Kendrick’s thoughts are all over the place, too - from Compton to Congress, from the lows of depression to the highs of artistic confidence. It makes sense that the album lacks musical boundaries. Even with that sense of familiarity, though, TPAB is endlessly inventive, featuring songs within songs, use of extended metaphor, and, of course, Kendrick’s explosive flow patterns. That’s not to say that what he’s doing is unprecedented, because TPAB absolutely radiates the complexities of long-established forms of black music so many of these alto sax and trumpet flourishes double as reminders to listen to more jazz. If it’s lonely at the top (where he’s been ever since GKMC), then Kendrick is both petrified by his isolation and in awe of his freedom. While the album is a lyrical landmark above all, there’s no missing that it’s a rich body of work all around. Spend enough time with it, though, and the album proves to be intensely alive, celebrating humans’ potential for triumph, recognizing how completely things can go awry, and condemning the scars left by American history. For some, listening to TPAB might feel like being in a straitjacket: If you’re not sold on Kendrick yet, its vast flood of ideas could come off overwhelming. The 79-minute To Pimp a Butterfly, Kendrick’s follow-up to 2012’s good kid, m.A.A.d city, tests any number of limits, including the length of time listeners can comfortably sit with an album and just how thoroughly a rap superstar can resist his knack for easy hooks. Any sacrifice that Kendrick has made, though, serves a greater purpose - evidence that he’s one of the most restlessly creative artists in music today. Sometimes, he even sets aside the act of rapping entirely, like when he recites a poem (more and more of it as the album goes on), stops an argument that interrupts a mock live performance of his Grammy-winning “i”, or interviews a dead rap legend to close the album. He’s said goodbye to his peers in Black Hippy and, with the exception of Snoop Dogg’s Slick Rick impression on “Institutionalized” and Rapsody’s pro-Black verse on “Complexion (A Zulu Love)”, the need for guest rappers. The 27-year-old Compton rapper has largely abandoned contemporary hip-hop structures in favor of a cosmic splat of jazz, soul, and funk. In piecing together his new album, Kendrick Lamar left certain things behind. In celebration of this monumental achievement, we’re revisiting Michael Madden’s classic review, which originally ran in March 2015. Several years later, we’re still trying to take in this sprawling body of work. Check out the rankings for yourself in the gallery below.- Peter A.Editor’s Notes: On March 15th, 2015, Kendrick Lamar cemented his place as one of the most important rappers of his (or any) generation with the drop of modern classic To Pimp a Butterfly. Today, XXL ranks all of Kendrick Lamar's projects. Through 12 projects, Kendrick has showcased every side of himself and invited fans to take a journey.
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Those career plateaus are self-contained period pieces on hip-hop and case studies in how to evolve your sound.
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Over the course of his career, Kendrick Lamar has been everything from amateur rapper to rising star to King of Hip-Hop. While many had pegged Kenny as a conscious artist, this record proved that label was a reductive one, and that Kung Fu Kenny could pretty much do whatever he wanted. His answer was DAMN., a 2017 album that features visceral storytelling and Billboard Hot 100 singles at every turn. Armed with tighter flows, more individualized musicality and a more emphatic message, Kendrick then was nothing like the sounds of K-Dot prior, and soon he was a certified superstar.Īfter releasing two critically acclaimed major label albums by 2015, Kendrick had the rap world wondering how he'd top his first two outings. By the time he released his debut album, Section.80, in the summer of 2011, the fledgling freestyler had evolved into one of the most promising artists the rap game had seen in a long time.