Kendrick Lamar Duckworth (born June 17, 1987) is an American rapper, songwriter, and record producer. Since his mainstream debut in 2012 with Good Kid, M.A.A.D City, Lamar has been regarded as one of the most influential rappers of his generation and one of the greatest rappers of all time. Aside from his solo career, he is also known as a member of the hip hop supergroup Black Hippy alongside his Top Dawg Entertainment (TDE) labelmates Ab-Soul, Jay Rock, and Schoolboy Q.
Raised in Compton, California, Lamar embarked on his musical career as a teenager under the stage name K.Dot, releasing a mixtape titled Y.H.N.I.C. (Hub City Threat Minor of the Year) that garnered local attention and led to his signing with indie record label TDE. He began to gain recognition in 2010 after his first retail release, Overly Dedicated. The following year, he independently released his first studio album, Section.80, which included his debut single "HiiiPoWeR". By that time, he had amassed a large online following and collaborated with several prominent hip hop artists.
After securing a record deal with high-profile music producer Dr. Dre's Aftermath Entertainment, under the aegis of Interscope Records, Lamar's major-label debut album, Good Kid, M.A.A.D City, was released in 2012. It would go on to be certified triple platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA). His third album To Pimp a Butterfly (2015) incorporated elements of funk, soul, jazz, and spoken word. It became his first number one album on the Billboard 200 and also achieved platinum status by the RIAA. It was followed by Untitled Unmastered (2016), a collection of unreleased demos that originated during the recording sessions for To Pimp a Butterfly. He released his fourth album, Damn (2017); its lead single "Humble" topped the US Billboard Hot 100, while the album became the first non-classical and non-jazz album to be awarded the Pulitzer Prize for Music. In 2018, he wrote and produced 14 songs for the soundtrack to the superhero film Black Panther. In April 2022, Lamar announced his fifth and last album with TDE, Mr. Morale & the Big Steppers, set to be released on May 13, 2022.
Lamar has received many accolades over the course of his career, including 14 Grammy Awards, two American Music Awards, six Billboard Music Awards, a Brit Award, 11 MTV Video Music Awards, a Pulitzer Prize, and an Academy Award nomination. In 2012, MTV named him the Hottest MC in the Game on their annual list. Time named him one of the 100 most influential people in the world in 2016. In 2015, he received the California State Senate's Generational Icon Award. Three of his studio albums have been listed in Rolling Stone's 500 Greatest Albums of All Time (2020).
May 19, 2022
New episode of Rolling Stone Music Now digs deep on the rapper's 'Mr. Morale & The Big Steppers'
May 19, 2022
The Pulitzer Prize winner's latest installment of his album previews comes ahead of a likely big debut for his new album on next week's charts.
May 17, 2022
Kendrick Lamar’s ‘Mr. Morale & The Big Steppers’ is a deeply layered album in which he analyzes his own life experiences. Here’s an analysis of the record.
May 17, 2022
The latest chart-topping album from Bad Bunny is expected to be unseated next week by Kendrick Lamar
May 16, 2022
Sam Ryder is also on course for the top spot in the singles chart following his Eurovision 2022 success The post Florence + The Machine and Kendrick Lamar battle for UK Number One album appeared first on NME.
May 16, 2022
The Pulitzer Prize-winning rapper spends much of his fifth studio album deconstructing his own mythology. The result is at moments brilliant but on the whole, frustratingly uneven.
May 16, 2022
There are no words.
May 16, 2022
It comes a few months after both rappers took the stage together for this year's Super Bowl LVI halftime show The post Eminem says Kendrick Lamar’s new album left him “speechless” appeared first on NME.
May 15, 2022
The soon-to-be Rock and Roll Hall of Famer took to Twitter on Sunday—two days after the release of K-Dot’s fifth studio album—to commend Kendrick and Dre.
May 14, 2022
The rapper's fifth album, ‘Mr. Morale & The Big Steppers’, is out now The post Kendrick Lamar drops beautifully complex ‘N95’ video appeared first on NME.
May 14, 2022
The track is featured on the superstar rapper's fifth album, 'Mr. Morale & The Big Steppers.'
May 14, 2022
The updated projection—which would undoubtably earn Lamar yet another No. 1 album on the Billboard 200—comes just days after K-Dot’s newest release.
May 14, 2022
K-Dot unveiled the visual for 'Mr. Morale & The Big Steppers' track “N95,” which was directed by himself and Dave Free and features appearances from Baby Keem.
May 14, 2022
Track features on rapper's just-released Mr. Morale & The Big Steppers
May 14, 2022
Kevin Powell asserts that Kendrick Lamar's latest album, 'Mr. Morale & The Big Steppers,' is his emancipation proclamation and love letter to us.
May 13, 2022
It’s far too soon to have a fully-formed, rock solid opinion about an album as complex as 'Mr. Morale & The Big Steppers,' but here are first-listen thoughts.
May 13, 2022
Kendrick Lamar drops his highly anticipated album ‘Mr. Morale & the Big Steppers,’ Post Malone teams up with Roddy Ricch and more new releases.
May 13, 2022
Kendrick Lamar covers a lot of ground on 'Mr. Morale & The Big Steppers.' We broke down 10 of the major lyrical themes he explores on the album.
May 13, 2022
Complex's best new music list includes songs from Kendrick Lamar, Post Malone, Roddy Ricch, Burna Boy, Leikeli47, and Lil Eazzyy. Follow on Spotify for more.
May 13, 2022
The penultimate track from Mr. Morale & The Big Steppers quietly unpacks the rippling effects of family trauma, with an assist from Portishead’s Beth Gibbons.
May 13, 2022
The penultimate track from Mr. Morale & The Big Steppers quietly unpacks the rippling effects of family trauma, with an assist from Portishead’s Beth Gibbons.
May 13, 2022
We want to know which release is your favorite.
May 13, 2022
Billboard ranks the tracks from Kendrick Lamar’s fifth studio album – his first in more than five years.
May 13, 2022
Lamar has amassed 14 Grammys, but the top prize, album of the year, has eluded him. That may well change next year.
May 13, 2022
The jaunt includes a series of UK dates including two shows at London's O2 Arena The post Kendrick Lamar announces ‘The Big Steppers’ 2022 world tour dates appeared first on NME.
May 13, 2022
This marks Lamar's first tour since 2018's The DAMN. Tour.
May 13, 2022
As listeners have started to dig into Kendrick's 'Mr. Morale & The Big Steppers,' “Auntie Diaries” has emerged as one of the album's most talked-about songs.
May 13, 2022
Rapper will kick off the North American leg of his global jaunt in July
May 13, 2022
Kendrick is taking his new double album out on the road this summer. Support will be provided by Baby Keem on all dates and Tanna Leone at select stops.