Music: good album, m.A.A.d. city

2022 marks ten years since Kendrick Lamar released his studio album, “good kid, m.A.A.d city” on Oct. 22. The album is the epitome of storytelling as Lamar recounts stories of his childhood in Compton, from stories about him with his friends committing crimes and gang violence in “The Art Of Peer Pressure” and “m.A.A.d City” to songs about the poverty and struggle in Compton as shown within “Sing About Me, I’m Dying of Thirst” or “Money Trees.” Lamar has many shifts in mood throughout the album, ranging from his anger in “Backseat Freestyle” to his calm somber tone in “Real.”

My favorite song on the album is “Sing About Me, I’m Dying of Thirst.” Lamar showcases his talent by rapping in multiple perspectives: a woman that has to go through prostitution to make a living; and one of his friends talking about his struggle in the streets before he gets shot. In the second half of the song, he talks about his own spiritual rebirth and about how he found religion when an old woman came over to him and his friends to tell them to pray to help save their souls. This song contains a lot of raw emotion from Lamar and paints a vivid picture in the listener’s mind about how so many people had to resort to illegal activities to survive but Lamar made it out through music.

To conclude, this is without a doubt my favorite Kendrick Lamar album. I would rate this album a 9.8 out of 10. The only reason it isn’t a 10 is because it’s my second favorite album of all time. I will continue to listen to this generational album for the rest of my life.