Top 3 Songs From Each Kendrick Lamar Album
It's time to get to the bottom of the most important question when it comes to the second best West Coast rapper, Kendrick Lamar.
Good. Glad that's settled. Now it's time to find out what the best 3 songs are on each of K.Dot's albums since everyone has already agreed on what order we should rank the albums!
Album:
Section.80 (2011)/AKA the 4th Best Kendrick Lamar Album
Top 3 Songs:
1) "Rigamortus"
2) "F*ck Your Ethnicity"
3) "A.D.H.D"
I'm not sure if people count this album as an official release... but I needed at least 5 albums to make this a worthwhile endeavour. The point is "Rigamortus" might be one of my favourite Kendrick songs in terms of his technical proficiency over extremely pleasant horns. Speaking of instrumentation, the piano on my number two pick for this album also feels different for people who got on board the K.Dot train post good kid. It's interesting to hear him over a less funk and jazz influenced sound bed. "A.D.H.D" was the first song I ever heard of Kendrick and I always loved the hook. It is clearly a song with staying power and also acts as the bridge to the Kendrick we all know and love.
Album:
good kid, m.a.a.d city (2012)/AKA THE BEST KENDRICK LAMAR ALBUM
Top 3 Songs:
1) "m.A.A.d city" (ft. MC Eiht)
2) "Money Trees" (ft. Jay Rock)
3) "Bitch, Don't Kill My Vibe (Remix)" (ft. JAY-Z)
This album blew my mind. I'm all about having a narrative for your album, but, it's the fact that all of these songs work as stand-alones as well that makes this album so genius. The second half of "m.A.A.d city" is infectious. If you're not aggressively nodding your head, you're not paying attention. I remember all sorts of references to "Money Trees" on social media and group chats then you add the best living East Coast rapper to a universally loved single and you've got a great collection of songs that actual fit together to create a bigger picture. This album has so many great songs it hurt only being able to pick three.
Album:
To Pimp a Butterfly (2015)/AKA The 3rd Best Kendrick Lamar Album
Top 3 Songs:
1) "King Kunta"
2) "Alright"
3) "Hood Politics"
I have a complicated relationship with this unquestionably well put together piece of art. I think it's a bit too artsy for my tastes. Even though Drake was able to make a fun song out of it, moments like "For Free?-Interlude" really disrupt the vibe I wanted to maintain throughout the album. The improvisational jazz elements of this album really distract me from how meticulous the work truly is. The three songs I picked are objectively amazing, but also represent the more straight forward Hip Hop sound I clearly value more. The beats are done in a way that I'm able to enjoy the lyrics and music instead of just focusing on the instrumentation. I should also add that I was so looking forward to "i" on the album and they managed to deconstruct that too and make it a skipable moment.
Album:
untitled unmastered. (2016)/AKA The 5th Best Kendrick Lamar Album
Top 3 Songs:
1) "untitled 07 I 2014-2016" (ft. Egypt & SZA)
2) "untitled 01 | 08.19.2014" (ft. Bilal & Anna Wise)
3) "untitled 05 | 09.21.2014" (ft. SZA/Jay Rock/Bilal/Anna Wise/Punch)
Maybe because of all the media coverage about To Pimp a Butterfly I was actually indoctrinated into the Kendrick mentality to actually enjoy this project. I already knew that these songs were like big freestyle cyphers but with the musicians and rapper all working it out together. The idea that I was listening to some songs that were being built in the moment and never repeated was interesting. Much like To Pimp a Butterfly's selections, the songs I picked are closer to sounding like less artsy Hip Hop and closer to boom bap.
Album:
DAMN. (2017)/AKA The 2nd Best Kendrick Lamar Album
Top 3 Songs:
1) "ELEMENT."
2) "GOD."
3) "DUCKWORTH."
I get that people really like "DNA." but I'm a bigger fan of its video featuring the real Kung Fu Kenny than the song, and it's a dope song! That's the charm of this album. Everyone probably has a different top 3. It is also the album that feels closer to the Kendrick Lamar that was promised back on good kid, m.a.a.d city. Which is to say rapping with substance and less experimentation with music. "ELEMENT." has a great hook and has Kendrick making sure you remember he's all for spreading love, but he also will not have his skills disrespected. Furthermore, if he has to put people in their place, he's going to make sure he looks and sounds great doing it! Mission accomplished. "GOD." has some great flows on displays. It creates an excellent vibe and tricks me into thinking I sound good singing along. Everyone agrees "DUCKWORTH." features a crazy true story without sacrificing musicality and dope flows. So that's gotta be worth something right?
-YG