First to comment! Love the analysis! I could literally spend an entire day listening to Kendrick's music...and do sometimes lol. In the car, in the shower, cleaning, doing computer work, working out. Like, I'm always trying to find the meanings in all his songs. People who just wanna listen to dumbed down club music need some education for real.
You know, I just finished watching Bob James's Tiny Desk concert and it's short but good watch. His music is fundamental to hip hop not only because of sampling but because of the pure soul and grit it already has. It was sampled because it resonated with the young guys who heard his music and sampled it. At the end of his set, he brings out DJ Jazzy Jeff and Talib Kweli and they perform his classic, "Nautilus". It was such a great and profound performance for me. I'm from the Bronx. I'm a music teacher and musician. I love hip hop. This genre has elders who are still alive. It has landmarks you can visit and old heads you can talk to, and a lot of them are not particularly old either. You don't have to go far or seek high and low to be able to get a deep understanding of why it's important that anyone who calls themself the best to ever do it needs to do it authentically. I know Kendrick isn't everybody's cup of tea. While I don't like the jab, I do think it's pretty funny when people call Dot's music "slam poetry". I always chuckle when I read that lol. However, what I appreciate about Kendrick is his ability to evolve and stay fresh while still holding true to what makes hip hop the rich culture it is... or was, and be able to do so in a way that is distinctly his.
Thank you. J. Cole had me hot with that bar ngl and it sucks that we might see/hear that opinion more often now but I'm glad that this video exist because of it.
Also, I kinda hate how "Alright" was hijacked by the "movement". I get how people got caught up in the moment but I feel like it's yet another example of how people project themselves on to his music and sometimes read too deeply into it.
