a ''Rolling Stone'' writer describing it as a combination of "the old school and the next-level." It marked his third number one album on the ''Billboard'' 200 chart, and the single "Humble" became his first number one as a lead artist on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100. On May 4, 2017, ''Damn'' was certified

by the

(RIAA). Lamar later released the ''DAMN.'' Collectors Edition in mid-December 2017, with the tracklist from the original album in reverse order. Along with Tiffith, Lamar produced and curated the film soundtrack for the

Marvel Studios Marvel Studios, LLC (originally known as Marvel Films from 1993 to 1996) is an American film and television production company that is a subsidiary of Walt Disney Studios, a division of the Walt Disney Company. Marvel Studios produces the Mar ...

superhero film ''

Black Panther A black panther is the melanistic colour variant of the leopard (''Panthera pardus'') and the jaguar (''Panthera onca''). Black panthers of both species have excess black pigments, but their typical rosettes are also present. They have been ...

'' (2018), titled '' Black Panther: The Album''. A single from the soundtrack, " All the Stars", was released in January 2018 featuring singer

SZA Solána Imani Rowe (born November 8, 1989), known professionally as SZA ( ), is an American singer and songwriter. Born in St. Louis, Missouri, she began making music in the early 2010s, releasing two extended plays before signing with the hip ...

, and it earned him an

nomination for Best Original Song. Shortly thereafter, another track, titled " King's Dead", was released by Jay Rock featuring Lamar, Future and James Blake. The third single, " Pray For Me", by Lamar and

The Weeknd Abel Makkonen Tesfaye (born February 16, 1990), known professionally as the Weeknd, is a Canadian singer, songwriter, record producer, and actor. Known for his sonic versatility and dark lyricism, his music explores escapism, Romance (love), ...

, was released in February 2018, ahead of the album's release in that month. '' Black Panther: The Album'' was released on February 9, 2018. In January 2018, Lamar's song publishing deal with Warner Chappell Music began to expire; TDE was seeking $20 to $40 million for the rapper's catalogue. Lamar opened the 60th Annual Grammy Awards with a medley of "XXX", "Lust", "DNA", "Humble", "King's Dead" and Rich the Kid's " New Freezer". He was also nominated for seven awards, including Album of the Year and Best Rap Album for ''Damn'', and the Record of the Year, Best Rap Performance, Best Rap Song, and Best Music Video for "Humble", and Best Rap/Sung Performance for "

Loyalty Loyalty, in general use, is a devotion and faithfulness to a nation, cause, philosophy, country, group, or person. Philosophers disagree on what can be an object of loyalty, as some argue that loyalty is strictly interpersonal and only anothe ...

" with Rihanna. Lamar ultimately won five awards at the ceremony, for Best Rap Album, Best Rap Performance, Best Rap Song, Best Music Video, and Best Rap/Sung Performance. After the ''Black Panther'' soundtrack, Lamar did not release music of his own for four years.

2020–present: PGLang and ''Mr. Morale & the Big Steppers''

On March 5, 2020, Lamar and Free launched PGLang, which was described as a multilingual, artist-friendly service company. In a press release, Free claimed that the company "is not a record label, a movie studio, or a publishing house. This is something new. In this overstimulated time, we are focused on cultivating raw expression from grassroots partnerships." The announcement also featured a "visual mission statement," a four-minute short film starring Lamar, Baby Keem, Jorja Smith, and Yara Shahidi. On August 20, 2021, Lamar announced on a blog post that he was in the middle of producing his final album under TDE. A week later, he appeared on Baby Keem's single " Family Ties", from his debut studio album '' The Melodic Blue''. The song marked Lamar's first single release in three years, and won Best Rap Performance at the 64th Annual Grammy Awards. Lamar additionally made several appearances on ''The Melodic Blue'', on the tracks " Range Brothers" and "Vent". On November 12, Lamar made his comeback performance by headlining the first night of Day N Vegas. On February 13, 2022, Lamar headlined the Super Bowl LVI halftime show alongside Dr. Dre,

, and Mary J. Blige, which won him the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Variety Special (Live). On May 8, he released the promotional single " The Heart Part 5". Lamar's fifth studio album, '' Mr. Morale & the Big Steppers'', was released on May 13. Ahead of its release, he visited

Ghana Ghana (; tw, Gaana, ee, Gana), officially the Republic of Ghana, is a country in West Africa. It abuts the Gulf of Guinea and the Atlantic Ocean to the south, sharing borders with Ivory Coast in Ghana–Ivory Coast border, the west, Burkina ...

to shoot a mini documentary with

. He also invited and met music executives and other Ghanaian artists such as Stonebwoy,

Amaarae } Ama Serwah Genfi, known professionally as Amaarae, is a Ghanaian singer known for her work around representation of gender and race in music. After collaborating with local artists and putting out a few non-album singles, she released her debut ...

