#19 Kendrick Lamar, 'To Pimp a Butterfly' (2015)
New Entry
This album was a revelation to me. Around its release I had only just started dipping my toe into Hip Hop, with a newfound appreciation for its artform. I was aware of Kendrick Lamar thanks to the singles from 'good kid, m.A.A.d city' (#115), but to be honest I didn’t think much about him. In fact, I thought he was a novelty artist thanks to ‘Swimming Pools (Drank).’ But then ‘King Kunta’ came out, and doing as good singles should, it piqued my interest and encouraged me to listen to this record in full. It was one of those “I remember exactly where I was when I heard it” moments. To put it simply, it blew my mind. Everything I thought Hip Hop was or could be was thrown out of the window. ‘To Pimp A Butterfly’ was unlike anything I’d ever heard before. I’d imagine what I was feeling would be akin to how people felt hearing Little Richard or Elvis Presley for the first time. In fact, when I contemplated listening to this new version of the list, this was the first album I thought about. I just knew it would be a Top 20 entry. How could it not?
‘To Pimp A Butterfly’ is one of the most important records to be released in our time. It takes us on a journey through African-American history, encompassing Hip Hop, Jazz, Soul and Funk, amongst others. ‘King Kunta,’ for example, is about Kunte Kinte, a character from the ground-breaking mini-series, ‘Roots,’ and the novel of the same name. A fictional character based on a real-life slave from the 18th Century. Kunte’s right foot was cut off following attempts to escape the plantation on which he was enslaved. The record was inspired by a trip that Lamar had taken to South Africa. After a visit to Nelson Mandela’s prison cell on Robben Island, something in his mind clicked. Lamar said “I felt like I belonged in Africa. I saw all the things that I wasn't taught. Probably one of the hardest things to do is put [together] a concept on how beautiful a place can be, and tell a person this while they're still in the ghettos of Compton. I wanted to put that experience in the music.” Amongst his exploration of African-American history, Lamar shines a light on the Black Lives Matter movement. In the song ‘Alright,’ produced by Pharrell Williams, he raps “Nigga, and we hate po-po/Wanna kill us dead in the street fo sho'.” The line drew contempt from Fox News (an audio grab is featured on ‘DAMN. [#175]), but was seen as a rallying cry for African-Americans. It highlights police brutality and the continuous murders of African-Americans by police. The song became an anthem and the hook “we gon’ be alright” was the mantra chanted during marches. On ‘The Blacker The Berry’ he expresses his pride at being a Black American, but at the end of the song criticizes himself and his fellow Black Americans rapping “So why did I weep when Trayvon Martin was in the street/When gang-banging make me kill a nigga blacker than me?/Hypocrite!” Throughout the record, Lamar unravels a poem, line-by-line. “I remember you was conflicted/Misusing your influence…” is a line we hear throughout the album. Finally on the last track, ‘Mortal Man’ he reveals the poem in full, which summarizes his themes and message on the record. Closing with the line “If I respect you, we unify and stop the enemy from killing us/But I don’t know, I’m no mortal man, maybe I’m just another nigga.” ‘To Pimp A Butterfly’ was nominated for 9 Grammys, winning 6. It charted at #1 in the US, UK, Australia, New Zealand and Canada, immediately catapulting Lamar into the history books as one of the greatest voices of our time.
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