DAMN (2017) is Kendrick Lamar’s fourth studio album and follows his journey of self-discovery as he plays his own alter-ego, Kung-Fu Kenny, a man rife with contradictions.
As an American, he is a reflection of America, but as a black man, he is rejected by the country that made him. Instead of being humble, he tells others to humble themselves. He advises his homie to kill his enemies right before he preaches gun control to children. And it’s only when he decides to be selfless does he find himself being struck down.
Kenny finds himself distraught by life and works through his demons, finding Justice is as blind as the woman who kills him in the opening track. He finds himself inheriting generational curses, with nobody praying for their reversal. Kenny, overwhelmed with worldly pleasures and pressures, finds hope and salvation in God.
DAMN is monumental because of its universality and as the winner of the Pulitzer Prize in 2018, it is a milestone in Hip Hop and Black Art.
So what now? Can we reverse the curses we’re given? Are we really damned if we do or don’t? Will we choose wickedness or weakness? Will we live or die?
Released in 2000, Kid A was a sharp left turn for Radiohead and a critical moment in the music industry.
Fans waited 3 years for the new album and to see what the next step would be for the biggest rock band in the world. Frontman Thom Yorke took the lead, switching to electronic music, insisting they give up the public’s expectations and create art they were truly passionate about. Originally dismissed as a vanity project, it took a few years for critics to come around and call it one of the greatest of the decade.
My personal favorite is Idioteque, a collage that paints a world in disarray. It’s seemingly nonsensical lyrics point the mirror back at society, offering warnings of nuclear war and global warming to people who are too absorbed in their cell phones and busy chasing money. The songs work more to create a mood in the listener, and Idioteque excels at inspiring anxiety. You can hear pain in Thom’s voice, telling us to heed the warning, that this is no joke, “This is really happening.” It might not be your cup of tea and it might take a couple listens to understand, but Kid A is an album you should listen to at least once in your life.
3 exams, 1 appeal to submit, 1 book to read, and a bunch of other junk; this is beginning to look like a busy week.
Allow me to ride the waves of this negative energy, until it coasts me to the shores of lighter and happier times.