, Black Sherif, and Smallgod during a private album listening party in Accra. In June, he performed at

Louis Vuitton Louis Vuitton Malletier, commonly known as Louis Vuitton (, ), is a French high-end luxury fashion house and company founded in 1854 by Louis Vuitton. The label's LV monogram appears on most of its products, ranging from luxury bags and lea ...

's Men's Spring/Summer 2023 show, in honor of their late artistic director Virgil Abloh, inside the

Louvre The Louvre ( ), or the Louvre Museum ( ), is the world's most-visited museum, and an historic landmark in Paris, France. It is the home of some of the best-known works of art, including the ''Mona Lisa'' and the ''Venus de Milo''. A central l ...

during Paris Fashion Week. He later headlined the final night of the

Glastonbury Festival Glastonbury Festival (formally Glastonbury Festival of Contemporary Performing Arts and known colloquially as Glasto) is a five-day festival of contemporary performing arts that takes place in Pilton, Somerset, England. In addition to contempo ...

Artistry

Influences

Lamar cites

as his biggest influence, noting that he has impacted his music and everyday life. He has stated that Shakur, the Notorious B.I.G., Jay-Z, Nas and

are his top five favorite rappers. In a 2011 interview with ''

'', Lamar mentioned

Mos Def Yasiin Bey (; born Dante Terrell Smith, December 11, 1973), previously and more commonly known by his stage name Mos Def (), is an American rapper, singer, songwriter, and actor. His hip hop career began in 1994, alongside his siblings in the s ...

and

as rappers that he listened to and took influence from during his early years. He also cited

DMX Earl Simmons (December 18, 1970 – April 9, 2021), known professionally as DMX, was an American rapper and actor. He began rapping in the early 1990s and released his debut album ''It's Dark and Hell Is Hot'' in 1998, to both critical acclaim ...

as someone who "really ot me startedon music. "That first album 'It's Dark and Hell Is Hot''">It's_Dark_and_Hell_Is_Hot.html" ;"title="'It's Dark and Hell Is Hot">'It's Dark and Hell Is Hot''is classic, [so he had an influence on me]." He further added that Eazy-E also influenced him, saying, "I wouldn't be here today if it wasn't for Eazy-E." In a September 2012 interview, Lamar stated that Eminem "influenced a lot of my style" and has credited him for his own aggression on records such as " Backseat Freestyle". Lamar also gave Lil Wayne's work in Hot Boys credit for influencing his style and praised his longevity. He has said that he also grew up listening to Rakim, Dr. Dre, and

Tha Dogg Pound Tha Dogg Pound is an American hip hop duo made up of rappers Kurupt and Daz Dillinger. They were signed to Death Row Records in their early careers and were key to the label's success. Kurupt and Daz went on to release solo albums starting ...

. In January 2013, when asked to name three rappers that have played a role in his style, Lamar said: "It's probably more of a west coast influence. A little bit of

Kurupt Ricardo Emmanuel Brown (born November 23, 1972), better known by his stage name Kurupt, is an American rapper and record producer who aided gangsta rap's rise via 1990s verses helping set lasting trends. He is one half of the rap duo Tha Dogg ...

, upac with some of the content of Ice Cube." In a November 2013 interview with ''GQ'', when asked who are the four MCs that made him, he answered Shakur, Dr. Dre,

and Mobb Deep, namely

Prodigy Prodigy, Prodigies or The Prodigy may refer to: * Child prodigy, a child who produces meaningful output to the level of an adult expert performer ** Chess prodigy, a child who can beat experienced adult players at chess Arts, entertainment, and ...

. Lamar professed to having been influenced by jazz trumpeter

Miles Davis Miles Dewey Davis III (May 26, 1926September 28, 1991) was an American trumpeter, bandleader, and composer. He is among the most influential and acclaimed figures in the history of jazz and 20th-century music. Davis adopted a variety of musi ...

and Parliament-Funkadelic during the recording of ''To Pimp a Butterfly''.

