To Pimp a Butterfly Album Review

Kendrick Lamar has officially announced that his newest album is complete and will be released in the near future. While we patiently wait for the release of this album, I thought I would go back and review what I believe to be his best album: To Pimp a Butterfly.

To Pimp a Butterfly is often considered one of the best hip hop albums to ever be released. With a monstrous runtime of 1 hour and 19 minutes, listeners with a short attention span may shudder at the thought of listening to the whole thing. However, I would consider the album to be an absolute masterpiece to the genre and a must listen for any true hip hop fan.

The way Kendrick Lamar weaves thoughtful storytelling with jazz inspired instrumentals on this album is a beautiful thing. His emotional delivery on songs like “u” give the listener impactful insight into the rapper’s life and past traumatic experiences. Tracks like these give the listener a deeper understanding of the Kendrick Lamar as a person rather than just another rapper. While some of these deeper cuts may not follow the structural rules of a song, they invoke a sense of empathy for Kendrick as he deals with the death of family and his harsh upbringing.

The deeper cuts on To Pimp a Butterfly are often considered to be inaccessible to a more mainstream audience. However, tracks like “I” and “Alright” make up for this. Despite being marketed as the “Radio hits” of this album, these tracks are equally as innovative and deep as some of the more experimental tracks.

From beginning to end, the album plays as one concise concept. An intense drama that follows Kendrick Lamar’s evolution from a poor young man living in the dangerous city of Compton, California, to an influential music icon. A rags to riches theme comes to mind while listening to this album. However, Kendrick does not take the obvious route when approaching this theme. Lyrics about how his past still seems to haunt him despite his life changing for the better adds a more human element to the album.

Best Lyrical Moments From To Pimp a Butterfly

To Pimp a Butterfly’s Critical Acclaim

I am not the only person who holds this album in very high regards. Here are some of musics most influential critics with their official scores on the album. The scores have been averaged on a scale of 1-10 for consistency.

To Pimp a Butterfly Vinyl Review