"My Angry Adolescence Divided:" Kendrick Lamar - good kid, m.A.A.d. city (Early Review)
Kendrick Lamar generously unveiled a BRAND NEW non-album track, "The Jig Is Up (Dump'n)," to commemorate the sheer fact that good kid, m.A.A.d. city has already managed to move some 250,000+ units since it's initial [Oct. 23rd] release; It's a staggering call-to-arms aimed @ Lamar's critics and detractors, which just might end up being a sample of his long-rumored J.Cole-manned album. Kendrick Lamar even lets loose a couple quick jabs @ a washed up rapper who felt the need to voice his unwarranted opinions: "I pray to God this beat is good enough for Shyne, if not J.Cole your shit is trash" ha! For what it's worth, good kid, m.A.A.d. city sold 241,000 copies between Oct. 22-30th, taking second place on the Billboard 200 charts, just behind Taylor Swift.
Most likely against Aftermath/TDE's wishes, Lamar scrapped the potentially buzz-worthy Lady GaGa collabo track, bumped Dr. Dre & Mary J. Blige's features to mere bonus tracks, and released his nearly straight edge "Swimming Pools (Drank)" as a lead video-single. Rather than glorify the hard knocks life like his countless peers, Lamar weaves a densely-layered and semi-autobiographical precautionary tale into a fully fleshed out 12-track album [short film]. It keeps in line with the youthful, yet drug-aided Compton neighborhood painted in brutally honest detail throughout Section#80 (2011). Sonically, good kid, m.A.A.d. city utilizes beats from some 16-20 different producers... chopping up left-field samples from Beach House, Kanye, Janet Jackson, Twin Sister, Grant Green, and Boom Clap Bachelors.
"Backseat Freestyle" falls into place on good kid, m.A.A.d. city's first 1/4 and plays a pivotal part in it's overall storyline; Showcasing a young, naive Kendrick Lamar incorrectly rapping about what he thinks Hip-Hop's all about: money, POWER, bitches, and his dick, which he repeatedly brags is "as BIG as the Eiffel Tower." Creeping up with a [deep] pitched-down intro, "Poetic Justice" is based around a sparse 808 drum-backed Janet Jackson sample. Scoop DeVille somehow manages to seamlessly meld Kendrick/Janet's voice together so that it says, "You can get it, anytime, any place." Lamar traveled across the nation with Drake on his 2011-12 Club Paradise Tour, along with A$AP Rocky. The 3 rising emcees recently teamed back up for Rocky's "Fuckin' Problems," too - It's expected to eventually appear on his long-overdue LONGLOVEA$AP album. Aftermath released a few different Deluxe Edition versions of the album @ retailers like iTunes, Target, and Spotify, which collectively feature 8 extra tracks. Kendrick Lamar got his 3 fellow Black Hippy swordsmen in the studio to record STELLAR remixes of good kid, m.A.A.d. city's early singles. "The Recipe" (Black Hippy Remix) eliminates