This is a record called "To Pimp a Butterfly" by Kendrick Lamar.
It topped many "album of the year" lists in 2015, and is already considered one of the best hip hop albums of all time.
Now I don't listen to much hip hop because the subject matter gets old fast, but since this has been praised so much, I decided to give it a listen.
It was literally over an hour of "da white man keepin us down", while still managing to adhere to black rap stereotypes.
Lyrically it was worse than the typical simplistic pop music, it felt like some songs would drag on for minutes with the same phrase repeated over and over.
The production was okay, but nothing special. I can guarantee you this wasn't such a success because of the jazzy sound.
Can someone explain to me how this is critically acclaimed?
Unless I get a good answer I'm going to assume White Guilt is the reason it went platinum.
Jonathan Lee
It was okay but nothing special,I agree that it's overrated as fuck. GKmC is miles better in many aspects,especially the lyrics and the storytelling. It was probably praised so much because of the awful state of maintream hip hop and I suppose white guilt is something that adds to that factor as well
Chase Carter
Rodeo by Travis Scott was better than TPAB
Nicholas Clark
>Lyrically it was worse than the typical simplistic pop music, it felt like some songs would drag on for minutes with the same phrase repeated over and over.
That’s kinda autistic user. If you aren’t willing to put in the time to understand and appreciate the lyrical devices used in rap, it’s your own damn fault for being retarded. Beyond that, if the only plot point you take from it is “FUG WHIDEY XDDDDD”, it’s clear that you didn’t even hear the lyrics.
Beyond that, honestly TPAB is overrated as fuck and GKMC is infinitely better, but if you aren’t willing to put an effort into listening to rap beyond “lol sick beats” and “lol repeated words”, you’re no better than the normie tastelets who listen to nuDubstep for “the epic drop”, or indeed the Pitchfork core white guilt faggots you hate so much.
Matthew Watson
Kendrick does a bunch of pretentious concept album bullshit.
A lot of his songs are satirical and not meant to be taken at face value, some are critical of the black community, hell so many of his songs are veiled in purposefully ironic posturing that I don't even know what parts of these albums I'm supposed to take seriously.
From an artistic and lyrical standpoint I can see the praise these albums get for the whole postmodern ironic writing and storytelling, but musically these albums are straight shit aside from some singles.
OP here. The Illmatic was a good hip hop album. I know lyrical devices when I hear them. Do you really think one of the best selling albums of all time is so fucking subtle that the average person misinterprets it?
Isaac Wright
I still don't understand the argument that this album is solely grounded in the idea of race. It is present, particularly in Alright, Institutionalised, and The Blacker the Berry, but more than anything it's a piece on self-worth and the concept of selling out. It's all about staying true to yourself and since Kendrick happens to be from Compton, he stays true to what he knew there. Even on The Blacker the Berry he actively takes an anti-BLM stance; "Why did I weep when Trayvon Martin was in the street, when gang-banging made me kill a nigga blacker than me." Complexion is similar, not making a statement about racism but rather black relations with other blacks.
I would be able to understand if you found the instrumentation to get old quickly and for the lyrics to be repetitive, but it's definitely not just "da white man keepin us down" for over an hour, that takes up much less time than other themes on it.
Christopher Watson
what a shitty reply - namedropping another album as better for literally no reason. ew.
I think I understand what you're saying, OP. Outside of the US, or rather at least where I live, there was not much fuss about this record, other than one hit that was on the radio for a few weeks. That could be boiled down to not indulging the needless cries for attention that these artists are searching for in the media by releasing such records in America - It has become cool to be racists towards white people, and it is being almost dismissed as payback or justified as 'you deserve it'. Spawning the culture of 'white guilt'. Can't think of anything more worthy of the word cringe. Personally I don't think it belongs in the music, or anywhere in the media This is just another pop record that carries a meaningless, shallow pop message for the reason to carry it towards popularity, being misunderstood as a as a real message! Considering this though, you can't deny the genius of whoever masterminded the themes etc as they hit the nail on the head perfectly to maximise the amount of money the album would generate. Kudos for making money, Kendrick. Bet that sits well alongside your integrity.
