November 22nd, 2024, Kendrick Lamar would surprise the world as he dropped his sixth studio album, GNX. The album would feature twelve heavy-hitting songs, all of which would belie a man at peace with the state of the music industry as each song drags you further into the mind of a man that is willing to lace hard-hitting lyrics with bouncy west-coast style beats.
"For many, this album would decide whether or not Kendrick’s assault on the state of hip-hop, which occurred earlier this year during his notorious beef with the famed rapper Drake, was over, and if he had finally decided to make amends and move past his grievances. Despite dropping the Drake angle, it seems that Kendrick Lamar still had much to say about the music industry, calling out legends such as Lil Wayne, and everyone’s favorite uncle Snoop Dogg on his track “wacced out murals.” Citing frustration with Snoop Dogg’s cosigning of Drake’s infamous AI song “Taylor Made” which boldly puts at the forefront an AI-Tupac voiced verse, chiding Kendrick, and calling into question his credibility as a rapper. An act that many found to be heinous, but particularly Kendrick as his impetus for hopping on the mic was the late rapper, Tupac Shakur. Further into the album, he continues this trend of bringing rap legends into the fray by honoring Nas with his fourth track “man at the garden,” a song that flips Nas’s ominous beat from his song “One Mic” by stripping it down, and leaving it notably empty so that we can contemplate alongside Kendrick Lamar as he accepts his crown as the King of Rap.
Ultimately, GNX stands on its own as a heavy-hitting surprise album that showcases Kendrick Lamar’s versatility as an artist, but also gives us a deeper look into his struggle waging war against an industry which pretended to love him, whilst also acknowledging the danger of falling for that very industries tricks. The album is a love letter to the art form of Rap with its layered musical landscapes, and valleys which allow us to connect deeper with the song, whilst also displaying tracks that might get your heart-racing. For an album that only displays forty-four minutes of lyricism, that display is enough to cement Kendrick Lamar as one of, if not the, top dog in a watered-down genre of music.
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