To Pimp A Butterfly

Of fucking course this is one of my favourites of all time.

Yay! Intro..... spicy ALRIGHT So far it's a journey. I feel like I'm going somewhere with this. This album cover is iconic. A bit long I need more listens

excelente me gustó mucho lo escucharé de vez en cuando

Vulgar, tuneless, atonal. Unlistenable.

- the beginning of wesley's theory, wow the trumpets and the 1920s sounding instruments i love it - more lovely horn instrument noises in 'for free?' and ooooh i think it's gonna be a jazz rap album this is so !!!!! - king kunta is so catchy - the story telling voices in institutionalized is amazing - my fav bit of the song is 'if these walls could talk. i can be your (purple) rain when you cry'. i love the contrast between their voices and for a second, i swore i could've heard prince - i could write a scenario for 'u'. the way he repeated loving you is complicated like he was about to cry made me feel like we were both going insane and then that bit where i thought my headphones were broken and the trumpets abruptly coming up to the surface again... yeah. that's all i have to say. - but we gon be alright yes you will yes i will - bruv that plot twist at the end of 'for sale?' when it just keeps on spinning and spinning in a different pitch yeah it scared me man well done mr kendrick - awww 'momma' is nice - i cba to review the rest but i did listen

Everything s gon be alright.

ik its a classic but i dont vibe except the hits...

I listened some tracks and DAMN GOD THIS IS GOOD. This kind of music (rap) never caught my attention before, but now i'm impressed. Maybe in another time I would listen this album again

9/10

Монументальная работа. Одного прослушивания явно недостаточно. Охватываемые темы мне не настолько близки, как сам подход к раскрытию материала. Буду стараться разобраться в его творчестве сильнее.

Honestly a little better than I thought, but just wasn't my kind of music.

Incredible album. I thought the repetition of his story was very effective, and how emotionally it moved between hope and dispair. I tried to really pay attention to the lyrics but I think lots of them went over my head. Really glad I listened to this.

Yeah, I fuck with this. It's a great balance between socially engaged, conscious, and conceptual hip-hop & the hard, raw sound with its roots in Compton. Sometimes, the metaphorical and conceptual stuff seems to think it is cleverer than it is, and the album gets a bit loose and sprawling at times. But it still combines most of the stuff I love in hip-hop. Shame I'm not into his other material so much. Solid 4 for this.

The most important hip hop album of the decade, with hard-hitting lyricism, flow beyond compare, and incredible jazz and funk-influenced beats

excellent

Yeah not a fan

.

Well, it´s not my thing, I guess. I am still enjoying more of a 90s rap (hip hop). However I really liked some the songs (2nd part is definetely better), the combination of different genres worked very well and lyrics were also sometimes quite interesting. Nevertheless most of the time I was simply bored, maybe the fact, that I don´t live in the US, has also some influence.

Nice

Got a lot of media coverage on release, but I think its justified. Only criticism is it has some weak tracks and drags on a little in places. Fav tracks: first two and these walls

I'm always complaining about how basic most hip hop and rap is, but you can't easily level that criticism at To Pimp A Butterfly. The opening track is dizzingly detailed. Thankfully, the lame and childish attempt to parody early seventies soul only lasts a few seconds before a knotty swaggering rhythm kicks in. A sinuous synth bass is interwoven with a chorus that cuts against the primary rhythm (I'm hearing the influence of George Clinton here), the main rap, seemingly arrhythmic Fender Rhodes tinkling, horn hits, and so on. It's a pity the lyric content isn't more interesting, but you can't have everything. You could listen to this track a dozen times and not catch everything. More to the point, it's tastefully arranged and its interesting. Again uncharacteristically, the music that underscores the interlude that follows isn't tossed off. It's legit modern jazz with hip hop influenced drums. The rap is the usual bitches and money whinging. Boring, but musically it's interesting.Oh, okay, I thought I was losing my mind. The next cut King Kunta takes several steps back in terms of complexity and interest. This tune has a driving rhythm and bass line, but it's pretty darned straightforward musically. Can't fault the production--lots of bells and whistles, but it isn't enough to sustain interest.The album recovers nicely with Institutionalized. Broken rhythms, choral elements which cut against the rhythms, production tricks, subtractive strategies straight out of Stockhausen, evocative use of jazz samples, and for once Kendrick Lamar has an interesting subject, although he doesn't approach it with much insight or grace or wit. A missed opportunity.And so it goes. In terms of quality, To Pimp A Butterfly is all over the map. The production is consistently first rate. Kendrick Lamar is a poor lyricist and barely an okay rapper. Sometimes, the tunes are basic and boring--at other times, they point at the complexity and interest that's possible in hip hop. Every time I started to get drawn in by a creative arrangement or an original musical idea, I'd get pulled out by Kendrick's tedious raps or by a track which tried to get by solely on production tricks.It's frustrating, but at least there's some ambition here.