Logan Bailey
If you had actually listened it you would know that's not what the album's about
Zachary Walker
trust me kid tpab wasn't ironic. the dude is from compton, he might be able to come up with a few puns but the message hasn't changed since nwa.
Benjamin Brown
all means nothing and are things you have been told to think
literal cuck
Charles Reyes
>since Kendrick happens to be from Compton, he stays true to what he knew there. That's right: "going hard" in "da hood" and sheeit. That's not a culture to be proud of.
I don't understand this whole staying true bullshit. If I managed to get out of poverty I'd abandon everything I knew and never look back.
Samuel Butler
He's right though, have you got an actual response?
Jason Robinson
right about what?
the post literally made no points...
Chase Anderson
I like how GKmC is actually a puzzle, and you have to figure out the real sequence the tracks go in.
Jacob Evans
You can't know where you're going unless you know where you've been.
David Powell
I think that the production was great and Kendrick did an exceptional job rapping with and not over the jazzy sound. Besides, there was a deeper lyrical meaning behind what is at first glance about racism.
Samuel White
fuck outta here with that shit
Jaxon Watson
I bet if I sucked your dick, you'd like it.
Austin Rivera
DAMN is even worse. It's unironically we wuz kangz.
Aaron Rogers
No, I think the average person doesn’t critically evaluate their music that much and just buys whatever “bumps in the whip”, which Kendrick does, but his critical appeal is somewhat different from his commercial success, which is what TPAB is all about. It’s all about how Kendrick got pegged as the “black guy who raps about POWERFUL and DEEP stuff like GROWING UP IN THE HOOD”, and how hypocritical it is for him to keep supporting that while both A., ignoring how rich and successful he’s become over time and B. ignoring all the ither rappers and musicians who he owes his work to.
Luke Adams
Black supremacist music
John Edwards
You’d like to say that, but it’s hard. You can see the counterpart in nuCountry, with all these singers trying hard to look tough and rugged and Good Christian Americans when really they’re all wealthy famous celebrities who won’t have to work a day in their lives. TPAB is all about how music celebrities try to “keep it real” and look “relatable”, when they live in their own bubble and make more money than the average listener will ever touch.
Austin Harris
Not sure if bait
Chase Bennett
>It was literally over an hour of "da white man keepin us down" So you didn't listen to it
Samuel Ross
do you even enjoy anything stop being such a fag
Leo Jackson
9, 8, 7 out of 5 albums so yeah...
Jayden Perry
This is by far the greatest rap album of all time.
It is not even focused on race (you're probably white and a user of ), it is in fact focused on human self love and self hate.
>uses three specific points, one literally quotes the album in an uninterpretable way other than the intended meaning >"not a point"
Cameron Bell
no idea OP. i like rap, think kendrick lamar is okay but overrated, and WTF this album was easily his worst. terrible album. and yea, way too much anti-whiteness, and i am not white lol.
Asher Hernandez
idk op my man. I'm not white and i thought he was over the top with the white hate lmao.
Dylan Diaz
This board is rotten with people that pretend that they've heard this album. If you listened to it and weren't doing something else at the same time, you wouldn't hear an anti white message at all, because one isn't there.
Austin Butler
>Lyrically it was worse than the typical simplistic pop music did you even try to really listen to what he's saying
Julian Kelly
>what is that album cover anti-white doesn't need to be saying "fuck whitey" to be anti-white. TPAB can fill a pro black niche but to be so critically acclaimed shows how self hating white people are lol
even outkast's first album is anti white as fuck, (though they never mentioned white people) but it's great, way better.
