Kendrick Lamar Duckworth is an American rapper, singer, and songwriter. Known as "King Kendrick", he is widely regarded as one of the most influential rappers of his generation. His works, which regularly infuse social, political, religious, and philosophical influences, became a catalyst in the rise of social consciousness amongst Millennials. Lamar has been named the second-greatest rapper of all time by Billboard and Vibe, and has garnered critical acclaim for his signature cadences, artistic reinventions, and introspective songwriting.
American rapper Kendrick Lamar has released five studio albums, one compilation album, one extended play (EP), five mixtapes, 65 singles, and three promotional singles. Lamar initially performed under the stage name K.Dot, releasing three mixtapes under that moniker: Y.H.N.I.C. (2004), Training Day (2005), and C4 (2009). He gained major attention after the release of his fourth mixtape Overly Dedicated, which was released in 2010. It was Lamar's first full-length project to be released under his birth name and fared well enough to enter the United States Billboard Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart, where it peaked at number 72.
Good Kid, M.A.A.D City is the second studio album by the American rapper Kendrick Lamar. It was released on October 22, 2012, by Top Dawg Entertainment, Aftermath Entertainment and Interscope Records. The album features guest appearances from Drake, Dr. Dre, Jay Rock, Anna Wise and MC Eiht. It is Lamar's first major label album, after his independently released first album Section.80 in 2011 and his signing to Aftermath and Interscope the following year.
Top Dawg Entertainment (TDE) is an American independent record label. Specializing in hip hop and R&B artists, TDE is based in Carson, California. The label was founded in 2004 by record producer Anthony "Top Dawg" Tiffith, who also serves as the chief executive officer. His son, Anthony "Moosa" Tiffith Jr., and Terrence "Punch" Henderson are the presidents of the label.
To Pimp a Butterfly is the third studio album by American rapper Kendrick Lamar. It was released on March 15, 2015, by Top Dawg Entertainment, Aftermath Entertainment and Interscope Records. The album was recorded in studios throughout the United States, with production from Sounwave, Terrace Martin, Taz "Tisa" Arnold, Thundercat, Rahki, LoveDragon, Flying Lotus, Pharrell Williams, Boi-1da, Knxwledge, and several other high-profile hip hop producers, as well as executive production from Dr. Dre and Anthony "Top Dawg" Tiffith. Guest appearances include Thundercat, George Clinton, Bilal, Anna Wise, Snoop Dogg, James Fauntleroy, Ronald Isley, and Rapsody.
"Alright" is a song by American rapper Kendrick Lamar featured on the artist's third studio album, To Pimp a Butterfly (2015). The song expresses ideas of hope amid personal struggles and features uncredited vocals in its chorus from co-producer Pharrell Williams. "Alright" was released to radio stations as the album's fourth single on June 30, 2015. Many music publications considered it among the best songs and videos of the year. "Alright" received four nominations at the 58th Grammy Awards: Song of the Year, Best Music Video, Best Rap Performance and Best Rap Song, winning the latter two. It was also nominated for a MTV Video Music Award for Video of the Year.
Dacoury Dahi Natche, professionally known as Dahi, is an American record producer, songwriter, disc jockey and singer from Inglewood, California. Dahi is best known for producing "Money Trees" by American rapper Kendrick Lamar, “Worst Behavior" by Canadian rapper Drake, and "I Don't Fuck with You" by American rapper Big Sean, which reached the top 20 of the US Hot 100 chart. Throughout his career Dahi has produced for a wide range of artists including Kendrick Lamar, Drake, J. Cole, Dr. Dre, Travis Scott, 21 Savage, Don Toliver, Mac Miller, Nas, Madonna, Childish Gambino, Kali Uchis, Steve Lacy, Baby Keem, Vampire Weekend, SZA, Big Sean, Pusha T, Brent Faiyaz, Post Malone, Schoolboy Q, Kehlani, Lupe Fiasco, Vince Staples, Big Boi, and Freddie Gibbs among others. Nominated for Grammy Awards four times in the Album of the Year and Best Rap Album categories and once for Producer of the Year, Non-Classical, Dahi won the Grammy Award for Best Rap Song in 2020 for the 21 Savage song "A Lot".
The discography of American musician Thundercat includes four studio albums, an extended play, and twelve singles.
