The final song and lead single for Section.80 was the song " HiiiPoWeR", the concept of which was to further explain the "HiiiPoWeR" movement promoted by Lamar and his TDE labelmates. drug dealing and drug addicts.) " A.D.H.D" addresses "Getting fucked up, going to parties, and just being carefree." "Kush & Corinthians" notes that justice and morals are rarely cut and dried. He explains how this is part of the reason drugs are popular for his Generation (e.g.
KENDRICK LAMAR SECTION 80 ALBUM PLAYLIST CRACK
He dwells on a variety of subjects, such as referencing Ronald Reagan and discussing how the crack epidemic occurred in the 80s. Lamar has stated that he created the album to discuss his generation. "Keisha's Song (Her Pain)" is about a prostitute who seeks comfort and control, only to her demise. "Tammy's Song (Her Evils)" revolves around two girls cheating on their boyfriends after discovering they were unfaithful, and eventually sleeping with each other because they can't trust men. Section.80 is a concept album that involves the lives of Tammy and Keisha as it explains the personal hardships in their lives. I said "why"? He said "because you the." Music and lyrics Wrote #Section80 because I was ordered to do so. Lamar felt compelled to create the album after seeing a friend of his go to jail for twenty-five years and experiencing the pain of such an event.
While recording the album he wished for it to be "as organic as possible," at times leaving songs unfinished for extended periods of time. He recorded the album at Top Dawg Studios in Carson, California, and wrote most of it in his mother's kitchen and tour bus. Lamar began working on the album from around January 2011. To see the world through Kendrick Lamar’s eyes is a one-of-a-kind experience.įavorite tracks: A.D.H.D.Section.80 is Kendrick Lamar's first studio release, followed by the release of five of his mixtapes and his first extended-play (EP). While the narrative on this project isn’t as compelling as those found on his later albums, it is definitely worth a listen. He would continue to develop this skill with each project following Section.80, cementing him as one of the most gifted storytellers in hip-hop. In a particularly candid moment, he says “I’m not on the outside looking in/I’m not on the inside looking out/I’m in the dead f- center, looking around.”Įven in 2011, Kendrick – who had not yet reached his prime – was no stranger to the Odyssean task of creating a concept album. On “Ab-Soul’s Outro,”, the penultimate track on Section.80, Kendrick meditates on the themes presented throughout the album. Like Tupac’s classic “Brenda’s Got a Baby”, Kendrick shows how this vicious cycle of neglect ends in tragedy. The narrative continues on “Keisha’s Song”, in which the titular character becomes a sex worker in order support herself. In one bar, he says “1987, the children of Ronald Reagan/Rake the leaves of your front porch with a machine blowtorch”, which speaks to the generation of children who have been negatively affected by president Reagan’s policies. On “A.D.H.D”, he reflects on the drug abuse that is so prevalent in his generation by saying “You know why we crack babies?/Because we born in the 80s, that A.D.H.D crazy.” “Ronald Reagan Era” describes Kendrick’s hometown of Compton, California in a way that only a true emcee could. Kendrick paints a picture of this world in great detail throughout the album’s runtime. That story centers around Tammy and Keisha, two characters who struggle to make sense of the world around them. It isn’t as focused as GKMC, as ambitious as TPAB, or as eclectic as DAMN., but Section.80 has a story to tell all its own. It’s true that some of the tracks haven’t aged well (“No Makeup”, “Tammy’s Song”), but in my opinion there are many more hits than misses on K.
Rarely is there mention of Section.80, Kendrick’s 2011 debut. In general, discussion of the Kendrick Lamar canon is limited to the holy trinity of good kid, m.A.Ad city, To Pimp a Butterfly, and DAMN., with the occasional nod to untitled unmastered.