''Kendrick Lamar'' is the eponymous debut

extended play An extended play record, usually referred to as an EP, is a musical recording that contains more tracks than a single but fewer than an album or LP record.

(EP) by American rapper

Kendrick Lamar Kendrick Lamar Duckworth (born June 17, 1987) is an American rapper and songwriter. Known for his Progressive rap, progressive musical styles and Social consciousness, socially conscious songwriting, he is often considered one of the most infl ...

that was released as a free digital download on December 31, 2009 by

Top Dawg Entertainment Top Dawg Entertainment (TDE) is an American independent record label founded in 2004, by CEO Anthony "Top Dawg" Tiffith. Terrence "Punch" Henderson is president of the label. There are currently eleven artists signed to the label: the label's f ...

(TDE). It is his first project to be released under his birth name, previously releasing music under the

moniker A nickname is a substitute for the proper name of a familiar person, place or thing. Commonly used to express affection, a form of endearment, and sometimes amusement, it can also be used to express defamation of character. As a concept, it is ...

K.Dot, from 2005 to late 2009. The EP features

guest appearance In show business, a guest appearance is the participation of an outsider performer (such as a musician or actor) in an event such as a music record or concert, show, etc., when the performer does not belong to the regular band, cast, or other p ...

s from

Angela McCluskey Angela McCluskey (born 28 February 1967) is a Scottish singer-songwriter based in California. She performs as a solo artist and as a member of the folk rock group Wild Colonials. McCluskey has also provided vocals for Curio and recorded the Eu ...

Ab-Soul Herbert Anthony Stevens IV (born February 23, 1987), better known by his stage name Ab-Soul, is an American rapper, singer and songwriter. Raised in Carson, California, he signed to indie record label Top Dawg Entertainment (TDE) in 2007, where ...

, JaVonte,

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 ...

, BJ the Chicago Kid,

Punch Punch commonly refers to: * Punch (combat), a strike made using the hand closed into a fist * Punch (drink), a wide assortment of drinks, non-alcoholic or alcoholic, generally containing fruit or fruit juice Punch may also refer to: Places * Pun ...

Schoolboy Q Quincy Matthew Hanley (born October 26, 1986), better known by his stage name Schoolboy Q (stylized as ScHoolboy Q), is an American rapper. In 2009, Hanley signed to Carson-based independent record label Top Dawg Entertainment (TDE) and in late ...

and

Big Pooh Thomas Louis Jones III (born February 12, 1980), better known by his stage name Big Pooh (or Rapper Big Pooh), is an American rapper, who, along with fellow rap artist Phonte, is a member of the acclaimed North Carolina hip hop group Little Bro ...

. The EP'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

Sounwave Mark Anthony Spears, known professionally as Sounwave, is an American hip-hop producer and songwriter from Compton, California, and an original member of the Californian hip-hop label Top Dawg Entertainment. Sounwave has worked on every Kendrick ...

, Black Milk,

Jake One Jacob Brian Dutton (born May 11, 1976), known professionally as Jake One, is an American record producer and songwriter.Palermo, Thomas (2008)Jake One Readies New Album, XLR8R, September 5, 2008Matos, Michaelangelo (2004)Rocketship Blowing Up, Se ...

, Q-Tip and

Wyldfyer Wyatt Coleman, also known as Wyldfyer is an American music producer. He produced a promo album (from Jay-Z), The Black Album: Classik. He produced tracks for Nas's "Hip Hop Is Dead", and the collaboration between Nas and Jay-Z, " Black Repu ...

, among others. The free-download EP premiered exclusively on online mixtape distribution platform

DatPiff DatPiff is an online audio distribution platform that was launched in 2005. It is headquartered in Pennsylvania. It specializes in hip-hop, rap, and urban music. The site was founded in the spring of 2005 by Marcus Frasier. It is owned by Media ...

and has since then been downloaded over 200,000 times on the website earning a gold certification status.