Anthony Brown
the only defense of this album is "but did you even listen to what he was saying? you weren't paying attention" speaks to its problems. and definitely shows how overrated an album this is cuz how is it so popular if even pretentious Sup Forumstants don't "understand it mannnn?"
kendrick lamar is a poetic lyricist whose rapping style is completely contradictory to his lyricism. which leads to 1. pretentious ass songs 2. ambiguous lyrics that can have no meaning at all or having the listener pretend the lyrics are whatever they want them to be
Ian Scott
you weren't listening he literally admits on the album that black culture is the main problem >So why did I weep when Trayvon Martin was in the street? When gang banging make me kill a nigga blacker than me?
Jaxson Adams
did you listen to the album he's done with blaming white people - he definitely thinks white people are to blame for the problems of black america, but in tpab he urges the black community to take responsibility for itself again and again. in my opinion, that's why the album is so successful with whites - he says what liberal whites cannot: ye, whites fucked you, capitalism fucked you, but we can't unfuck you now. obviously there's a lot of "fuck the police" because yeah, he's from compton, and yeah, it came out in 2015 (blm central), but kendrick uses the tropes of hip hop for self-criticism again and again. it's actually a fairly complex album, pretty weak musically (production is an overstuffed mess and it's lacking great hooks and bars), but nobody gives it the credit it deserves for its ideological nuance. like i said, it should really bother liberals more than it does, and it makes me think they either haven't actually listened to the album or deep down they're more critical of black culture than they're willing to admit openly.
Nathan Gonzalez
ANYONE WHO THINKS THIS ALBUM IS ANTI-WHITE IS NOT LISTENING AND WANTS TO BELIEVE SO
Eli Brown
>the only defense of this album is "but did you even listen to what he was saying? you weren't paying attention" speaks to its problems "The Godfather sucks bro, I mean it's like a whole film about Olive Oil and weddings. Basically a chick flick. Who wants to watch some shit like that?" ...wait, what the fuck, did you even watch the movie? "OK SO YOU CAN'T DEFEND IT HUH?"
Liam Davis
How is an album that doesn't even mention white people "anti white as fuck"
Evan Flores
>people are seriously trying to argue that it isn't anti-white looks like we know who the brainlets are
Jason Collins
The only true score
Cameron Butler
i love how all u white guys itt think u know what ur talking about when it comes to rap lmfao
Isaiah Nelson
Explain in detail what makes it anti-white
Lincoln King
t. pic related
Dylan Carter
trips of truth whitey BTFO
Kevin Rodriguez
non-white here. this album sucks
listen to the song DEEP by outkast, then tell me if that isn't a super anti-white song and then tell me if it ever mentions white people
non argument
Joshua Scott
>It is not even focused on race complexion,for free, and the blacker the berry would beg to differ >it is in fact focused on human self love and self hate. its focused on three things but specifically the change of perspective gains on race, his wealth/fame from rap, and his childhood or perspective on the world when he went to africa. Thats why he talks about a butterfly so much, about change
Nolan Long
>This is a record called "To Pimp a Butterfly" by Kendrick Lamar. Oh, thanks so much user. I bet nobody in this board knew the name of this album before. Like, it's so fucking obscure holy shit.
Nolan Wood
>oh white america you bad bitch i picked cotton and made you rich but now my dick aint free >heart as black as a fuckin aryan >Dark as the midnight hour or bright as the mornin' sun Give a fuck about your complexion, I know what the Germans done stop lying
Brandon Brown
>It was literally over an hour of "da white man keepin us down", while still managing to adhere to black rap stereotypes.
literally stopped there
Sebastian Martin
This Dick Ain't FREE
Asher Evans
This albums great in my opinion. I don't get why you all hate it so much. As a white man I never got any racist vibes from it, I thought it had an inspiring message in not letting fame go to your head and being able to use your newfound fame to empower the people at the bottom who you came from. Is it my favorite rap album I've ever heard? No, I think I enjoy DAMN more desu since it had broader lyrical concepts and was easier to get into, but TPAB gets way too much hate on here simply because it dares to address issues within a disadvantaged culture. The production is awesome on tracks like Wesleys Theory, Momma, and You Aint Gotta Lie.