Don’t get this genre, sorry

Very interesting

Hello

Liked the third song; King Konta and Alright, the rest is not rlly my jam.

One good song (King Kunta). Don't like the rest. Says nigga ALL the time.

Jazzy Hip Hop classic. So long though... Best Tracks: Wesley's Theory, King Kunta, The Blacker The Berry

Nope, not my vibe.

To Pimp a Butterfly (TPaB) might be one of the most important hip-hop albums of the decade, maybe even regardless of genre. It is masterfully structured, made with thoughtful social commentary and just all-around good music in general. We're exploring the best of funk, jazz, soul, and hip-hop (obviously). And it isn't just anyone on the credits, you've got Thundercat on bass, Dr. Dre producing, and a laundry list of great features worthy of admiration. I can't find much negative to say about this record, but I honestly don't want to because it is just so so good. It's simply the best at what it does.

pff,

Na verdade eu só não gosto muito de rap mesmo

Uneven mix of rap, spoken rap and others. Interesting.

Kan ik niks mee...

A Good album that cemented Kendrick Lamar as a truly mainstream rapper despite producing an original and often obscure contribution to the genre. Definitely over played but I guess that is just the sign of a great album although not my personal favourite.

Ligt vast aan mij maar ik snap echt niet waarom dit zo overladen wordt met euforische recensies. Ik kan hier heel weinig mee.

Poewee zeg, wat een gejank. Heel nerveus werd ik ervan.

I couldn't listen to all of the songs all the way through. I understand swearing is a part of certain genres/ albums, but it's hard for me to listen to when there's a large quantity of it. To be honest there isn't a lot of rap that catches my attention. However, I did like the jazz influence in this album and listening to some of the themes in the lyrics. If rap was more of my cup of tea, I could see myself liking this more. I liked King Kunta and These Walls in this album.

My least favorite of his, but still a classic.

Liked it a lot. Thought it was very insightful

Poop

Started awfully, hated it. But it got better as it went on. 2 would have been harsh, 3 is maybe a little generous.

Plutôt sympa mais pas mon style de musique.

Unmemorable.

Rap actual, mola. Bases soul/jazz

Not as good as Good Kid MAAD City for me. 3/5.

The beats, the bars, the themes, this album is so powerful. I have one or two criticisms but it couldn’t be anything but a 10/10

Good! Cool musical bits and I liked the lyrics. Loses a point for being long. 7

A lot more experimental than I expected - enjoyed it. How much a dollar cost, with the Radiohead sample, was a highlight.

One of my favorite albums of all time. My favorite track has been and always will be Momma, followed closely by King Kunta and Alright.

Lotta good tracks, and a lot of fun to listen to through and through

(already heard this a bunch before, will just rate it, 4.5)

Awesome album, love all the features and kendrick using all the voices he can fit in there. Jazz and funk fills the album with incredible sound

good. listened to it during war with brandon derek MJ. alright slaps. as Matthew said "Kendrick goes hard"

2/5

Definitely an important and impressive album incorporating all the jazz but it still drags in places for me

Nope

7/10. Not really my style, but it does feel very well put together as an album, and was lyrically interesting enough to make me at least want to keep listening. There were only a few songs that I enjoyed listening to in their own right, and I still didn't quite love the sound, but overall a positive experience.

Brilliant. Although there are some tracks that I don't LOVE, everything flows together perfectly. Special mentions to 'For Free ?' and 'i'.

One of the greatest hiphop albums of all time. I don't need to saymore. Go listen to it

Beautiful Storytelling. Also a sleeper album as opposed to GKMC, but it is a mainstay of excellent hip-hop.

Not bad.

I promise the rating does not come from any pre-existing bias.

I ddin't think I'd like it but some songs were quite vibey.

Incorporates more jazz influence than I would've expected. Slightly repetitive? Heard "40 acres and a mule" on at least 3 tracks.

I admire the scope and ambition of this work. I like the diverse range of musicianship and the attempts to integrate jazz into the hip hop lexicon. Some of the word play is impressive. However, it all adds up to something akin to a complex plumbing system; a technically adroit feat that I couldn't begin to try to replicate myself, but ultimately quite boring to behold.

really liked it

Didn't listen to it because I used to listen to it A LOT a while back. Excellent!