Musical style and rapping technique

Lamar's musical style is known to be "anti-flamboyant, interior and complex." His work is generally categorized as progressive rap due to his contributions of broadening the genre's audience to reach mainstream listeners. He's stated in an interview that "You really can't categorize my music, it's human music." Lamar's debut studio album '' Section.80'' was categorized as

. His second album '' Good Kid, M.A.A.D City'' was heavily influenced by West Coast hip hop and 1990s gangsta rap. His next three albums, '' To Pimp a Butterfly'', ''

'' and '' Mr. Morale & the Big Steppers'', are all classified as conscious hip hop records; with ''To Pimp a Butterfly'' incorporating elements of

soul In many religious and philosophical traditions, there is a belief that a soul is "the immaterial aspect or essence of a human being". Etymology The Modern English noun '':wikt:soul, soul'' is derived from Old English ''sāwol, sāwel''. The ea ...

, funk and spoken word poetry, ''Damn'' drawing on R&B,

and psychedelic soul influences, and ''Mr. Morale & the Big Steppers'' utilizing minimalist production. Labeled as a technical rapper by ''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...

'', Lamar's "limber and dexterous"

flow Flow may refer to: Science and technology * Fluid flow, the motion of a gas or liquid * Flow (geomorphology), a type of mass wasting or slope movement in geomorphology * Flow (mathematics), a group action of the real numbers on a set * Flow (psych ...

switches from

derivative In mathematics, the derivative of a function of a real variable measures the sensitivity to change of the function value (output value) with respect to a change in its argument (input value). Derivatives are a fundamental tool of calculus. ...

to generative metrics while incorporating internal and multisyllabic rhyme schemes. He's also known for his "willingness to experiment with his voice", often using cadences to convey complex emotions and tell stories through multiple

personas A persona (plural personae or personas), depending on the context, is the public image of one's personality, the social role that one adopts, or simply a fictional character. The word derives from Latin, where it originally referred to a theat ...

. Tirhakah Love of MTV writes that by expanding his

vocal range Vocal range is the range of pitches that a human voice can phonate. A common application is within the context of singing, where it is used as a defining characteristic for classifying singing voices into voice types. It is also a topic of st ...

, Lamar "calls back to a lineage that runs through James Brown's foundational work in the ’60s; the psychedelic ’70s;

Prince A prince is a Monarch, male ruler (ranked below a king, grand prince, and grand duke) or a male member of a monarch's or former monarch's family. ''Prince'' is also a title of nobility (often highest), often hereditary title, hereditary, in s ...

’s sweaty

phantasmagoria Phantasmagoria (, also fantasmagorie, fantasmagoria) was a form of horror theatre that (among other techniques) used one or more magic lanterns to project frightening images, such as skeletons, demons, and ghosts, onto walls, smoke, or semi-t ...

in the ’80s; and gangsta rap's run in the ’90s. In each of these eras, artists stretched the human voice in order to challenge listeners to consider the forces residing in our bodies, awaiting a sound to call them to life."

Songwriting

Lamar's introspective and

confessional A confessional is a box, cabinet, booth, or stall in which the priest in some Christian churches sits to hear the confessions of penitents. It is the usual venue for the sacrament in the Roman Catholic Church and the Lutheran Churches, but si ...

songwriting is often based on his personal life. He has been branded a "master of storytelling" by ''

The New Yorker ''The New Yorker'' is an American weekly magazine featuring journalism, commentary, criticism, essays, fiction, satire, cartoons, and poetry. Founded as a weekly in 1925, the magazine is published 47 times annually, with five of these issue ...

'', while his lyricism has been described by '' Billboard'' as "

Shakespeare William Shakespeare ( 26 April 1564 – 23 April 1616) was an English playwright, poet and actor. He is widely regarded as the greatest writer in the English language and the world's pre-eminent dramatist. He is often called England's natio ...

an". Considered a "radio-friendly but overtly political rapper" by '' Pitchfork'', Lamar's writing often contain

political Politics (from , ) is the set of activities that are associated with making decisions in groups, or other forms of power relations among individuals, such as the distribution of resources or status. The branch of social science that studi ...

and social commentary centered around

African American African Americans (also referred to as Black Americans and Afro-Americans) are an Race and ethnicity in the United States, ethnic group consisting of Americans with partial or total ancestry from sub-Saharan Africa. The term "African American ...

life and

culture Culture () is an umbrella term which encompasses the social behavior, institutions, and norms found in human societies, as well as the knowledge, beliefs, arts, laws, customs, capabilities, and habits of the individuals in these grou ...

