To Pimp A Butterfly
by Kendrick Lamar

From jeremih724 03/30/2015 14:18 | #138246 | TOP COMMENT Vote up your preferred comments and the comments with the most votes will be flagged.

@Mother Nature's Son

Consider this scenario: a man with a child walks into an art museum. In this museum, paintings are displayed containing graphic, vulgar images, including nudity, violence, etc. The man, upon seeing these pictures, storms out of the museum, enraged by the crass sight he and his child had witnessed.
"This is not art! This is disgusting!" he shouts, unable to understand how anybody could find pleasure in something so terrible.
Is this man correct? Subjectively, yes. If he does not enjoy the art, then to him it has no personal value. But to deny the art any value whatsoever would be a crime. Vulgarity of this sort can be used to push an artistic point. Would a war painting be complete without violent imagery? Would Michaelangelo's statues be complete without penises? Would a portrayal of a stereotype be complete without a phrase such as "my dick is big"? No. By including such a statement, Kendrick addresses the stereotype that nobody else has the guts to talk about so bluntly. Some things, such as this, are not vulgar- they are real. Black stereotypical characteristics such as this, that are used to define who Kendrick is based on his physical features, are real things. Many people, I'm sure, don't view Kendrick as an artist but as just another black man. Those who do are missing the bigger picture- its only vulgar because it tries to portray the vulgarity of the world. If you can't enjoy it, that's fine, but you can't ignore the truth of the world we live in. (Edited)

From koner1 TOP 100 COMMENTER 03/17/2015 01:05 | #137094 | TOP COMMENT Vote up your preferred comments and the comments with the most votes will be flagged.

In my eyes, Kendrick is representative of everything that a hip-hop/rap artist should have. Great lyrics, fresh beats, beautiful production and engaging storytelling.

This album does nothing less than cement that he is a wise, socially conscious young rapper who knows exactly what he's doing. We do have a legend on our hands indeed. But you already knew that. (Edited)

From C_Krug2009 03/22/2015 01:13 | #137479 | TOP COMMENT Vote up your preferred comments and the comments with the most votes will be flagged.

As expected, Kendrick Lamar evolved and matured his sound into more obscure influences than M.A.A.D. City. Despite my appreciation for Kendrick's attempt to reinvent himself in a completely different form, this album took a swing and results in a miss. The overall sound of this album to me is Mile's Davis' Bitches Brew- free style improvised jazz mixed with spoken word poetry and rapping. There is nothing wrong with that but what this album missed, was any sort of catchy and memorable songs that Kendrick is known for resulting in a monotone and empty album. The interview of Tupac at the end was just wasted space. The album was creative and original maintaining a different approach to hip hop/rap in general but even the one decent song (The Blacker The Berry) was out of its place on this album. I liked that it was dark and interesting and seemed it had a duty to fulfill. The "i" single version was good but why did Kendrick replace the single version with a live version on the actual album that stripped away everything (production) that made the song good?

In conclusion, this was a disappointment to what Kendrick is capable of.

P.S. for the ones who said that this album is funky and jazz: Kendrick always had that potential with some precursors alluding to the subtle funky and jazz styled songs on M.A.A.D. City such as Money Trees, Poetic Justice, etc. Though, yes I agree it is more prevalent with jazzy guitar and funky bass on this album.

From ShaneSpear TOP 100 COMMENTER 03/17/2015 07:10 | #137104 | TOP COMMENT Vote up your preferred comments and the comments with the most votes will be flagged.

It's probably been since MBDTF since I started claiming tracks as my own, like How Much a Dollar Cost and Complexion where I am calling (not even texting but actually calling people) people to make sure they are listening to what seems like only one day in to be a revolution. A day where we talk in ten years about the day this was accidentally leaked on iTunes. As stated earlier in the comments, it's hard to keep your feet on the ground while not getting too overhyped with this album, because only a handful of listens into it, it might be one of the best things I've heard in 30+ years of life.

From HoldenM TOP 100 COMMENTER 03/16/2015 20:11 | #137050 | TOP COMMENT Vote up your preferred comments and the comments with the most votes will be flagged.

HOT DAMN. This shit is epochal. At once a scathing indictment of society and an unrelenting cultural love letter, Kendrick has created something that defines so much. This is a landmark album that just happens to kick ass on every level.