Hip-hop mezclado con soul en muchas canciones.

Masterpiece. 10

There's so much to process here. The album is has so much going for it. However, when I rate it by my standard system, I'll probably not listen to it more than once a year. The last song was just too long. I'm not sure of the purpose.

I get why white people love this dude

Paar nette Sachen dabei

Tyler the creator esque imo. Or maybe Tyler’s Kendrick esque😦

Ya like jazz? 11/10, I'd sell my kidneys for another Kendrick album as good as this.

Hate it. Hate literally everything about it. I'm a bit biased though.

Re-listening for the generator. A beautiful storm. Kendrick always delivers. 8/10

I think I just listened to art. Only album in this list so far I’ve listened to twice in a row

Really solid, on repeat listens I bet it’ll grow on me even more. This dick ain’t free

Wow. A rap album I actually really enjoyed. It’s a miracle.

Not really my thing, but it was good. King Kunta was my favorite song.

I greatly enjoyed Mr. Lamar's treatise on the current problems facing people in urban population centres

Maybe a 3

Nope

Legendary.

Such a good record. So many great tracks. Great listen from start to finish.

Was just thinking the other day that I ought to listen to something by Kendrick Lamar, given how well-received some of his records have been. I think that raised my expectations to a degree that I was prepared for something different than I got. I don’t hate it, but I don’t know… it didn’t immediately strike a chord with me. So many interludes! Anyway, I’ll listen to it again at some point but also this dick ain’t free, guys. Sorry.

The first time I listened to this album I was on a bus in Indonesia with Benji, and I remember then that I think I can appreciate that this is good but its just not my bag.

En una década en la que la mayoría de la música sonaba demasiado similar y gastada. Cuando el hip-hop estaba en un punto bajo entre mumble rap y con la idea de escuincles sin talento al máximo está este disco como un gran respiro. Kendrick Lamar es grande; es quizá de manera técnica entre los mejores raperos actuales y diría que casi seguro el mejor de los recientes. Lo que lo lleva a otro nivel es su capacidad y deseo de experimentar y llevar sus trabajos a otros niveles. A veces no funciona del todo pero en este caso termino con un disco excepcional. Musicalmente no se le puede ni comparar, es único; su capacidad de experimentar y crear mezclando todo un disco con jazz, funk, soul, breaks de saxofón con scat. Pareciera que aprendiendo e inspirado por cosas como aquel Phrenology de The Roots o la Música de Outkast o en particular de Andre 3000 está dispuesto a estirar la definición del rap y hip hop hasta que casi se truene. Música fluida, impredecible, atascada tanto de creatividad como de talento en sus colaboradores (¡Mirá es Thundercat! conocía este disco y ni idea de notarlo hasta ahora, Terrance Martin, Snoop, Dr. Dre, Pharrel). Todo el concepto musical es una celebración a atreverse a hacer algo distinto. Y si musicalmente es grande en su concepto y letras no se queda nada atrás. En un género atascado de idioteces y cosas vacías todavía hay alguien que trata de hacer un disco complejo, de poner de frente la hipocresía no solo de la sociedad en la que vive (“Oh America, you a bad bitch/ I picked the cotton that made you rich” es quizá la línea más simplona del disco y aun así no es mala) sino en especial tratando de mostrar esa hipocresía hasta en sí mismo y la cultura que representa ("So why did I weep when Trayvon Martin was in the street? / When gang bangin' make me kill a nigga blacker than me?"). Casi todas las letras se centran en esas dicotomías perder-perder que están muy presentes y que no tienen lados buenos como el rapero "consciente" contra el pandillero, el machista con postura contra la el ser lleno de culpa, la culpabilidad blanca forzada y la violencia entre negros; todo con un mensaje de reconciliación sin sentir que te está sermoneando. Esa calidad lírica es muy muy difícil de lograr. Es un disco que tiene cosas que decir y sabe cómo hacerlo. Es un disco hecho por alguien lo suficientemente inteligente como para saber terminar con una pieza de spoken word, pegando una entrevista con Tupac Shakur con poemas suyos resultando en algo que nunca existió, dándole un nuevo sentido y hacer que funcione y que no se sienta ni forzada ni como un gimmick.

Oh hey - Dre's called in

I want to like this album... there's clearly a lot of meaningfuly perspective and involved lyrics, but the only song that i actually wanted to listen to over again was King Kunta. Give props due to complexity, though Kendrick's voice isn't my thing... give me Chuck D or Nas.

Aight. Easy to listen to. Kind of white stripes esque

It's obviously good but I'm not into it.