, exploring themes of

racism Racism is the belief that groups of humans possess different behavioral traits corresponding to inherited attributes and can be divided based on the superiority of one race over another. It may also mean prejudice, discrimination, or antagonism ...

, black empowerment and social injustice. It has been compared to a State of the Union address by ''

The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper A newspaper is a periodical publication containing written information about current events and is often typed in black ink with a white or gray background. Newspapers can cover a wide ...

''. Jacob Uitti of ''

American Songwriter ''American Songwriter'' is a bimonthly magazine covering songwriting. Established in 1984, it features interviews, songwriting tips, news, reviews and lyric contest. The magazine is based in Nashville, Tennessee. History The ''American Songwr ...

'' notes, "For as much as he is a musician and a lyricist and an emcee, Lamar is also a playwright, a novelist, a short story author. He’s literary within the art form of music." All of Lamar's studio albums have been classified as concept albums. ''Section.80'' is themed around Generation Y and dwells on related subjects such as the 1980s crack epidemic, medication tolerance and the

presidency of Ronald Reagan Ronald Reagan's tenure as the List of presidents of the United States, 40th president of the United States began with First inauguration of Ronald Reagan, his first inauguration on January 20, 1981, and ended on January 20, 1989. Reagan, a R ...

. ''Good Kid, M.A.A.D City'' is a nonlinear narrative that chronicles Lamar's harsh teenage experiences in his native Compton. ''To Pimp a Butterfly'' combines political and personal themes such as racial inequality, depression, and institutional discrimination to document the Black American experience. ''Damn'' explores the dualities of

human nature Human nature is a concept that denotes the fundamental dispositions and characteristics—including ways of thinking, feeling, and acting—that humans are said to have naturally. The term is often used to denote the essence of humankind, or ...

and delves into themes of

morality Morality () is the differentiation of intentions, decisions and actions between those that are distinguished as proper (right) and those that are improper (wrong). Morality can be a body of standards or principles derived from a code of cond ...

and spirituality. ''Mr. Morale & the Big Steppers'' details Lamar's experiences in therapy and explores personal themes such as childhood and generational trauma,

accountability Accountability, in terms of ethics and governance, is equated with answerability, blameworthiness, liability, and the expectation of account-giving. As in an aspect of governance, it has been central to discussions related to problems in the publ ...

and celebrity worship.

Controversies

Lyrics

Lamar's 2015 song " The Blacker the Berry" gathered controversy following the lines, "So why did I weep when Trayvon Martin was in the street, when gang-banging make me kill a nigga blacker than me? Hypocrite!" Some fans perceived the line to be Lamar judging the black community. Lamar later explained the motivation behind the lyric in an NPR interview, saying, "It's not me pointing at my community; it's me pointing at myself, I don't talk about these things if I haven't lived them, and I've hurt people in my life. It's something I still have to think about when I sleep at night." While Lamar's 2022 song " Auntie Diaries" was met with praise from critics and transgender listeners, the song was also met with heavy criticism due to Lamar's epizeuxis usage of "

faggot Faggot, faggots, or faggoting may refer to: Arts and crafts * Faggoting (metalworking), forge welding a bundle of bars of iron and steel * Faggoting (knitting), variation of lace knitting in which every stitch is a yarn over or a decrease * F ...

", as well as deadnaming and misgendering his transgender relatives to express his own personal growth from childhood misunderstanding.

Feuds

In August 2013, Lamar was featured on the song " Control" by

. In his verse, Lamar called out several rappers, telling them he was going to murder his competition. The verse gathered responses and diss tracks from artists such as Joe Budden, Papoose, Meek Mill, Diddy, Lupe Fiasco, and B.o.B. ''Rolling Stone'' called the single "one of the most important hip-hop songs of the last decade". Lamar has been reported to be in a feud with Drake. '' Complex'' called their relationship "complicated",

Genius Genius is a characteristic of original and exceptional insight in the performance of some art or endeavor that surpasses expectations, sets new standards for future works, establishes better methods of operation, or remains outside the capabilit ...