Blake Parker
>kendrick makes album about the traps of consumerism and sin in the life of an American and a celebrity >"muh white guilt" did you actually listen to the album?
Ayden Mitchell
lol for real. OP probably just heard what they wanted to hear
Carson Collins
The only way somebody could unironically come to this conclusion is if they have the comprehension skill of a fucking toddler. OP is either a retard or anti-kendrick meme shiller.
Justin Morris
Kendrick is a good storyteller and lyricist but damn, the man can’t write songwriter for shit. I’ve never heard a song from the guy that actually has an interesting progression to it. Kendrick is a glorified slam poet rapping over subpar beats in a myriad of voices he cooked up. Sing about me, I’m dying of thirst and Sherane are the exceptions. Humble is probably the worst song of 2017. Also threadly reminder that songs that put lyrics before any form of song writing are almost always weak songs that should just remain poems.
Josiah Taylor
I listened to It and I didn't like it.
Isaiah Evans
truth
Matthew Torres
Seriously, niggas and wiggas. Black people loved it cus of the political messages giving them excuses to still be the worst race on the planet, or at least in America. (Lazy)
Oliver Stewart
You dumb
Cooper Morris
Danny brown>Kendrick
Dylan Peterson
The album takes more shots at black culture toby haitch.
Camden Myers
It sold well because it's an album that managed to have crossover appeal on a lot of fronts,i imagine. Prefer many other hip hop albums to this one,but most of them have a more insular audience for one reason or another.
Hudson Carter
you retard, follow the thread. he was referring to southernplayacaddilistic
Jonathan Foster
People say this but it's bullshit.
Brandon Brooks
I guess it comes down to how you interpret Wesley's Theory.
Anthony Price
3 out of 16 songs about race does not make it "focused" on race.
Hunter White
In DEEP all he says is that he doesn't fuck white women
Nathan Perez
How?
Kayden Stewart
>reading comprehension
Evan Kelly
Section80 is unironically Kendrick's best album
Christian Richardson
GKMC was better
Hudson Flores
I LOVE THE WAY YOU PUT IT ON YOUR EYES
Jose Edwards
gkmc is way better saludos
Dominic Hall
Stop deepthroating Sean Hannity
William Sanders
This. If you honestly aren't baiting and believe this is WE WUZ KANGS album then you're completely moronic.
Leo Sanders
> If I managed to get out of poverty I'd abandon everything I knew and never look back. Then you're a selfish asshole and probably wrong. What about all his friends and family who are still in poverty. Why would he just up and ignore the problems of people he was once close too?
Lincoln Jackson
The blacker the berry is so NOT about 'da white man keep us down', literally the whole song is talking about how that isn't true
Jaxson Flores
Here's one of many examples: The blacker the berry is a song talking about how hypocritical it is to riot and shit about police killing black people, when hood black on black violence is such a massive issue.
Jayden Walker
Cool meme
Elijah Baker
HA that's what you think? i guess outkast succeeded in hiding how fuckin RACIST they were from white people
Austin Cox
Patrician ranking
James Ross
"A friend never leave Compton for profit"
Jack James
odd because big boi advocated for the right libertarian party before. outkast is a conservative group.
Benjamin Morgan
big boi was libertarian and then supported bernie sanders after. he is just anti establishment. one can be conservative and anti-white.
