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Notice how when he takes the drums away, he raps about figures that are no more (Nipsey & Kobe). It's almost as if the drums represent a heartbeat

Back before the guys took the OVO check 😂😂 still love the channel

Using Marvin Gaye who also met his demise at the height of his career was pure next level genius. This man continues to step forward.

Kendrick is no longer setting the bar for other artists
He's in a completely different dimension, he's setting the bar for himself

“Take the drums out”
When you understand that the drums are the heartbeat that gives life to any song, you’ll understand why Kendrick removed the drums on that last verse.. Then rapped as Kobe and Nipsey’s spirit. 🤯🫣.
#Kendrick

What Kendrick is doing transcends rap, this is philosophy.

The way Nipsey was talking through Kendrick. Reminds me of Mortal Mans Tupac’s Interview. “We aren’t really rapping, We just letting our dead homies tell stories through us”

Kendrick reactions from an honest perspective were so good man! I hope this comes back at some point

Jussie- playing the victim. Choosing two black men to attack him.
OJ- said he wasn’t black. Then ran. Bullet proof rover. To his moms. Pulled a gun from the sofa and held it to his head. Violence.
Will smith- Tried to be perfect. Humility. Infidelity.
Then the transition
Kobe- the hero. Inspiration. A star. Lost.
Nipsey- The martyr. Was climbing out. Still fell victim to the culture.

This is the culture. It’s almost like a continuation of The Blacker the Berry

Only Kendrick needs 45 minutes for a reaction...G.O.A.T

I've always believed genius transcends genre. I'm a metal guy mostly but when I listen to Kendrick, the genius is clear

I'm from South Africa. I'm a brown girl. This song touches more than your culture, it speaks to mine. Kendrick came to Cape Town almost a decade ago and our hip hop community still longs to see him again.

Don't ever compare drake to this man's mastery.

This song will be studied in universities.  It is absolutely beautiful, painful, introspective, truthful and inspiring all at once.  Thank you Kendrick for being an observer of us.

Listening to them before the Drake beef is so refreshing. 😂🙏🏾

This man keeps on cementing himself as one of the pillars of rap In my generation

I didn't realize how bad violence in certain neighborhoods was until I moved into a very rough neighborhood in LA... I was very ignorant, and for whatever reason I always thought that gang violence was overblown or something.. but when they say 'gang wars' , it's not an exaggeration.. it's warfare.. and there were so many innocent people that were victims, it wasn't reserved just for those in the gangs.  Especially on Friday and Saturday nights, there would be constant gunfire and explosions that would last for hours and hours.. it was surreal.. so close that you could hear bullets and feel vibrations in the air from the explosions.. and cops wanted nothing to do with it, it was a free-for-all..

I was lucky, being an adult, I was able to get out of there before something happened to me.  I would get threats most times I was outside of my building, especially at night.. usually it's groups of people looking for you to give them any reason to do something.. and I was lucky they even gave me the option to not respond.. because there were plenty that weren't so lucky.  I couldn't imagine growing up in that environment, and being a child, not having a way out.. hell no.  

At the time I worked in Beverly Hills as a chef, and my roommate would say, "everyday you go work in heaven, and come home to hell" , and he was 100% right.

I swear to god they've never had a reaction like this to a Drake song yet they'll claim he's at the same level as Kendrick

I just realized the 3 verses could be seen as 3 stages. The first verse was more centered on the street culture, guns, drugs, jail, etc. And the person living in that stage justifies it as part of the culture. The second verse is still caught in the struggle, but is now more successful and is able to see that this is not culture; its dysfunction; its pain; its a cycle. Hence, why he finishes by saying “f*** calling it culture.” The third verse is retrospective. This hypothetical person that went through the first two stages has now had a positive impact in society, but ultimately doing all that good didn’t stop him from being murdered. So, he ends the song talking to the culture from heaven, and calling out to those alive to be better.