Incredible concept album. Introduced me to Thundercat back in the day.

Dinero, poder, sexo, para llenar el cliché del género, se complementan muy bien con depresión, abuso de poder, miedo al fracaso y lo que pareciera síndrome del impostor. Me llamó mucho la atención la letra que va evolucionando al final de varias canciones (King Kunta, These Walls, Alright, For Sale, Hood Politics) que termina siendo un diálogo con 2Pac. Las mezclas están muy bien hechas aunque su concepto artístico de hacer muchos cortes y meter mucho diálogo no lo entiendo. Supongo que es para evitar que sean monótonas sus largas canciones (1h 15m, por favor) pero siento que terminan siendo relleno. Songs: i, How Much a Dollar Cost, You Ain't Gotta Lie

Own it. Love it. Saw him live perform it. Damn it. On it. Fuck it. Makes it.

Pleasantly surprised to see something so recent on here. Good album, a bit long and rambly for me though and I like some of his other albums more. King Kunta is a hell of a song.

Always enjoy this album

Not really into it.

Kendrick is one of my favorite artists and I haven’t listened to this full album in awhile. Alright and King Kunta are probably my favorite songs. I forgot about i what a great song

1. Intro beat SLAPS, great flow. Type of song to hit your body moving in some way - funky. 2. THIS DICK AINT FREE 3. Bop 4. Strange but a tuneee 5. Classic 6. SUch a good fucking song 7. classic 8. Smooth, fun interlude 9. momma bars good fucking album

Goat

KING KUNTA. this is one of his best. this shit beautiful and truly shows his raw lyricism and talent. funk political soul hip hop. dA gOaT. I REMEMBER YOU WAS CONFLICTED

i kind of love this

THIS DICK AINT FREEEE

Generational album. Great songs mixed with great stories. King Kunta, Alright, How Much a Dollar Cost, The Blacker the Berry, i

Not interesting, explicit, meaningless for me

I'd prefer Hedley Lamar.

What a combination of influences.He brings so much together here. Nothing else sounds like this. This is one of the most original/experimental hip hop albums ever. All over the place in a great way. Love his different voices throughout. Very theatrical and atmospheric all at once. Got some great people on this too - particularly Thundercat. King Kunta is my favorite track and the one that immediately drew me in to him.

Hard for me to rate, since hip-hop is typically not my jam. In terms of genre it's prob 4-5, but there is a lot going on here that I could dive deeper into, but not my cup of tea really. Definitely some interesting things here, so 3.5 up to 4.

Blandat! En del nice musik, en del riktigt skumt. Rapen är absolut inte det bästa, utan musikerna i bakgrunden gör detta album. Tydligen kan man inte ändra betyg och recension efter de skickats in, så vill också uttrycka att Deep Purple albumet vad fan rätt nice efter att ha kommit in i det. Duktiga musiker helt klart. Albumet ska därför ha en 4a, inte 3a.

Este álbum me costó bastante trabajo escucharlo. De hecho me "forcé" un poco a escucharlo dos veces, pero este estilo de hip hop definitivamente no es lo mío.

🐐

Has a feel somewhere between "in the zone and focused" and "walking around". Really cool mix of musical styles. Compelling parallel narratives of personal struggle and Black historical struggle.

Starts off chaotic. These Walls and i are highlights. I don't enjoy the interludes or the spoken word parts. It's not for me but I know it's not FOR me either. I get why it's a masterpiece but I won't revisit.

A mi parecer el único rapero con voz de pito puede ser Eminem por qué es blanquito, no puedo con la voz de este cabrón y su rapeo intenso y sin sentido. A lo mejor es un disco relevante pero no me aporta nada y no creo que debería estar en la lista

Antes de escribir le di una pasada extra y debo decir que todo lo que pudo haberme gustado en los primeros tracks lo perdió cantando como caricatura china en 'u'. Tampoco soy fan de las rolas tipo R&B-vamos-a-coger y peor cuando encima rapea de todas las cosas que sabe (Momma). Por otro lado, sí me gustaron 'Hood Politics' y 'The Blacker The Berry' especialmente por los temas que toca.

Fuck yeah

Outstanding!

