Two time Grammy winner Kendrick Lamar is following up his big night with a new record. The single entitled, The Blacker the Berry is a hip hop hymnal in salute to black people. It's a rustic heavy hitting track laced with Kendrick's now familiar melodic flow.
The content is a bit heavy at times, but the overall message is of the strength and resilience and beauty of black people. Laced with heavy and sometimes foul lyrics, the song expresses an anger that many black men and people in this country feel. I know that if you're offended by certain words it may be tough to listen to it, but sometimes you have to look at the overall picture.
Along with the song produced by Boi-1da, people are loving the cover art which features a beautiful black mother nursing two babies. It is a beautiful shot by photographer Ari Marcopoulos. Kendrick juxtaposes the beautiful and soft cover art with harsh delivery. He's really 'spitting' as we like to call it in hip hop.
The song comes full circle in the end when the racially charged message turns to Kendrick explaining how many of us suffering in this country have then inflicted suffering on each other. A major highlight for me is if you listen closely at the end, you'll hear another voice we love so well- that of the incomparable (well maybe only to her father) Lalah Hathaway closing it out. Hear TBTB below.
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