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His fourth album, Damn (2017), saw continued acclaim, becoming the first non-classical and non-jazz album to be awarded the Pulitzer Prize for Music. It became his first number-one album on the US Billboard 200 and was an enormous critical success. His third album To Pimp a Butterfly (2015), which incorporated elements of funk, soul, jazz, and spoken word, predominantly centred around the Black-American experience. Lamar's major-label debut album, Good Kid, M.A.A.D City, was released in 2012, garnering him widespread critical recognition and mainstream success. Dre's Aftermath Entertainment, under the aegis of Interscope Records. He subsequently secured a record deal with Dr. By that time, he had amassed a large online following and collaborated with several prominent rappers. The following year, he independently released his first studio album, Section.80, which included his debut single " HiiiPoWeR". He began to gain recognition in 2010 after his first retail release, Overly Dedicated. (Hub City Threat Minor of the Year) that garnered local attention and led to his signing with indie record label TDE. 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. Aside from his solo career, he is also a member of the hip hop supergroup Black Hippy alongside his former Top Dawg Entertainment (TDE) labelmates Ab-Soul, Jay Rock, and Schoolboy Q. He is often cited as one of the most influential rappers of his generation. “Pimp, pimp hooray!” Kendrick cries at the beginning of songs “Untitled 02” and “Untitled 07.” I feel the same way about this album, too.Kendrick Lamar Duckworth (born June 17, 1987) is an American rapper, songwriter, and record producer. For a bunch of leftover songs, this is definitely an impressive offering. It’s also a glimpse into the making of a great album as well, to see how many of many of “To Pimp a Butterfly’s” main concepts, such as fame and race, come together. Not only are all the songs here good in their own right, but they also become even better when keeping “To Pimp a Butterfly” in mind. Overall, “untitled unmastered” is a collection of some of the best b-sides in a while. My favorite song on this album is probably “untitled 03,” with Kendrick using call-and-response to great effect, creating a believable conversation, delving into Lamar’s aspirations and roadblocks in the way of those aspirations. “Untitled unmastered” is closer in ethos to “good kid, m.A.A.d city” than “To Pimp a Butterfly” in that regard, settling somewhere in between the former’s modernization of West Coast hip-hop and the latter’s heritage in jazz and funk. That being said, I definitely do ultimately prefer his grander concept albums when I do listen intently, since there’s a lot more to chew on. I find it to be pretty good no matter the occasion, whether it be listening intently with the album in mind, or even as background music.
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But “untitled unmastered” is much easier to digest. I usually have to be in a particular state of mind to listen to it. If you enjoyed the concept of “To Pimp a Butterfly” the skits here are similar in tone and theme, offering a glimpse into the making of that album, which really made this album more enjoyable than it has any right to be.Īs much as I love “To Pimp a Butterfly’s” masterful lyricism and jazzy, complex instrumentals to tell a riveting story, it can be a little bit overwhelming. There isn’t really as much of a main concept here, but little skits on the beginnings and endings of songs give them even more personality. The unfinished nature of this album is really only highlighted when comparing it to Lamar’s past commercial works such as “good kid m.A.A.d city” or the previously mentioned “To Pimp a Butterfly,” both of which were ambitious concept albums telling a greater story between songs. The layered, jazz-influenced instrumentals that were on “To Pimp a Butterfly” are back on this project, although much less grand-feeling than his previous album, allowing it to have its own, if similar, sound.
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Throughout the project, there is clearly an unfinished feel to the album, which is only fitting. While it doesn’t have as much to chew on as his previous album, it’s still a great glance into the making of his previous “To Pimp a Butterfly.”Ī collection of b-sides from the production of his previously released album “To Pimp a Butterfly,” “untitled unmastered” eschews song titles in favor of dates, likely the dates on which the songs were recorded, already giving off the impression that the songs here were unfinished, or have a reason for being cut.
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Kendrick Lamar’s “untitled unmastered” is easily one of the best collections of cut songs I’ve heard in a long time.