called it a "subliminal war", and '' GQ'' called it a "cold war" due to the mass popularity of both artists. Before Lamar's "Control" verse, Lamar had been featured on Drake's "Buried Alive Interlude", Drake was featured on Lamar's single " Poetic Justice", and both were featured on A$AP Rocky's song " Fuckin' Problems". Drake responded to Lamar's "Control" verse in an interview with ''Billboard'', saying, "I know good and well that Kendrick's not murdering me, at all, in any platform." In September 2013, Drake's third album, '' Nothing was the Same'', was released. Publications such as ''Complex'' speculated that Drake had directed subliminal insults at Lamar in the song "The Language". In an interview with ''Pitchfork'' a day later, Drake showed disapproval of "Control", saying he wasn't impressed with it and added, "Mind you, it'll go on– ''Complex'' and Rap Radar will give it like, verse of the millennium and all that shit or whatever." Drake later said his only competition was

, after being asked about Kendrick saying he was murdering his competition. Lamar further escalated tensions in the 2013 BET Hip-Hop Awards cypher when he referred to Drake during the cypher, saying, "Yeah, and nothing's been the same since they dropped 'Control' / And tucked a sensitive rapper back in his pajama clothes."

Stereogum ''Stereogum'' is a daily Internet publication that focuses on music news, reviews, interviews, and commentary. The site was created in January 2002 by Scott Lapatine. ''Stereogum'' was one of the first MP3 blogs and has received several awa ...

noted that Lamar was referencing Drake's third studio album, ''Nothing was the Same'', and also Drake being called overly sensitive by the media. In December 2013, Drake, whilst being interviewed by ''Vice'', said he "stood his ground" and he has to realize "I'm being baited and I'm not gonna fall", then refusing to deny that the line on "The Language" was directed to Lamar, saying he "doesn't want to get into responses". Drake later went on to say that he acknowledged the lines in Lamar's cypher were for him and that it wasn't enough for him to prepare a response before saying they haven't seen each other since the BET cypher. Several more reported subliminal lines were spoken by each rapper, four by Kendrick on the songs, "Pay for it", "King Kunta", "Darkside/Gone", and "Deep Water" and two by Drake on the songs "Used To" and "4PM In Calabasas". In June 2016, former NFL player and broadcast show host Marcellus Wiley alleged that on his ESPN show, Drake or Lamar had given an interview in which they started "talking noise" and claimed that they had problems with the other individual. The interview was eventually not aired and Wiley said it had been "destroyed". Wiley said that the interview would have escalated the reported feud to become official with diss tracks being directed at the other side. Following an almost year-long hiatus from music, Lamar released "

". It was speculated that Lamar's line, "One, two, three, four, five / I am the greatest rapper alive" was a response to Drake's line, "I know I said top five, but I'm top two / And I'm not two and I got one" on the song "Gyalchester". Kendrick proceeded to insult rappers who have ghostwriters in an interview with ''Rolling Stone'' in August 2015. It was speculated that the insult was directed towards Drake, who has seen controversy due to the use of "ghostwriters" on songs such as " RICO". Lamar has also feuded with Detroit rapper and former collaborator

. Following the release of Sean's track "Control" in August 2013 where Lamar calls Sean out and claims he's gonna "murder" him, Sean responded in praise, saying, "Alright, that's what it need to get back to, it need to get back to hip-hop, that culture." In January 2015, Sean later spoke on "Control", saying that the song was "negative" and a month later released the "Me, Myself, and I". In October 2016, Big Sean released "No More Interviews" with shots directed at Lamar.

Spotify

In May 2018, Anthony "Top Dawg" Tiffith, CEO of Top Dawg Entertainment, contacted Daniel Ek, CEO of

, and the streaming service's head of artist relations

Troy Carter Troy Carter may refer to: * Troy Carter (physicist) (born 1973), American plasma physicist *Troy Carter (politician) (born 1963), American politician * Troy Carter (talent manager) (born 1972), American music talent manager Fictional characters *2 ...

to express his frustrations with their Hate Content & Hateful Conduct policy. Conceived in light of the #MeToo movement, the removal policy sought to promote "openness, diversity, tolerance and respect" by removing content that promotes, advocates, or incites hatred and violence against an individual or group based on characteristics. In accordance to the policy, the streaming platform removed XXXTentacion and R. Kelly's music their editorial and algorithmic playlists due to their publicized acts of violence against women. Tiffith claimed that the policy was

censorship Censorship is the suppression of speech, public communication, or other information. This may be done on the basis that such material is considered objectionable, harmful, sensitive, or "inconvenient". Censorship can be conducted by governments ...

and threatened to pull music from his label, including Lamar's, from the platform if they kept the policy as it stood. In the midst of Tiffith's threat, Lamar praised XXXTentacion's debut studio album '' 17'' on Twitter. In response to the criticism, Spotify reversed their policy and reinstated XXXTentacion's music back onto playlists after other artists threatened to pull their music.

