About

On his fifth album, Kendrick retreats from the limelight and turns to himself, highlighting his insecurities and beliefs. It’s ambitious, impressive, and a bit unwieldy.

Throughout Mr. Morale & the Big Steppers, Kendrick seems to actively reject the elegance and structure of past songs like “Duckworth.” and “Good Kid,” writing in quick strokes and sketches that channel his messy admissions. Ideas scamper around like field rabbits and he avoids clean hooks, denying the listener easy access to his thoughts. It verges on antipop. His flows streak across “Count Me Out,” bouncing off the kick drum, dancing with the chords. The “Kim”-inspired “We Cry Together” stages a noxious melodrama where Kendrick and Zola star Taylour Paige trade barbs that feel almost improvised despite being tightly rhymed and metered. Eminem can finally retire happy.

His commitment to untidiness extends to the production, which is smooth but askew, rhythms and chords stacked precariously. Many of the songs, most of which have at minimum three producers, seem to split at the seams. On “Rich (Interlude),” Duval Timothy’s piano lines drift apart and glom back together, rain into vapor into clouds. On “Purple Hearts,” the drums fall away for the entirety of Ghostface’s stellar verse, strings and splashes of piano shadowing the rapper’s meter. The performances don’t always tap into the lushness of the production, but the beats and occasional R&B sample here and there give the often rambling verses some much-needed shape.

Despite all its aggrieved poses and statements, the often astonishing rapping, the fastidious attention to detail, and its theme of self-affirmation, Mr. Morale & the Big Steppers ironically never settles on a portrait of Kendrick. Perhaps that slipperiness is the thrust of the album, which might be read as his answer to a question he asked a decade ago, before he was anointed as hip-hop’s conscience: “If I mentioned all my skeletons, would you jump in the seat?” That fear of being defined by trauma and shame resonates throughout, but Kendrick and his blemishes are so defined by negation—of white gazes, of Black Twitter, of weighty listener expectations—that by the time the record ends, Kendrick’s “me” is just as nebulous as the effigy he’s spent the album burning. Gods are born in vacuums. — (via Pitchfork)

—

I think the main point of this Mr. Morale & The Big Steppers lies within just the few words of the opening song — “I’ve been going through something”. This album details aspects of black trauma, grief, both literal and metaphorical death and birth/creation, and how Lamar processed each of those aspects. It is certainly a sobering experience listening to the tales of transgender family members and molestation and so much more, one that should be heard. It may not be filled with radio hits or chart toppers, but this album illuminates the real and visceral emotions of a black man, and that’s enough to make it beautiful. — (via Medium)

↓
Label: Top Dawg Entertainment / Aftermath Entertainment / Interscope Records
Format: 2 x Vinyl, LP, Album
Released: 2022
Genre: Hip Hop, Jazz, Funk / Soul
Style: Conscious, Trap, Jazzy Hip-Hop, Neo Soul, Contemporary R&B, Experimental

File under: Hip Hop
⦿