"Range Brothers" (stylized in

all lowercase Letter case is the distinction between the letters that are in larger uppercase or capitals (or more formally ''majuscule'') and smaller lowercase (or more formally ''minuscule'') in the written representation of certain languages. The writing ...

) is a song by American rappers

Baby Keem Hykeem Jamaal Carter Jr. (born October 22, 2000), known professionally as Baby Keem, is an American rapper and record producer. He initially gained major recognition following the release of his single "Orange Soda", from his second mixtape ''Di ...

and

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 ...

. The song was released on September 10, 2021 by Columbia Records and

pgLang PGLang (stylized as pgLang, an acronym for Program Language) is an American multi-disciplinary creative collective founded by Kendrick Lamar and Dave Free. Launched on March 5, 2020, the collective houses a record label, a production company, a ...

as the fourth track off of the former's debut album, ''

The Melodic Blue ''The Melodic Blue'' is the debut studio album by American rapper and record producer Baby Keem. It was released on September 10, 2021, by PGLang and Columbia Records, with Keem serving as the executive producer. The standard version of the al ...

''. "Range Brothers" made the '' Billboard'' Hot 100 and

Hot R&B/Hip Hop songs 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 ...

charts among others. The third portion of the song's chorus by Lamar trended on

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and became viral as a meme.

Background

On September 8, 2021, two days before its official release, parts of the song were leaked. Baby Keem and his cousin, Kendrick Lamar, address a variety of themes, including the financial prosperity that comes with fame, their difficult upbringings, sexual prowess, and betrayal.

Composition and lyrics

The fourth track off of Baby Keem's debut album, "Range Brothers" sees Keem reunite with his cousin Kendrick Lamar. The two real-life cousins sing about their difficult beginnings, how they were fortunate to be in the position they are in today, and the costs of fame. At one point, Lamar warns Keem about fame, saying "Every day, the hate restored and the faith get short." Keem responds with: "Fuck that, let me get some too!" "Range Brothers" is divided into three parts, each lasting around 1.5 minutes. Changes in beats, cadences, and styles represent shifts in the song's sections. A ''

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'' review commented that "Punchy drums feel offbeat with pauses punctuated by Keem's staccato delivery, and intertwined vocal and string samples construct a grandiose stage." A controversial part of the song is Lamar's repetitive verse at the end of the track, where he raps, "Let's get this shit/ Let's get this shit/ Let's get this shit, Let's." He then repeatedly rhymes, "Top o' the morning/ Top o' the morning/ Top o' the morning/ Top o' the morning/ Top o' the morning/ Top o' the morning." Keem appeared to respond to the controversy in a tweet, saying "me and dot endrickcreated four new languages bro. rap was boring. so we start making new languages."

Reception

The song was polarizing to audiences, featuring strong orchestral synths, but received generally favorable critic reviews, and was considered by some among the most complex and ambitious of all the tracks on ''

''. Kendrick Lamar's participation was noted by one critic as "bizarre and unconventional for a rapper of his status", but also potentially "innovating toward something new". His use of ad libs and repetitions of the phrases "Let's get this shit" and "top of the mornin became viral online and sparked internet memes. ''Vulture'' called the song Kendrick's first main new attraction in years, saying "Range Brothers finds Lamar trading bars with Keem about all the money and girls he doesn't know what to do with, along with contributing some playful vocals in the song."

Charts

Certifications

References

{{Kendrick Lamar songs 2021 songs Baby Keem songs Kendrick Lamar songs Songs written by 30 Roc Songs written by Kendrick Lamar