Friday, a little before noon — 17x Grammy Award and Pulitzer Prize winner Kendrick Lamar released a brief one-minute video on YouTube titled “GNX”. The video appeared to be teasing a long-rumored album Lamar has been working on for quite some time; little did they know that a couple of minutes later he would release the 12-track album entirely.
Although it seems like the album was released with not much marketing or build-up, this has been a long time coming. Starting all the way back in March, Metro Boomin and Future released their collaboration album WE DON’T TRUST YOU. The sixth track, “Like That”, is widely recognized as the origin of several diss tracks between Drake and Kendrick. Through the summer, the artists would go back and forth releasing music, both trying to deal a final blow. The most popular diss track, “Not Like Us” by Lamar is currently nominated for five Grammy’s and is one of the most listened-to tracks of 2024 with Spotify stating that it is the fastest rap song to reach 100, 200, 300… all the way to 700 million streams. With all of this momentum behind him, fans should not be surprised he came out with a new album.
It should also come as no surprise that GNX is… another classic. The heavy West Coast style mixed in with the occasional melodic songs is a great balance. However, I believe that this album is a step down from his previous album, Mr. Morale & The Big Steppers. Nonetheless, Kendrick is still more than capable of putting out quality albums, and I hope to see him continue putting out music at this level for a long time. If you are looking to listen to GNX but do not know where to start, here are some of the best tracks of the album (in no specific order):
“luther” ft. SZA
“heart pt. 6”
“tv off”
“gloria” ft. SZA
“man at the garden”
The album as a whole was a great first listen. To be honest, I was nervous at first while listening to the first track “wacced out murals”, and it was not until my second listen that the song grew on me. However I decided to keep listening and I am glad I did because by the end I was so glad that I did, and instantly restarted the whole thing. This album has everything; whether you are looking for something more laidback, mellow, upbeat, or even to dance to — it has it. I also think that one of the big improvements that Kendrick has made on this album has been his flow. The way he matches the beat on “ty off” is similar to that of his single “euphoria”, and shows a new style he has been developing. To say the least, I am excited to hear what he has next, but for now, GNX needs to sit back and resonate for a while before some tracks begin to transition into classics.
Kendrick released this album just a couple of months before his Super Bowl appearance in New Orleans, so it will be interesting to see if he will perform any of his new songs during the halftime performance. With other major hip-hop albums having been released this year, which one will be remembered as the best in 2024? Albums such as CHROMAKOPIA, HARDSTONE PSYCHO, AMERICAN DREAM, and before mentioned WE DON’T TRUST YOU could hold up against Kendrick’s recent release. Which is your favorite?