Other ventures

Acting and filmmaking

Lamar began his filmmaking career by writing the music video for his song "Ignorance Is Bliss". He made his directorial debut with the music video for " Backseat Freestyle". Since then, he has directed several of his music videos alongside his creative partner Dave Free under the collective name The Little Homies. In 2014, Lamar produced and was featured in ''M.A.A.D'', a short film inspired by his second studio album '' Good Kid, M.A.A.D City''. In December 2015, he co-directed, edited and starred in the short film ''God Is Gangsta'', which was inspired by his third studio album '' To Pimp a Butterfly''. He began executive producing music videos in 2020 with Baby Keem's "Hooligan". In January 2022, Lamar and Free announced that they will be producing an untitled comedy film with '' South Park'' creators

Matt Stone Matthew Richard Stone (born May 26, 1971) is an American actor, animator, filmmaker, and composer. He is known for co-creating '' South Park'' (since 1997) and '' The Book of Mormon'' (2011) with his creative partner Trey Parker. Stone was inte ...

and

Trey Parker Randolph Severn "Trey" Parker III (born October 19, 1969) is an American actor, animator, filmmaker, and composer. He is known for co-creating ''South Park'' (since 1997) and ''The Book of Mormon'' (2011) with his creative partner Matt Stone. P ...

. In July 2018, Lamar made his acting debut in the fifth season of the Starz drama series '' Power'', portraying a Dominican drug addict named Laces. His casting stemmed from his friendship with rapper 50 Cent, who stars in and executive produces the series. Lamar wanted to portray a character that did not resemble his musical persona, and drew inspiration from various people he knew when growing up in Compton. He also compared his acting preparation to his songwriting, saying that he prefers to "always have that open space to evolve". Lamar's performance was praised by critics and viewers, and earned him an

NAACP Image Award The NAACP Image Awards is an annual awards ceremony presented by the U.S.-based National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) to honor outstanding performances in film, television, theatre, music, and literature. Similar to ...

nomination for Outstanding Guest Performance in a Comedy or Drama Series.

Business and fashion

Lamar owns a percentage of his former record label Top Dawg Entertainment. In December 2014, he was announced as a brand ambassador for sportswear brand

Reebok Reebok International Limited () is an American fitness footwear and clothing manufacturer that is a part of Authentic Brands Group. It was established in England in 1958 as a companion company to J.W. Foster and Sons, a sporting goods company ...

, and designed six sneakers with the company. After ending his ambassadorship with Reebok in 2017, Lamar began a partnership with Nike, Inc., Nike and collaborated on five sneakers. In 2022, he collaborated with Converse (lifestyle wear), Converse on two sneakers.

Impact

Lamar's work has earned universal acclaim from music critics, industry peers, and cultural figures. He has been named by numerous media outlets as one of the most influential artists of the 2010s in music, 2010s, with '' Billboard'' listing him as one of the greatest rappers of all time. He has been credited by NPR Music with the revival of jazz rap, which waned after the 1990s. Writing for ''Esquire (UK Edition), Esquire UK'', editor Olivia Ovended opined, "Even if you're not overly familiar with Lamar's back catalogue, his influence in music is everywhere, from the West Coast hip-hop now being made by Anderson .Paak. to the trap of Gucci Mane. He is—and we'll brook no argument here—the greatest rapper making music today." ''

'' journalist Carrie Battan considered him "California's biggest hip-hop artist since Hip hop music#1990s, the nineteen-nineties." Lamar has been branded as the "New King of Hip Hop" numerous times by media outlets. Steve Batlin of ''Forbes'' writes that although he "may or may not be the greatest rapper alive right now", he's "certainly in the very short lists of artists in the conversation." Lamar frequently refers to himself as the "Greatest Rapper Alive" and has once declared himself the "King of New York". His music was also used during protests following the 2016 United States presidential election. According to American studies and media scholar William Hoynes, Lamar's progressive rap music places him in a long line of African-American artists and activists who "worked both inside and outside of the mainstream to advance a counterculture that opposes the racist stereotypes being propagated in white-owned media and culture". History (American TV network), History.com considered Lamar's Pulitzer Prize win as "a sign of the American cultural elite's recognition of hip-hop as a legitimate artistic medium." ''NPR Music'' writer Marcus J. Moore noticed Lamar's rap-jazz aesthetic present on his repertoire, "he's at the vanguard of this movement, proving that he too is a rule breaker, just like Miles Davis, Miles, Herbie Hancock, Herbie, John Coltrane, Coltrane, Robert Glasper, Glasper and Roy Hargrove, Hargove, who all took bold creative risks to push

