Mark Braboy
Associate Editor
Every generation always has that one album that defines an era. In an age of fragile race relations and the constant turmoil people of all cultures face today, Kendrick Lamar’s new album “To Pimp a Butterfly” is the perfect soundtrack to this turmoil.
In 2012, when the Grammy Award winning hip-hop artist released his Grammy nominated and critically acclaimed album, “Good Kid, M.A.A.D. City”, fans have been impatiently awaiting his follow up.
So on March 16, when the album unexpectedly popped up online a week earlier than originally planned, it practically set the Internet on fire. While this perhaps may have been the most anticipated album in hip-hop since Dr. Dre’s “Detox”, everyone wants to know whether it was worth the wait.
From “Section .80” up to now, all of his albums sound very different from each other. The only thing similar are the usual themes of the world around him at the moment. With that said, this album is NOT “GKMC”!
If anything, the themes of this album are a mix between the third person view of the world around him on his first album and a first person view of his personal life. The released songs “The Blacker the Berry” and the Grammy Award winning single “I”, are only a small taste of the depth that Lamar displays on this album. He dives deep into topics like the street politics of the inner city (“Hood Politics”), the low points of his life, (“U”), and self value “For Free?”
The track, “King Kunta” is another standout song as it feels like a somewhat mellowed extension of his verse on Big Sean’s “Control”.
The musical landscape of the album immediately brought the Harlem Renaissance in mind due to its obvious jazz and spoken word influences. A lot of the instrumentation appears to be live and it fits perfectly with the lush and diverse production. Lamar raps over a consistent sound that’s also inspired by classic blues, soul, funk, and west coast G-Funk.
The guest appearances are well executed on the album, featuring artists like Snoop Dogg, Anna Wise, SZA, and George Clinton among many others.
“To Pimp a Butterfly” is perhaps one of the most important hip-hop albums not just in 2015 but of this generation due to its relevant subject matter, superior lyrics, and well crafted soundscape.
If “GKMC” set the standard of what a modern day classic is supposed to be, then Lamar has truly raised the bar to legendary heights.
The physical copy of the album will be released on March 23. “To Pimp a Butterfly” can be found on iTunes and all music streaming services.
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