'I’m an Israelite, don’t call me black no more,' Lamar intones. YAH.: Lamar channels Lauryn Hill in his laid-back singing, shrugging off political matters for references to God, including the track's title.

The track starts out triumphant, as Lamar compares himself to Jesus and raps about his “soldier’s DNA,” before another Fox News sample declaring that 'hip hop has done more damage to young African Americans than racism in recent years' puts Lamar on alert, his levels of paranoia audibly rising. While DAMN.is more radio-ready than its predecessor, Lamar doesn't sacrifice the artistic quality that drew critics to Butterfly, sounding as musically imaginative and politically vital as he ever has.ĭNA.: DAMN.'s second track lays out the themes that Lamar returns to throughout the album: loyalty, royalty and the heritage embedded in his genetic code. Too many of Lamar's rap peers have allowed their famous-people problems to consume their music, but Lamar never loses his grip on reality as he ponders his King Midas complex. But the album is most interesting when Lamar is grappling with the repercussions of success.

Lamar isn’t pulling political punches, singling out Fox News and President Trump as his targets.

ditches the rap-opera construction of Lamar's 2012 album Good Kid, M.A.A.D City, and the politically urgent jazz of 2015's To Pimp A Butterfly, seeing the rapper meditate on relationships with his family, community and newfound fame. is not an album that can be categorized on its first listen.īut, thankfully for fans, Lamar's fourth studio album, streaming on Apple Music and Spotify, is worth the time it takes to unpack. Encompassing 14 tracks and 55 minutes, Kendrick Lamar's DAMN.

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