>You heard it here first with your master plan in reverse (whites are the "master race" andre wants to put the plan in reverse" >I ain't the one with the curse, so disperse, yes, catching plagues being born white is what africans believed to be a curse, also, the black plague in europe >Quote, 'If they kill they own folks, what you think they gonna do to you?' talking about white people who will kill blacks more ruthlessly
William Ward
>No, I ain't never been pimped by the system That's because I ain't no slave system, "the man", saying he's not a slave anymore Don't be trying to sunbathe, never lived off in no cave he doesn't want to sunbathe cuz hes already dark, and it's a myth that whites used to live in caves when blacks were in africa >Bloody old chap and in this head of mine is full of naps And the only thing I know is how to fuck and how to rap Y'all think I'm stupid cause I shoots 'em up like cupid And if you gave me a basketball, I'll show you how to shoot it My head's polluted cause I'm zooted, bobbin to the bottom If a pair of Jordan's came out, y'all figure that I got 'em But no I don't because I don't be having funds The gold that I am wearing is really made out of bronze It weighs a ton and making my neck turn green And I got a criminal record that will never come clean Oh, and it seems that I make babies like a rabbit And then never taking care of them has just become a habit I grab my tablet and get busy with the pen Y'all could not be just like me if y'all was my twin addressing stereotypes whites place on blacks >So you get mad and try to make me inferior You pissing me off, I'm in that ass like interior self explanatory >Oh, step in my Cadillac, let's ride through the hood Eh, why don't you roll that window down so you can see it real good And take a look at all the pimps and all the pushers and the players That's living on a whim, thin ice and a prayer look how us blacks are living cuz of you white ppl Oh and mayor, can I gets a little backup >Please don't let them Dixie muthafuckas put that flag up self explanatory >But let me shut up cause they say we equal whites say apparently blacks are equal
Tyler Harris
>The Caucus Mountains and the mutant gene You try to wipe a nigga like me slam up off the scene the myth that whites lived in caucus mountains where the term caucasian came from, also that being white is a mutated gene >You hairy bastard, work a little bit faster Because of the shit that I done been through, I shall never call you master You D-E-V-I-L, the cave is where you dwell So stay up out the rain, it's beginning to smell like dog, yeah I wonder how you would be acting if youse in my shoes calling whites hairy, and how he won't call them master (like slave masters) spelling out devil, like "white devil" and saying they belong in the caves and that they smell like wet dog cuz of their straight hair
yup. they used to be racist. probably still are lol
Matthew Baker
I appreciate this post
John Robinson
Racists have such thin skin they think everything's all about them. Then they come here and bait other racists and fellow contrarians who haven't even heard it.
Logan Kelly
Considering I don't give two flying fucks about what happens in America, even less to American black people, I just completely block out the lyrics from my mind when listening to it. I think it is a masterpiece only because Kendrick has a great flow and the production is amazing, but other than that the only thing I recall from the lyrics are the hooks.
Kevin Johnson
listen to the song again you brainlet
Mason Morris
This dude really thought people would fall for his bait because he wrote a few words more than "kill whitey", "muh dick" or "we wuz kangz". How cute.
Jason Phillips
These two are probably the most well supported interpretations of the album.
There is anti-white sentiment, but TPAB is more complicated than just that. It's also more of a message to black people in general to quit blaming white people and, well, get their shit together.
Wesley's Theory, Institutionalized, and You Ain't Gotta Lie are all explicitly anti black pop culture, critiquing both materialism and the bragging drug culture of mainstream pop music. The Blacker The Berry, the most aggressive track on there, seems more like a satire against black culture than anything else.
I don't really have any issue with racists, it's just more common now on every board because Trump's election brought in a huge wave of new (predictably conservative) people. One thing I will tend to notice is that with their presentations of the album they completely glaze over any religious themes or anti-materialism themes of TPAB, which is just sort of... hamfisted and hatred based, honestly. If you're going to critique an album, at least bring your own arguments rather than glazing over the whole thing as "WE WUZ KANGS AND SHIIIEEET".
Though that's just chan culture, and politicized culture in general.
Kevin Adams
>being this much of a nigger
Dylan Ortiz
The beauty about nuChan culture is how you can write a paragraph arguing not that racism is even bad, but just implying that maybe the subject matter doesn't have as much to do with the modern day political minefield as you would like to think, and get a response of "lol kill urself nigger" and that's just the way things are.