Kendrick Lamar - Mr. Morale & The Big Steppers ALBUM REVIEW

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Honestly, I just can’t believe we made it five years.


Do I really need an introduction to this? I’m sure if you’re even in tune with the music world, you know who Kendrick Lamar is. You know how long it’s been since his last album DAMN., and if you’re curious, that dropped back on April 14, 2017. I was a sophomore in high school and the day this dropped, I finished my sophomore year of college. A lot of my life happened in between the two albums, and among many other rap albums, DAMN. was very instrumental in my music taste today. Actually, Kendrick’s discography in general really helped me get into music the way I am today, so to say that this is a big deal to me is an understatement. You know how much expectations fans have for Kendrick when it comes to his projects. To put it simply, he hasn’t missed for a very long time, there’s little reason to doubt him. The one thing that always fluctuates with him is the sound of the album, and we haven’t gotten anything on that before its release. That’s really all the intro you need. Mr. Morale & The Big Steppers is the name of the double album, so let’s just not waste any more time and get into it.

Whether it’s loose or tightly wound, there’s bound to be some kind of concept within a Kendrick album. When it comes to this one, it’s most likely his least concept-driven album. In my mind, I see this entire album as some form of a therapy session. For most of his discography, he’s been projecting himself as a savior [intentional or not] of sorts, but here, he’s stripping himself of that title. We’re now seeing his struggles instead of the people’s struggles, and he’s now choosing himself instead of everyone else. I think it’s an incredible full-circle moment for his career, and as weird as this next part seems, it seems fitting for a final project. I’d say that it does take a few listens for it to register just how dense and jam-packed this album is, but I think it’ll be worth it. When it comes to the music and production itself, I think it really worked for what it was going for. There aren’t really any hits on this, which is a first for a Kendrick album to me, but I don’t really think he was going for hits on this. There are some great moments on this, but there are some… interesting spots on here that aren’t necessarily my favorite kind of rap, but I think it can be excused in my mind because it fits into the idea I have of the concept of this album. Overall, I think Mr. Morale & The Big Steppers will be regarded as one of the finest projects of the decade. Kendrick Lamar notches out yet another achievement in a career full of them.


10/10


Listen here

YouTube Music




Mr. Morale & The Big Steppers is a pgLang / Top Dawg Entertainment / Aftermath / Interscope release.

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