With no warningand because he canKendrick Lamardropped his new albumGNXon Friday afternoon.
Off the bat, however,GNXis clearly a love letter to Kendricks native Los Angeles.
We put together seven key takeaways from Kendrick Lamars surprise albumGNX.
pgLang*
He helmed the track alongside longtime TDE collaborator Sounwave.
Now, their names appear beside each other on 11 out of the 12 tracks onGNX.
Sam Dew is credited as a songwriter on the track.
In 2019, Antonoff, Soundwave, and Dew launched the collaborative music project Red Hearse.
The trio released one album together, but reunited in 2022 on Taylor SwiftsMidnightssingle Lavender Haze.
Sounwave and Antonoff also co-wrote and co-produced Karma sans Dew.
We usually take at least a week out of the year just to create with no goal in mind.
And if anyone knows what Lamar is looking for, its Sounwave.
Their creative partnership dates back more than 15 years, to the rappers earliest mixtape releases.
Kendrick will half-state an idea in his head and Soundwave will finish the thought for him.
Kendrick is a chart-topping artist with a lengthy catalog.
But sometimes, idols become rivals.
Squabble Up samples Debbie Debs 1980s freestyle classic When I Hear Music.
Express, Kendricks does too.
My skin gets goosebumps because all of this happened so quickly for me, she said.
I want to cry.
Tupacs music from that period was defined by an anger and lust for vengeance that permeated through his delivery.
Kendrick expertly emulates that energy from the first bars of Reincarnated.
So much for Tupac wasnt a lyricist.
