Rationale
My written task 1 is in the form of an interview. I am asking questions to Kendrick Lamar, about his third studio album ‘To Pimp A Butterfly’. The album serves as the output of Lamar’s life experiences so far. It deals with the fact how he handles being a successful black artist in a time where many Afro-American citizens don’t even feel fully integrated yet.
The interview links to language in cultural context. I will focus on the language Kendrick Lamar uses in his song lyrics and the way he would talk while being interviewed. Language in cultural context focuses on the way people express their identities through language. The interview with Kendrick Lamar would perfectly clarify the points he is trying to convey throughout ‘To Pimp A Butterfly’.
I have been listening to ‘To Pimp A Butterfly’ since the day it came out, it is one of my favourite music albums of all time so I am knowledgeable about the subjects of the album. To prepare myself extra well for the written task, I’ve watched several short interviews from Kendrick Lamar, and I have read some reviews of ‘To Pimp A Butterfly’.
The target audience of the written task is anyone that wants to know more about the effects ‘To Pimp A Butterfly’ has had on society, black culture and the rap industry.
Written Task 1, An interview with Kendrick Lamar
‘‘Kendrick, first of all, it’s a great pleasure to meet you, let’s just get into it right away. In the first track of the album ‘Wesley’s theory’, you take on two different perspectives in your rapping. The first verse is from the perspective from a young, black artist, who has just gained traction in the rap industry. The second verse is from the perspective of Uncle Sam, representing the government of the United States. What are you trying to achieve by taking on two different perspectives on the into of your album?’’
‘‘Yeah, of course, I’m glad to be here to too, man.
By taking on the perspective of a young, black artist, I’m trying to shed light on their thought process. With lyrics like:
‘When I get signed homie,Imma act a fool,
hit the dance floor, strobe lights in the room’
or
‘Hit the prez with a Cuban link on my neck,
uneducated but I got a million dollar check like that’
I’m ironically criticizing the way these artists handle their newfound money and fame.
In the second verse I’m taking on the perspective of Uncle Sam, the American government.
Uncle Sam wants these young artists to keep spending their money on products they only impress other people with, instead of saving up and securing financial freedom.
Uncle Sam wants you to keep spending money because the more you purchase, the more tax income they’ll gain.
‘I know your kind (That’s why I’m kind)
Don’t have receipts (Oh man, that’s fine)
Pay me later, wear those gators’
In fact, they want you to keep spending so much money until you can’t keep up anymore. You’ll either lose all your money or mismanage your taxes, and get incarcerated. That’s how young black artist get pimped out by the entire industry, they’ll either end up bankrupt, robbed by the government, or as another black man in the prison system.’’
‘‘It’s amazing how one song can address so many different topics and issues.
Speaking of songs about issues, I wanted to ask you something about the song ‘u’.
‘u’ serves as the output for your depression, how did you feel when you wrote the song, and can you emphasize on which events in your life inspired you to write ‘u’?
‘‘I was in a dark place, back then. I just released my second studio album ‘Good Kid, m.A.A.d City’ and my career was really gaining traction.
I moved out of Compton right after I released ‘Good Kid, m.A.A.d City’. I was glad I could finally escape that circle of violence and crime, which was my life back then. But I felt an immense sense of guilt, because it was like leaving my loved ones stuck in their misery while I moved to a big house in a rich neighbourhood.
The events that inspired my to write ‘u’, were the pregnancy of my little sister, Kayla Duckworth. And the murder of my best friend, Chad Keaton.
I blamed myself for both of these events. I felt like I could have prevented my little sister getting pregnant, but I didn’t. I was too busy and I was so focussed on my career, I let down my family. I wrote about that in ‘u’:
‘A baby inside, just a teenager, where your patience?
Where was your antennas?
Where was the influence you speak of?
You preached in front of 100.000 but never reached her,
I tell you, you failure, you ain’t no leader!’
I also blamed myself for the murder of Chad. It was the exact same situation, I was overseas, touring, when I heard the news. I didn’t even visit him in the hospital. I was too busy working instead of focussing on the things that really matter.
‘A friend never leave Compton for profit,
Or leave his best friend, little brother,
You promised you’d watch him before they shot him’
‘‘It’s incredible to me how much emotion you can convey through a song. I also know it’s really hard to open up as much as you did on ‘u’, and I really respect that.
Moving on the last question, how would you describe the process of making ‘To Pimp A Butterfly, and how do you feel on the influences it has had on society?’’
‘‘Man, I remember locking myself in the studio for a half year, and not being able to come up with anything. Like I said, I was in a really dark place, back then.
Me and my crew booked a trip to South Africa after I decided I wasn’t going to come up with anything in that studio. In South Africa I gained a lot of new perspectives. I got more interested in native culture, and it got me thinking about how black people are treated in America, and the concept of black emancipation.
Making the album was a spiritual process. I felt like I had to be connected to the music to create an album like ‘To Pimp A Butterfly’. The spiritual trip to South Africa helped me a lot. I would say that trip was my biggest influence to making ‘To Pimp A Butterfly’.
I feel like black America needed an album like this. We’ve been putting up way too long with always being the victim. I’m trying to get black people to take the negativity, make it their own, and be proud of it.
‘‘Kendrick, I’d like to thank you for this interview. Thank you for showing me some insight in how you created ‘To Pimp A Butterfly’.’’
‘‘No problem, anytime. It was a pleasure talking with you.’’