To Pimp a Butterfly

The subject matter is very serious. Some great songs here. Very good.

Day 65

THEY SAY THEY TREAT ME LIKE A SLAVE CAH' ME BLACK 🔥🔥🔥🔥

Fav track: Mortal Man

It's no wonder that TPAB is almost universally cited at the best album of the 2010s. There is so much heart in every moment of this album. It is exceptionally poetic and well constructed. Sure not every song is a pure bop, but those ebbs and flows give breathing room.
I know there are a lot of "boo hoo I don't like hippity-hop music" folks on here, but you gotta be a musical neanderthal to put AC/DC or U2 over this. 5/5

Ahhh I'm so excited to have finally experienced this!! A modern classic that I just haven't had the time and mental bandwidth to give it the undivided attention it needs. After finishing this absolute odyssey of an album, what could I even say that hasn't already been said a million times better before? Hip-hop may not be something I'm knowledgable about or listen to on a consistant basis, but "To Pimp a Butterfly" is one of those records that has fully transcended genre lines to reach culturally iconic status.

Very good album. I actually own this album and I've seen him live. So, even if hip-hop is not my favourite genre, I've always felt kendrick is pretty good.

This album is really varied. It has very nice influences of funk, jazz, and even rock. Besides, except for some early songs, I find the lyrics and the overall theme is very interesting.

Some songs I enjoyed: "King Kunta", "Institutionalized", "i", "u" (probably my favourite), "Alright", "Hood Politics", "The Blacker the Berry", or "How Much For a Dollar".

I think this is between 4 and 5 stars. It would be 5 stars if it were a bit shorter. However, I think 4 stars is a fair score.

Every day I get a rap album on this list, I'm learning more and more that I've been missing out my entire life. Even the ones that I don't like as much still increase my appreciation of the genre.

This does not fall into that category though. This album is absolute perfection. One of the best albums I've heard. When I finish this list, this is definitely going to be a contender for my favorite album. I can't believe it took me this long to actually check it out. It's just incredible.

Hey, I guess I gotta defend myself before my group calls me a racist. This is one of the best albums of all time. Absolutely amazing and worthy of all the praise. THAT BEING SAID, for me a 5 means I’m gonna listen to the whole album again, front to back + no skips. Many of these songs are in my regular rotation and I know all the words by heart. But am I going to listen to this whole album again? It is rare that I listen to entire albums that are gonna kinda kill my mood. If I were just ranking based on how good the album was though, it’s an easy 6/5. (Also I want to make sure it’s on the record that I am MGM and black).

Season: Late Spring
Favorite Song: Hood Politics

What else can you say about this album that hasnt already been said - an artist at his creative apex.

Así sí. No todas las canciones en el rap tienes que sonar iguales. Me encanta la mezcla de géneros musicales.

I love this album. No notes.

I hear it's really controversial to have this opinion but I don't care. I absolutely love "MAAD City" but think this is a jumbled mess without a clear direction and a lot of disparate elements incorporated in comparison to that masterpiece. I get it, this is his maximalist, experimental hip-hop response to that album- I just don't think he works in this aesthetic. Kanye has him beat in that department with MBDTF, Yeezus, hell, even TLOP. The album is just not cohesive. Kendrick also never sounded great doing that voice crack flow, and some of the hooks here are just annoying see "Hood Politics" or "King Kunta"

"Alright" and "i" are the only tracks that sniff the heights of GKMC

Quite boring

Its position at the top of Rate Your Music’s all-time chart suggests that many consider 𝘛𝘰 𝘗𝘪𝘮𝘱 𝘢 𝘉𝘶𝘵𝘵𝘦𝘳𝘧𝘭𝘺 one of the greatest albums ever made. I would not go quite that far, but its ambition is undeniable.

The dense mixture of hip-hop, jazz, funk, and spoken word constantly offers something new to discover, and the unusually large cast of guest musicians and vocalists adds even more colour without making the album feel like a compilation. More importantly, it gives me insight into experiences and cultural realities far removed from my own without ever feeling like a history lesson.

I may not connect with every moment equally, but this is challenging, imaginative hip-hop that rewards close attention.

not even his best album!

Too long for my liking.

Es una cosa monumental. Tiene capas y capas que no creo que pueda desentrañar en una primera escucha, pero entiendo la fama que tiene.

Det skete noget vildt ved denne gennemlytning. Jeg var 100 på, at det skulle blive 5, som jeg egentlig altid har tænkt dette album. Men det skulle det ikke!
Jeg er ikke lige så vild med de mere jazzede elementer, som mange andre er, og jeg synes egentlig, Kendrick er bedst uden. Han er bedst på et fundament af sub-bass, klassiske west-coastede-produktioner og sit eget sublime flow. Det må dog ikke forstås som om, at det ikke er røvfedt at prøve at lave sådan et album her også - for det er det, jeg kan bare allerbedst lide det andet.

Og så synes jeg ærligt talt, at hele det interview er lidt cringe

Jeg synes heller ikke, at konceptet er helt så stærkt, som jeg huskede det. Der var egentlig også et par numre, som jeg huskede som værende bedre, end de var i dag.

Og igen ... det interview der

4.3

Jamais écouté avant.

Très content d'avoir découvert To Pimp a Butterfly, un album précédé par une réputation glorieuse, régulièrement cité parmi les plus grands albums de hip-hop, voire des plus grands albums tout court, de tous les temps. Comme d'habitude, mes connaissances limitées dans le genre jouent forcément sur mon appréciation, mais je dois bien admettre que j'ai été plutôt impressionné par sa densité, sa richesse et sa verve revendicative, ainsi que la manière dont Kendrick Lamar et ses producteurs citent et rendent hommage à toute l'histoire de la musique afro-américaine, et notamment au jazz, omniprésent dans les instrumentations. Une telle densité, d'ailleurs, que je ne crois en avoir à peine exploré la surface après un peu plus d'une écoute. Hâte d'aller plus loin, notamment de me poser pleinement sur les textes.

Top : The Blacker the Berry
Flop : Institutionalized

I liked this one a lot. I have never listened to it from start to finish, but it was a good experience. It's modern sounding, infused with some jazz fusion characteristics, good songs and really good rap quality. I liked it a lot more than I thought I would.

Meh.