It doesn't seem like this is only (sort of) Kendrick Lamar's sophomore album. He's been a ubiquitous presence in hip hop for the last few years, despite having released no new material since 2012 and only a handful of guest verses, albeit high profile ones. Even as far back as 2010, he actually had a critically acclaimed independent album, Section 80, which for some reason most don't count as his debut. Kendrick's presence in the rap game feels well-worn at this stage, due in no small part to the monumental nature of his major-label debut, Good Kid, Maad City. I'm not going to dwell at length on my thoughts on that album; I pronounced it the album of the year at that time, because it would have been intellectually dishonest not to, being the year's most critically acclaimed hip hop album and its second biggest-selling, but it never made it to constant replay for me. With that being said, its impact was undeniable and made Kendrick one of hip hop's biggest names, and earned him comparisons to the likes of rap-Rushmore candidates 2Pac and Nas.
The big question would now be how Kendrick followed it up. The pressure on Kendrick Lamar was enormous at this point, as he would not only have to follow up a debut that has been pronounced a classic by most critics, but would have to deal with the added scrutiny of being crowned the savior of West Coast hip hop and hip hop on the whole. Add to that the pressure of the dreaded "sophomore slump" and you have nearly insurmountable expectations for the Compton native to meet.
"I remember you was conflicted..."
For what it's worth, I never found the 2Pac or Nas comparisons accurate at all, at least from a musical standpoint. Both played the role of griots, especially in the early stages of their careers, streetwise poets who were equally at home wearing the khufi or slapping it off you. Their music was known, criticized and beloved alike, for representing human duality: they were capable of provoking deep thought, but the same thought they inspired could reveal the hypocrisy they sometimes demonstrated. Nas was famously called out by Jay-Z for making songs like "Black Girl Lost" while putting out singles like "You Owe Me", but it was this capacity for contradiction that made him relatable to many.
"I remember you was conflicted..."
I said when Good Kid, Maad City came out that Kendrick's true kindred spirit was the more eccentric Andre 3000. Despite the fact that he was marketed as a young Nas, a young 2Pac, I just never saw it. It wasn't so much that Kendrick lacked that griot-with-a-touch-of-thug persona that Nas displayed, or that he lacked 2Pac's charisma and fiery temper, although both of these statements were true. It was more that, sonically, he clearly borrowed liberally from Three Stacks, right down to the space alien voices and esoteric flows, and this is even more true on To Pimp a Butterfly. The funk flows throughout this album, starting with "Wesley's Theory" which features the prime minister of funk himself, George Clinton. The song could have fit neatly into the tracklist of Aquemini, before abruptly shifting gears into a rapid-fire onslaught of slam poetry-style rhyming on the humorous "For Free? (Interlude)." From here, the album sounds remarkably like Andre 3000's flamboyant The Love Below from a sonic standpoint. Erratic flows, rhyming that feels free-association at times, and jazzy horns and keys give the songs that follow a very laid-back, smooth sound that would be perfectly at home in a jazz joint. But there is an underlying theme tying it all together that stands in marked contrast to the free-love vibe of The Love Below.
"I remember you was conflicted..."
"King Kunta." "Institutionalized." "These Walls." The album is already being described as Afrocentric, but there's a subtle militancy behind the hippie vibe that goes beyond mere Afrocentrism. The topic of racial and social injustice is a cauldron boiling just below the surface, and you can hear it in Kendrick's rhymes. He's not concerned with calling rappers' names or being the self-proclaimed "King of New York" here, as on his celebrated "Control" verse. This is a protest album.
"I remember you was conflicted..."
These words are repeated between songs, the refrain of a poem that links the songs on the album in theme. The angst grows with this repeated stanza, as the songs' lyrics become more pointed. "From Compton to Congress, set tripping all around/ain't nothing but a new flow of DemoCrips and ReBloodicans," he spits on "Hood Politics." "How Much a Dollar Cost" is one of the album's standout tracks, and the human hypocrisy is on full display:
"He begged and pleaded,
Asked me to feed him twice, I didn't believe it
Told him, 'Beat it'
Contributing money just for his pipe, I couldn't see it
He said, 'My son, temptation is one thing that I've defeated
Listen to me, I want a single bill from you
Nothing less, nothing more,'
I told him I ain't have it and closed my door
Tell me how much a dollar cost..."
I won't reveal the song's ending, but the messages of social injustice and the price of selfishness are poignant and powerful. "Complexion (A Zulu Love)" continues with the pro-black themes and features the lone guest rap on the album, from the slept-on Rapsody, sending a message against the skin-tone prejudices still present in the black community.
The cauldron suddenly and abruptly boils over on the ferocious "The Blacker the Berry," the album's most powerful track. "So why did I weep when Trayvon Martin was in the street/when gangbanging make me kill a n---- blacker than me? Hypocrite!" Kendrick snarls, and the idea of contradiction and human duality comes full circle. From here, "I" and "Mortal Man" embrace the ideas of loving oneself as the album comes to a close on a more serene note, with Kendrick finishing his poem in an "interview" with 2Pac and explaining the metaphor in the album's title.
While not without a few minor blemishes (the vocally awful "U" in particular), this album stands as proof that Kendrick could do the things I hadn't been totally convinced he could. He's a griot, a thinker, a sinner, a commentator, and while the album's overall soundscape is reminiscent of The Love Below, the message runs much deeper, and suddenly those Nas and 2Pac comparisons don't seem so farfetched. It might sound a bit too laid-back at times, especially on first listen, but the juxtaposition of its smooth demeanor against its potent message, along with its gradual build into the explosive "The Blacker the Berry," is a big part of why it works.
I remember you was conflicted...and it made for an excellent album.
FINAL SCORE: 4.5/5.0
Highlights: How Much a Dollar Cost, The Blacker the Berry, Mortal Man
Nice piece bro. K Dot for life
ReplyDeleteMany thanks!
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