Track listing

Sample credits * "Is It Love" contains a sample of "Don't Look Back", performed by Telepopmusik and

. * "P&P" contains a sample of "Clock With No Hands", performed by

The Roots The Roots are an American hip hop band formed in 1987 by Tariq "Black Thought" Trotter and Ahmir "Questlove" Thompson in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. The Roots serve as the house band on NBC's ''The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy F ...

& Mercedes Martinez. * "She Needs Me" contains samples of "Byrdshot and Bye", performed by Dimlite; and "

Long Red "Long Red" is a song recorded by Leslie West for his first solo album ''Mountain'' (1969). He performed it with his band Mountain at Woodstock in 1969, which was later included on '' Live: The Road Goes Ever On'' (1972). The drum break In popu ...

", performed by

Mountain A mountain is an elevated portion of the Earth's crust, generally with steep sides that show significant exposed bedrock. Although definitions vary, a mountain may differ from a plateau in having a limited Summit (topography), summit area, and ...

. The song also contains a drum sample from "Let's Ride", performed by Q-Tip. * "I Am (Interlude)" is a remix of "Believe", performed by Q-Tip &

D'Angelo Michael Eugene Archer (born February 11, 1974), better known by his stage name D'Angelo (), is an American singer, songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, and record producer. He first garnered attention after co-producing the single "U Will Know" ...

. * "Wanna Be Heard" is a remix of "Popular Demand", performed and produced by Black Milk. * "I Do This" contains a sample of "Don't You Want to Stay", performed by

Bill Withers William Harrison Withers Jr. (July 4, 1938 – March 30, 2020) was an American singer-songwriter and musician. He had several hits over a career spanning 18 years, including "Ain't No Sunshine" (1971), "Grandma's Hands" (1971), " Use Me" (1972) ...

. * "Faith" contains a sample of "Tired of Fighting", performed by

Menahan Street Band Menahan Street Band is a Brooklyn, New York-based instrumental band formed in 2007, that plays funk and soul music. The band features musicians from Antibalas, El Michels Affair, Sharon Jones & The Dap-Kings and the Budos Band. The group was fo ...

. * "Vanity Slaves" is a remix of "Daykeeper", performed by

The Foreign Exchange The Foreign Exchange is an R&B/electronica/ hip hop duo consisting of the American rapper/singer Phonte and the Dutch record producer Nicolay. Musical career The pair initially made contact via message boards on Okayplayer.com and soon be ...

Muhsinah Muhsinah is an American Grammy Award nominated singer and producer, from Washington, D.C. She cites Chick Corea, Herbie Hancock, Quincy Jones, Nirvana and Chopin as among her influences. Musical career A graduate of the Duke Ellington S ...

. * "Thanksgiving" contains samples of " Almost Like Being in Love" performed by

Nat King Cole Nathaniel Adams Coles (March 17, 1919 – February 15, 1965), known professionally as Nat King Cole, was an American singer, jazz pianist, and actor. Cole's music career began after he dropped out of school at the age of 15, and continued f ...

, and "Long Red", performed by Mountain. * "Determined" contains samples of "Family", performed by

Lamont Dozier Lamont Herbert Dozier (; June 16, 1941 – August 8, 2022) was an American singer, songwriter, and record producer from Detroit, Michigan. He co-wrote and produced 14 US ''Billboard'' number-one hits and four number ones in the UK. Career Doz ...

, and interpolates " Touch the Sky", performed by

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 ...

and

Lupe Fiasco Wasalu Muhammad Jaco (born February 16, 1982), better known by his stage name Lupe Fiasco ( ), is an American rapper, singer, record producer, and entrepreneur. He rose to fame in 2006 following the success of his debut album, ''Lupe Fiasco's ...

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Kendrick Lamar 2009 debut EPs Top Dawg Entertainment albums Kendrick Lamar albums Albums free for download by copyright owner Albums produced by Black Milk Albums produced by Jake One Albums produced by Sounwave