into uncharted territory," and stated that Lamar is introducing jazz to a generation "who might only know it through their parents' old record collections." ''Esquire (magazine), Esquire US'' writer Matt Miller opined about the rapper's videography in 2017, crediting Lamar for "reviving" the music video as "a powerful form" of social commentary, citing as examples "Alright" and "Humble". Multiple artists have cited his work as an inspiration, including Khalid (singer), Khalid, Roddy Ricch, Christine and the Queens, Jhené Aiko, YBN Cordae, Cordae, Car Seat Headrest and Dua Lipa. Madonna praised ''Mr. Morale & the Big Steppers'' as "history making" and "mind-bogglingly brilliant". Pharrell Williams called Lamar "one of the greatest writers of our times", explaining that he "knows how to be very disciplined with a subject matter, he knows that stickiness is important, and he knows that it has to feel great." Lorde described him as "the most popular and influential artist in modern music".

's final studio album '' Blackstar'' (2016) was influenced by ''To Pimp a Butterfly'', which was noted by ''Rolling Stone'' as one of the albums that made Lamar "the decade's deepest, rangiest, most musical and consequential rapper."

Achievements

KENDRICK LAMAR Grandoozy 2018 (44346900965)

Lamar has won fourteen

s. At the 57th Annual Grammy Awards, 57th Grammy Awards in 2015, his single " i" earned him his first two wins: Best Rap Song and Best Rap Performance. At the 58th Annual Grammy Awards, 58th Grammy Awards, Lamar led the list of nominations with 11 mentions, passing

and

as the rapper with the Grammy Award records, most nominations in a single night, and second overall behind Michael Jackson and Babyface (musician), Babyface, who hold the record of 12 nominations. Lamar was the most-awarded artist at the ceremony with five. ''good kid, m.A.A.d city'', ''To Pimp a Butterfly'' and ''Damn'' have all been nominated for

, with the latter two winning for Best Rap Album. Those three albums were featured on ''Rolling Stones industry-voted list of the

in 2020. ''DAMN.'' won the 2018 Pulitzer Prize for Music, making Lamar the first non-jazz or classical artist to win the award. In collecting his award on May 30, 2018, new Pulitzer administrator Dana Canedy, the first woman and African American to lead the organization, told him: "Congratulations, looks like we're both making history this year." In 2019, he was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Original Song for " All the Stars". At the 74th Primetime Emmy Awards, he won Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Variety Special (Live), Outstanding Variety Special (Live) for the Super Bowl LVI halftime show. Lamar has received two honors in his hometown. On May 11, 2015, he received the

's Generational Icon Award from State Senator Isadore Hall III (California Democratic Party, D–Compton, California, Compton) who represents California's 35th State Senate district, California's 35th district. From the senate floor, Lamar told the legislature, "Being from the City of Compton and knowing the parks that I played at and the neighborhoods, I always thought how great the opportunity would be to give back to my community off of what I do in music." On February 13, 2016, Mayor of Compton, California Aja Brown presented Lamar with the List of Keys to the City in the United States, key to the city, for "representing Compton's evolution, embodying the New Vision for Compton." He appeared for the first time on the ''Time (magazine), Time'' Time 100, 100 list of most influential people in 2016. His debut major-label release, ''good kid, m.A.A.d city'', was named one of "The 100 Best Debut Albums of All Time" by ''Rolling Stone''. ''To Pimp a Butterfly'' was ranked by many publications as one of the best albums of the 2010s (decade), with ''The Independent'' placing it first.Decade-end critics' lists: * * * * In 2015, ''Billboard'' included Lamar in "The 10 Greatest Rappers of All-Time." '' Complex'' magazine has ranked Lamar atop "The 20 Best Rappers in Their 20s" annual lists in 2013, 2015 and 2016. He has also won six ''Billboard'' Music Awards, seven BET Awards (including BET Award for Album of the Year, Album of the Year), and 25

—the most for an artist.

