Kendrick Lamar

 Kendrick Lamar has been the talk of the town recently with the popularity of “Not Like Us,” a dis track targeted towards fellow music artist Drake. However, his popularity stems beyond this feud. Lamars creativity has led to his success. He can be described as a storyteller, and his songs share the experiences of Black men in America. Tales of growing up and the challenges that he has faced are woven into his music, providing the listener with a window into his life, and sometimes connecting the feelings and experiences that he describes. It is through the use of metaphors that he is able to give the strongest image to the reader, making his work even more fascinating to dissect.

The lyrics from his song “Good Kid” explain his experiences growing up as a Black person in America, and the misconceptions that were placed upon him throughout his life. He talks about the difficulties of breaking away from those stereotypes and making something of himself, but also about all the people who weren’t given that opportunity.

“But what am I 'posed to do when the topic is red or blue

And you understand that I ain't?

But know I'm accustomed to just a couple that look for trouble

And live in the street with rank

No better picture to paint than me walkin' from bible study

And called his homies because he had said he noticed my face

From a function that tooken place, they was wonderin' if I bang

Step on my neck and get blood on your Nike checks

I don't mind 'cause one day you'll respect the good kid, m.A.A.d city”

He continues this conversation further down in the song as well.

“You hired me as a victim, I quietly hope for change

When violence is the rhythm, inspired me to obtain

The silence in this room with 20's, Xannies and 'shrooms

Some grown-up candy I lost it, I feel it's nothing to lose

The streets sure to release the worst side of my best

Don't mind, 'cause now you ever in debt to good kid, m.A.A.d. city”

Kendrick says that his biggest challenge in creating music is having to open up and be vulnerable in his lyrics. He says that as a private person, he spends a lot of time thinking about what to include and how to best portray his emotions through his lyrics. He also talks about his motivation being his kids, and how becoming a Dad changed his perspective on the way that he interacted with music. He said he hopes that his music can serve as a playbook for his feelings and experiences for his future children and grandchildren, which was a big part of the reason that he decided to publish his most recent album.

“When I got to completion and I said, ‘I may or may not put this out; I’m not going to put this out; it’s way too much,’ I thought about my children,” he said. “I thought about when they turn 21, or they’re older in life, and when I got grandchildren, or if I’m long gone—this can be a prerequisite of how to cope. That’s the beauty of it for me.”

His motivation also comes from political tensions, focusing on the issues that Black Americans face on a daily basis, both violent and non-violent. He cites the killings of Trayvon Martin, Eric Garner and Mike Brown as major motivators for his work as he felt drawn to find justice for them creatively. In many ways, Lamar has become the artistic face of the Black Lives Matter movement as he has used his creative skills to connect with his audience who are facing an era of political tumult and attacks on their community.

Lamar first began writing music when he was a teenager living in Compton after years of writing rhymes under the name K. Dot. He gained popularity by collaborating with other artists on their music to ensure his name became more well known.

In The Creative Spark by Fuentes, he talks about the ways that humans created inter-generational knowledge by teaching their youth the things that they learned so the process of creativity can be sped up and made more effective. This is a practice that continued through time, leading through internships and apprenticeships to where we are now with standardized education. Lamar participated in this process through his collaboration with other artists in his youth, when he was able to learn about their process for creating art directly from them, aiding in his own success further down the road.