Kendrick Lamar - To Pimp A Butterfly | Album Review

Want to know what Kim Kardashian’s now infamous nude photo shoot and Kendrick Lamar’s latest LP ‘To Pimp A Butterfly’ have in common? Here’s a clue: Kendrick kept his clothes on to do it.

That’s right, they both broke the internet.  Now, don’t be disgruntle towards the fact that this review started with the mention of nonentity Kim K –she was only mentioned to emphasise on how crazy the world reacted to Kendrick releasing his third album a week early.  To Pimp A Butterfly, which has been a work in progress for three years – completely shattered streaming records with over 9.6 million plays on Spotify on its first full 24 hours on the service. This is a remarkable feat and proves that in 2015 hip-hop is not dead – and far from it. 

Visually the album cover resembles D’Angelo’s 2014 comeback album; Black Messiah. Both are shot in black and white and both feature black men uniting as one – but the similarities between the two are not only visual. The essence of D’Angelo’s trademark neo-funk/ jazz sound can be heard instantly during To Pimp A Butterfly.

Opener, Wesley’s Theory confirms from the start that this is an album for the people – black people in particular and Kendrick makes no attempt to sugar-coat that either. Sampling Boris Gardiner’s 1974 black-pride ballad ‘Every Nigger is a Star’ listeners are soon greeted with a blaring bass provided by bassist Thundercat. However, the song’s most interesting cameo comes from producer Dr. Dre who reminds Kendrick on preserving his success. Or as he put it “anybody can get it/the hard part is keeping it motherf**ker”.

Whereas Kendrick’s sophomore album Good Kid Mad City was a narrative on his life growing up in hometown Compton, TPAB is more conversational. He addresses what it means to be black, more specifically to be black in America. You can’t help but think of Eric Garner, Michael Brown and every other case of injustice that innocent black men have endured prolifically over the past year in America while listening to TPAB. On what is probably his most ballsy and belligerent song to-date; The Blacker the Berry can be a little uneasy to listen to for that very reason. Kendrick’s delivery is raw and ruthless on the track as he fearlessly spits “You never liked us anyway, fuck your friendship, I meant it/I'm African-American, I'm African/I'm black as the moon, heritage of a small village”. 

It’s not all serious, though, there are fragments of wit and charm scattered throughout the record. Songs like lead single ‘i’ which is an updated live version, Institutionalized and For Free- Interlude showcase the fun, and tongue in cheek side. Although it’s not a full song the For Free- Interlude is one of the standout moments. It immediately sounds like it could be a response to Nicki Minaj’s 2014 man dissing anthem Looking Ass, starting off with a whiny woman declaring that Kendrick needs to buy her more things before he replies and repeats “This dick ain’t free!”.

You have to commend Kendrick for incorporating jazz into a hip-hop album seamlessly over 16 songs for nearly 80 minutes without sounding like an amateur; it’s a daring decision that doesn’t dissatisfy. TPAB is truly courageous in every way, Kendrick doesn’t only reflect on the world, politics and the state of hip-hop right now but he’s also very critical on himself. He references Michael Jackson's Smooth Criminal in King Kunta however a fitting MJ song for the album would’ve been Man in The Mirror, as on the hard hitting “u” Kendrick describes himself as “irresponsible, selfish, in denial”.
No one is safe from the wrath of Kendrick’s words, not himself nor other rappers – but they’re still reeling from his Control verse.

If you’re looking for a hip-hop album jam-packed with synthetic beats and drivel lyrics designed for the club scene – To Pimp A Butterfly, is not for you. In fact TPAB is more than just an album, it feels like the commencement of a movement – a cathartic effect that will surely go down in the history books and in every single version of those pretentious ‘500 Albums You Must Own’ lists. And rightfully so, it’s as thought provoking as it is captivating, enclosed with extended metaphors and rhymes that will never, not be exciting. 

Rating: 9/10

Recommended songs: i, u, These Walls, For Free?, King Kunta, Momma