Kendrick Lamar has delivered a powerful speech to fans, detailing the therapeutic benefits behind his recent To Pimp a Butterfly release.
Addressing fans at the intimate “Kunta Groove Sessions” tour that the rapper has embarked on in promoting his latest album, Kendrick detailed the overwhelming impact that the album has had on his fans as well as his own life.
“‘To Pimp a Butterfly…people have said a lot about this album. They’ve said album of the year, then they said album of the generation, all that shit. That’s cool. But on some real shit, making this album was therapy, not only for you, but for me.”
Kendrick has never been one to shy away from voicing his opinions on the world around him, having previously declared that “I know exactly what I want to say next.”
Kendrick continued, noting the drastic shift that has occurred in his life since his good kid, M.A.A.D City release, detailing his transformation into a “low key” persona, and distancing himself from rolling with a huge squad of followers. It would seem that the sheer influence and scale of his album has not been lost on Kendrick, as he thanks his adoring fans for their loyalty, claiming that he thinks “this shit could live forever.”
Lamar also directly addressed the lack of radio friendly singles on the album, and with the enjoyability of TPAB brought into question recently, it is clear the he is well aware of the social success of his album; the lack of mainstream friendly tracks does not seemingly phase him in the slightest, as he has delivered a powerful political and racial message on a global scale, with Alright becoming nothing short of an anthem for the oppressed, and the album itself exploring deep and untouched issues of racial identity and vilification.
“Music is not something you can motherfuckin’ market all the time. This shit belongs to you and you only.”
Watch the speech below for yourself, and grow green with envy as you wish that you could stand amongst the crowd for such an intimate performance. For those of you lucky enough to be heading to Kendrick concerts in Aus next year, who knows, you might witness your own five minutes of Kendrick Lamar wisdom.