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Kendrick Lamar Duckworth (born June 17, 1987) is an American rapper and songwriter. Known for his progressive musical styles and socially conscious songwriting, he is often considered one of the most influential hip hop artists of his generation.[1][2] Born and raised in Compton, California, Lamar began his career as a teenager performing under the stage name K.Dot. He quickly garnered local attention which led to him signing a recording contract with Top Dawg Entertainment (TDE) in 2005.

After becoming a founding member of the hip hop supergroup Black Hippy, Lamar dropped his stage name and started using his first and middle names professionally. In 2011, he released his debut studio album Section.80, a conscious hip hop record. The album was met with positive reviews and included his debut single "HiiiiPower". In 2012, Lamar secured a record deal with Dr. Dre’s Aftermath Entertainment, under the aegis of Interscope Records, and released his second studio album Good Kid, M.A.A.D City. The West Coast and gangsta rap influenced album garnered widespread critical recognition and commercial success, while including the singles "Swimming Pools (Drank)", "Backseat Freestyle" and "Bitch, Don't Kill My Vibe".

A visit to South Africa inspired Lamar’s jazz-flavored third studio album To Pimp a Butterfly (2015).[5] It received universal acclaim and became his first number-one album on the Billboard 200.[6] The same year, he topped the Billboard Hot 100 for the first time with the remix of "Bad Blood" by Taylor Swift.[7] Lamar experimented with R&B, pop and psychedelic soul in his fourth studio album Damn (2017). It spawned his first solo number-one single "Humble" and became the first non-classical and non-jazz work to be awarded the Pulitzer Prize for Music.[8] Following a four-year hiatus, Lamar released his minimalist fifth studio album Mr. Morale & the Big Steppers (2022), which served as his swan song from TDE.[9] He has directed and produced several music videos and films with his creative partner Dave Free, with whom he founded the creative collective PGLang.

Having sold over 70 million records in the United States alone, all of Lamar’s studio albums have been certified platinum or higher by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA).[10] He has received numerous accolades throughout his career, including 14 Grammy Awards, a Primetime Emmy Award, two American Music Awards, six Billboard Music Awards, 11 MTV Video Music Awards, a Brit Award, and a nomination for an Academy Award. He was named MTV’s Hottest MC in the Game in 2012.[11] In 2015, Lamar received the California State Senate’s Generational Icon Award. He has been featured in listicles such as the Time 100 and Forbes 30 Under 30.[12][13] Three of his studio albums were included on Rolling Stone’s 2020 ranking of the 500 Greatest Albums of All Time.

Kendrick Lamar Duckworth was born in Compton, California on June 17, 1987,[14][15] the son of a couple from Chicago.[16] Although not in a gang himself, he grew up around gang members; with his closest friends being Westside Piru Bloods and his father, Kenny Duckworth, being a Gangster Disciple.[17][18] His first name was given to him by his mother, Paula Oliver, in honor of singer-songwriter Eddie Kendricks of The Temptations.[19] He grew up on welfare and in Section 8 housing.

In 1995, at the age of eight, Lamar witnessed Tupac Shakur and Dr. Dre film the music video for their single "California Love", which proved to be a significant moment in his life.[21] As a child, he attended McNair Elementary and Vanguard Learning Center in the Compton Unified School District. He has admitted to being quiet and shy in school, his mother confirming he was a "loner" until the age of seven.[22][17] Lamar was further educated at Centennial High School, where he graduated from in 2005 as a straight A student.

While attending Centennial High School, Lamar began dating beautician Whitney Alford.[325] In April 2015, during an interview with The Breakfast Club, Lamar revealed that they were engaged.[326] The couple have two children together: daughter Uzi (born July 2019),[327][328] and son Enoch.[329] Lamar is an older cousin of fellow rapper Baby Keem, and a younger cousin of basketball player Nick Young.[330] He is a notable fan of the Los Angeles Lakers, the Los Angeles Dodgers, and the Los Angeles Rams.

Lamar is a devout Christian,[335] having converted following the death of a friend.[336] He has been outspoken about his faith in his music and interviews.[337][338] He has been baptized twice; first when he was 16 and again in 2013, which he announced during his opening set at Kanye West's The Yeezus Tour.[337][339][340] Lamar has credited God for his fame and his "deliverance" from crime that often plagued Compton in the 1990s.[341] He also believes his career is divinely inspired, saying in an interview with Complex in 2014, "I got a greater purpose, God put something in my heart to get across and that's what I'm going to focus on, using my voice as an instrument and doing what needs to be done."[342] The introductory lines to his second studio album Good Kid, M.A.A.D City (2012) includes a form of the Sinner's Prayer.[343] His song "I" and his fourth studio album Damn (2017) further discusses his Christian faith and spiritual struggles.[344][345] In 2014, Lamar dressed up as Jesus for Halloween, explaining "If I want to idolize somebody, I'm not going to do a scary monster, I'm not gonna do another artist or a human being—I'm gonna idolize the Master, who I feel is the Master, and try to walk in His light. It's hard, it's something I probably could never do, but I'm gonna try. Not just with the outfit but with everyday life. The outfit is just the imagery, but what's inside me will display longer."[346] On the cover of Mr. Morale & the Big Steppers (2022) and during select promotions for the album, Lamar wore a diamond crown of thorns designed by Tiffany & Co.. During his headlining performance at Glastonbury Festival, Lamar explained that he wore the crown as both a "nod of respect to the artists who came before him" and as a reminder of his imperfections, while adding "They judge you, they judged Christ."[347] He repeated the chant at the end of his performance with theatrical blood pouring down his face; this time, he added "Godspeed for women's rights" in response to the overturning of Roe v. Wade.

In the lead up to the 2012 presidential election, Lamar stated, "I don't vote. I don't do no voting, I will keep it straight up real with you. I don't believe in none of the shit that's going on in the world."[349] He went on to say that voting was useless: "When I say the president can't even control the world, then you definitely know there's something else out there pushing the buttons. They could do whatever they want to do, we['re] all puppets."[350] Several days before the election, he reversed his previous claim that he was not going to vote and said that he was voting for Barack Obama because Mitt Romney did not have a "good heart".[351] Lamar later met Obama in January 2016 in promotion of Obama's My Brother's Keeper Challenge. Speaking about the meeting, Lamar said, "We tend to forget that people who've attained a certain position are human."[352] Before the meeting, Obama said in an interview that his favorite song of 2015 was Lamar's "How Much a Dollar Cost".

Courtesy – Wikipedia

- Kendrick Lamar

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