March Madness. A time where basketball fans get to geek out, and the world just kind of… lets them. It’s also a time hip-hop heads get excited for, because basketball inevitably draws the hip-hop greats to get out and show their support for their favourite teams. Oh, and there’s also a music festival, which for three days draws some pretty huge names, so that’s fun too.
It was at this festival, creatively titled “March Madness Festival,” where King Kendrick Lamar had the live debut of his standout untitled 07 | levitate. The track comes from his phenomenal untitled unmastered released earlier this year, the follow up to his opus, To Pimp A Butterfly. His set played directly ahead of the University of North Carolina vs. Syracuse Final Four game, and was being live broadcast on both TV and online. With a massive audience, Kendrick went for a massive performance. Watch the track below, it’s pretty great.
As always, it’s hilarious to see sweeping overhead shots of hundreds of arms bobbing in unison, but it really goes to show the effect that Kendrick’s music has on so many people. Having been in Australia recently for just three shows (one of which we were lucky enough to be at) for Bluesfest, we can confirm just how incredible it is to see K.Dot in action. Check out the performance at March Madness below, and prepare yourself for some goosebumps.
Image: Dani Hansen for Howl & Echoes. Check out the full gallery here