Damn is the fourth studio album by American rapper Kendrick Lamar. Released on April 14, 2017, through Top Dawg Entertainment, Aftermath Entertainment and Interscope Records, critical accolades followed including a Pulitzer Prize for Music and the Best Rap Album at the 2018 Grammy Awards.
"Feel" is a song by American rapper Kendrick Lamar, from his fourth studio album Damn, released on April 14, 2017. The fifth track on the album, the song was written by Lamar and Mark Spears, a.k.a. Sounwave, and produced by Sounwave. The song features bass from bass guitarist Thundercat and vocals from Chelsea Blythe.
Ricci Riera, is an American record producer, DJ and songwriter from Los Angeles, California. He is best known for his production with notable hip hop artists such as Kendrick Lamar, Drake, Travis Scott, Schoolboy Q, Overdoz, and ASAP Rocky among others. Aside from his solo production, Riera was previously a member of the Grammy Nominated LA production duo THC. Riera scored his first Grammy nomination as a solo producer with "U With Me?" on the second best selling album of 2016, Views. Ricci most recently appeared twice on Kendrick Lamar's much anticipated 3rd studio album Damn. producing on songs "Element" co produced by James Blake and "God".
The Championship Tour was a co-headlining concert tour by the independent record label Top Dawg Entertainment. The tour featured artists Kendrick Lamar, SZA, ScHoolboy Q, Jay Rock, Ab-Soul, Sir, and Lance Skiiiwalker. The tour began in Vancouver on May 4, 2018, and concluded in Burgettstown on June 16, 2018.
Victory Lap is the only studio album by American rapper Nipsey Hussle. It was released on February 16, 2018 through All Money In No Money Out and Atlantic Records. It was Hussle's first major commercial release after releasing a string of mixtapes for thirteen years. The album debuted at number four on the Billboard 200, selling 53,000 album-equivalent units; It was the last project to be released during Hussle’s lifetime, as he was shot and killed on March 31, 2019. It reached a new peak of number two in April 2019, following Hussle's death. It received a nomination for Best Rap Album at the 61st Grammy Awards.
The 61st Annual Grammy Awards ceremony was held on February 10, 2019, at the Staples Center in Los Angeles. Singer-songwriter Alicia Keys hosted. During her opening monologue, Keys brought out Lady Gaga, Jada Pinkett Smith, Jennifer Lopez, and former First Lady of the United States Michelle Obama, each of whom spoke about the impact that music had on their lives.
The 2018 BET Hip Hop Awards are a recognition ceremony held on October 16, 2018 at the Fillmore Miami Beach at Jackie Gleason Theater in Miami Beach, Florida. The nominations were announced on September 9, 2018.
The 2018 Soul Train Music Awards took place on November 17 at the Orleans Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada. The ceremony aired on BET and BET Her on November 25, and was hosted by Tisha Campbell & Tichina Arnold, honoring artists in 12 different categories. During the award ceremony soul singer Erykah Badu was honored with the Legend Award while Faith Evans received the Lady of Soul Award for her contributions to the music industry.
The 50th NAACP Image Awards ceremony, presented by the NAACP, honored outstanding representations and achievements of people of color in motion pictures, television, music, and literature during the 2018 calendar year. The ceremony took place on March 30, 2019 at the Dolby Theatre, was hosted by Anthony Anderson and broadcast on TV One.
Crash Talk is the fifth studio album by American rapper Schoolboy Q, released on April 26, 2019, through Top Dawg Entertainment and distributed by Interscope Records. The album features guest appearances from Travis Scott, 6lack, Ty Dolla Sign, YG, 21 Savage, Kid Cudi, and Lil Baby. It was supported by three singles: "Numb Numb Juice", "Chopstix", and "Floating".
"The Heart Part 5" is a song by American rapper Kendrick Lamar. It was surprise released on May 8, 2022, through pgLang, Top Dawg Entertainment, Aftermath Entertainment and Interscope Records, as a promotional single to help anticipate the release for Lamar's fifth studio album Mr. Morale & the Big Steppers, where it was later included as a streaming bonus track. It is the fifth part in his "The Heart" song series following "The Heart Part 4" in 2017, and his first solo release in over four years. The song received five nominations at the 65th Annual Grammy Awards, including for Record of the Year, Song of the Year, Best Music Video, Best Rap Performance and Best Rap Song, eventually winning the latter two.