Personal life

While attending Centennial High School, Lamar began dating beautician Whitney Alford. In April 2015, during an interview with ''The Breakfast Club (radio show), The Breakfast Club'', Lamar revealed that they were engaged. The couple have two children together: daughter Uzi (born July 2019), and son Enoch. Lamar is an older cousin of fellow rapper Baby Keem, and a younger cousin of basketball player Nick Young (basketball), Nick Young. He is a notable fan of the Los Angeles Lakers, the Los Angeles Dodgers, and the Los Angeles Rams. Lamar is a devout Christians, Christian, having converted following the death of a friend. He has been outspoken about his faith in his music and interviews. He has been Baptism, baptized twice; first when he was 16 and again in 2013, which he announced during his opening set at

. Lamar has credited God for his fame and his "deliverance" from crime that often plagued Compton in the 1990s. He also believes his career is divine inspiration, divinely inspired, saying in an interview with '' Complex'' in 2014, "I got a greater purpose, God put something in my heart to get across and that's what I'm going to focus on, using my voice as an instrument and doing what needs to be done." The introductory lines to his second studio album '' Good Kid, M.A.A.D City'' (2012) includes a form of the Sinner's Prayer. His song "I (Kendrick Lamar song), I" and his fourth studio album ''

'' (2017) further discusses his Christian faith and spiritual struggles. In 2014, Lamar dressed up as Jesus for Halloween, explaining, "If I want to idolize somebody, I'm not going to do a scary monster, I'm not gonna do another artist or a human being—I'm gonna idolize the Master, who I feel is the Master, and try to walk in His light. It's hard, it's something I probably could never do, but I'm gonna try. Not just with the outfit but with everyday life. The outfit is just the imagery, but what's inside me will display longer." On the cover of '' Mr. Morale & the Big Steppers'' (2022) and during select promotions for the album, Lamar wore a diamond crown of thorns designed by Tiffany & Co.. During his Glastonbury Festival 2022, headlining performance at Glastonbury Festival, Lamar explained that he wore the crown as both a "nod of respect to the artists who came before him" and as a reminder of his imperfections, while adding, "They judge you, they judged Christ." He repeated the chant at the end of his performance with theatrical blood pouring down his face; this time, he added "Godspeed for women's rights" in response to the Dobbs v. Jackson Women's Health Organization, overturning of ''Roe v. Wade''. In the lead up to the 2012 United States presidential election, 2012 presidential election, Lamar stated, "I don't vote. I don't do no voting, I will keep it straight up real with you. I don't believe in none of the shit that's going on in the world." He went on to say that voting was useless: "When I say the president can't even control the world, then you definitely know there's something else out there pushing the buttons. They could do whatever they want to do, we['re] all puppets." Several days before the election, he reversed his previous claim that he was not going to vote and said that he was voting for Barack Obama because Mitt Romney did not have a "good heart". Lamar later met Obama in January 2016 in promotion of Obama's My Brother's Keeper Challenge. Speaking about the meeting, Lamar said, "We tend to forget that people who've attained a certain position are human." Before the meeting, Obama said in an interview that his favorite song of 2015 was Lamar's "How Much a Dollar Cost".

Discography

Studio albums * '' Section.80'' (2011) * '' Good Kid, M.A.A.D City'' (2012) * '' To Pimp a Butterfly'' (2015) * ''

'' (2017) * '' Mr. Morale & the Big Steppers'' (2022)

Filmography

Film

Television

Concert tours

Headlining *Section.80 Tour (2011) *Good Kid, M.A.A.D City World Tour (2013) *Kunta Groove Sessions Tour (2015) *The Damn Tour (2017–18) *The Big Steppers Tour (2022) Co-headlining *The Championship Tour (2018) Supporting *

–

(2013–14) * Drake –

(2012)

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Lamar, Kendrick Kendrick Lamar, 1987 births Living people 21st-century American rappers African-American Christians African-American male rappers African-American male songwriters African-American record producers Aftermath Entertainment artists American hip hop record producers American hip hop singers American male rappers American male songwriters American music video directors Black Hippy members Brit Award winners Converts to Christianity Creative directors Filmmakers from California Grammy Award winners for rap music Interscope Records artists Juno Award for International Album of the Year winners MTV Europe Music Award winners Musicians from Compton, California PGLang artists Primetime Emmy Award winners Pulitzer Prize for Music winners Rappers from California Record producers from California Songwriters from California Top Dawg Entertainment artists West Coast hip hop musicians