“DAMN.” is Kendrick Lamar’s latest album. This time around, the Compton, CA native delivers his most brash body of work to date. Seemingly, “DAMN.” is Lamar’s most straightforward project that he has ever compiled yet. He wastes no time to air out his rap competition.
This is clear on the track “ELEMENT.”, in which he raps: “Most of y’all tell lies/ most of y’all don’t fade/ most of y’all been advised/ last LP I tried to lift the black artists/ but it’s a difference between black artists and whack artists/.” On this track, Kendrick is at his most blunt; reminding “fraud” emcees that their music is lackluster.
He also calls out his critics who misunderstood his messages in his music. On the track “YAH.”, he responds back to news anchors. Notably, Fox News and Geraldo Rivera. He raps: “Interviews wanna know my thoughts and opinions/ Fox News wanna use my name for percentage/.” The lyrics were in response to a segment that Fox News ran during the aftermath of Kendrick’s 2015 BET performance. His response indicated that he felt misunderstood and slandered by the whole ordeal.
“DAMN.” proves that while Kendrick is rap’s premier lyricist, he also has an ear for hits. The LP has proven to have songs that may play on the radio. The track “HUMBLE.” -which is Lamar’s highest charting single to date- has already been spawned on the airwaves. The track “LOYALTY.” should earn airplay too, in which Kendrick finds himself trading bars with Rihanna. She has been known to rap, but it’s rare of her to do.
So far, “DAMN.” is Kendrick Lamar’s most commercial album he has ever devised. Though he is more mainstream on this LP, it does not stunt his success towards rap superstardom.