Kendrick Lamar surprise-released his sixth studio album, “GNX,” on Nov. 22, and its songs have had a hard time falling off the list of most streamed hip-hop tracks of the week ever since.
While Kendrick is known for his more cerebral elements in his music, he lays his mindset for the album forward in the first song, “wacced out murals,” when he says, “F*ck a double entendre, I want y’all to feel this sh*t.”
True to his word, this is likely Lamar’s most straightforward and blunt album as he refuses to mince words or bow out in the face of what he feels is disrespect to his position at the top of the rap game. Throughout the album, Lamar’s haters and detractors are consistently put in their place and directly called out for their jealousy.
The album exhibits a through-line of West Coast-style hip-hop. From the instrumentals laden with open high-hat hits and synced-up bass hits to the delivery and inflections Lamar employs, all the way to his choice of artists, Lamar shows a deep appreciation for and inspiration from his area.
Many of the features across the album, including Dody6, Lefty Gunplay, and AZCHIKE, are underground rappers from the LA scene. “Dodger blue” probably exemplifies his love for LA the most as he rattles off local high schools and sings, “Don’t say you hate LA, but live in LA and pretend.”
If “dodger blue” exemplifies his love of LA, “reincarnated” exemplifies Lamar’s love and reverence for the legendary Tupac Shakur. The instrumental itself is sampled from the 1996 Tupac track “Made Ni***z.” The title of the track seems to reference Tupac’s “Reincarnation.”
Lamar channels Tupac’s signature lyrical intensity and spiritual themes in a dramatic envisioning of Lamar’s past lives followed by a conversation with God about how best to use his gifts.
Lamar also references Tupac lyrics through the rest of the album: “Life goes on” in the song, “squabble up,” and “Against all odds” in the song “wacced out murals,” highlighting Latino rappers throughout the album in response to Tupac’s lyrics saying, “It wouldn’t be L.A. without Mexicans” in “To Live and Die in L.A.”
The final song of the album, “gloria,” is a love song about his pen. Meanwhile, Tupac’s “Me and my girlfriend” is a love song about his gun.
With this album, there is no dearth of options for favorite tracks. Those that gravitate to songs that tell a cohesive story throughout will find their way to “reincarnated,” “the heart pt. 6,” or “gloria.” Those that prefer a catchy tune to blast in the car can turn to “squabble up,” “tv off,” or “peekaboo.”
Those that want the gritty and eerie energy that Lamar sometimes brings will find themselves sated by “wacced out murals” or “man at the garden.” The tracks “Luther” and “dodger blue” then appease those that have come for dulcet melodies that are easy on the ears.
“GNX” rounds out an electrifying year for Lamar. He’s released diss tracks that have forever changed the way the hip-hop world views Drake, music videos with hidden meanings, and a pop-out show on Juneteenth where he brought people from many hoods onto one stage, an event he references in the sixth song of the album itself, “reincarnated,” as one of his proudest achievements and evidence of his success.
This album is another victory lap of sorts that Lamar is enjoying this year, most deservedly so, and he’s taking the whole West Coast with him for the ride.