First impression: not my taste for sure. First song reminds me of need for speed, I don't hate it but not sure I'd listen again. For sale? Interlude's heavy breathing is uncomfortable. For free? Has a cool old school background tune. Never been a fan of songs where someone just talks at me like the first minute or so. King kunta is more traditional rap for me. I don't mind it but it's not really along my taste lines. Would sounds great with a sub

Familiarity: 7/10 Notes: Having just listened to this album for the first time not even a month ago, it seems fitting for this album to be brought up at a time like this. With the era of Trump hopefully coming to an end, and our future with President Biden awakening, I believe this album is perfect for the times. With mix of funk, spoken word, and best poetry, this sophisticated rnb/hip hop effort by Kendrick Lamar is straight ear candy. This album is already a classic, and it will live on as it finds new purpose every few years, I'm sure. Real Rating: 8.5/10

It was a fine album, just not necessarily my cup of tea

First listen. Very good.

Powerful album with some stellar tracks

I can see why it did well with the poignant lyrics, but it’s basically a spoken word album. Rap without solid beats is hard to listen to repeatedly.

@@½. Just can't deal with this crap anymore. Nothing like his first album, but a couple of nice joints.

Solid album, though Kendrick's masterpiece, in my humble opinion, is DAMN.

Kannte ihn nur von seinem Beitrag auf einem The Weeknd-Album. Yo-nigger-Compton-conflicted-streets-hood-irgendwelche Gangs-Wortspiel||repeat Das ist so ermüdend und irrelevant (und musikalisch nur so leidlich interessant), dass ich beim 10. Song ausmachen musste. Ich werde den Eindruck nicht los, dass ihm in Europa eine so hohe Bedeutung bei gemessen wird, weil er wegen seiner gesellschaftspolitischen Relevanz in den USA von der hiesigen Journaille über den grünen Klee gelobt wird. Aber rappen kann er wie kaum ein zweiter.

That was really good. I knew Kendrick Lamar but not well and I didn't know that album. But it was a goodun.

Just a really amazing album all around, like a discordant beautiful Miles Davis album, but with a lot of lyrical content which to me, is what Jazz is really missing. Blacker the Berry is fantastic, as is King Kunta but the b-sides aren't bad or forgettable, it flows nice and it's a great listen.

Love this album, though Damn. may be my favourite Kendrick album, this is the first one that got me into his music. Definitely my favourite hip hop artist

Cool to listen to once but I don't think I will come back to listen to again.

Supposed to be good, for a rap album

This reminds me how much we consume media so fast. This albulm is 5 years old which is wild to me cause it feels like it just came out. BUT anyways enjoyed again..Mortal man kind of shooked me cause like look where we are now. Blacker the Berry is also a vibe.

This surprised me. It 's reminiscent of 90s hip hop, and that's probably why I enjoyed it. It sounds like dozens of other albums, but that doesn't make it a bad listen. It's weirdly semi-nostalgic. I get why this guy is lauded so highly though I'm not sure I'll ever revisit Lamar without good cause.

iconic... educational.. a good time.

So good. Kendrick is a genius

Every time I think "there's no way it's as good as I remember," and then it's even better.

ok

Always heard a ton of good things about this album but had never listened to it until recently. Overall, I was really impressed - such a unique blend of musical styles, it comes across as so much more than just a rap album, reminiscent of West's "Dark Twisted Fantasy"

Interesting, but not my jam

Sorry. An album with every track tagged explicit? Can't do it.

En av de bästa rap-albumen genom historien

Top tier production with amazing guest artist and the wonderful strong Kendrick lyrics and voice

jazz rap

Great

no-brainer

Ei tarvinnut kahdesti kuunnella, aika skeidaa

Excellent.

Unbearable. No one cares if the dick is free or not.

Really struggled to get past the first 30 seconds of each song. This is not an album for me!

Great for either having in the background while working or actively listening to. I find myself bobbing my head to the beats.

Not my cuppa tea

I admit that a lot of the nuance of this album is lost on me. This probably wasn't a good first album on the list. But it sounds great, the production is varied and exemplary, and the lyrics (that I got) were fantastic

Det bedste af dem alle

Piristävä yllätys ja tykkäsin. Hauskoja biittejä eikä missään vaiheessa ärsyttänyt.

Best rap album of 2010s

The guest list. The beats. Kendrick. The message.. Everything about this album is absolutely unreal and it's so hard to pick favorites. Favorite tracks: "For Free?", "Alright", "King Kunta", "The Blacker the Berry", "Wesley's Theory"

Goat

The instrumental hook is instant in Wesley's Theory, and the rest of the album just goes. On a relisten, I notice the jazziness of the interludes for the first time: I think they were placing jazz and speech juxtaposed, as in a venue, deep in my brain and long before I was interested in jazz. "This convinced me that rap is good, actually." It's cliche and not a little embarrassing, but far more true than shameful.

One of the greatest albums ever. Jazzy, inspirational, prophetic, genius

the end of the album definitely more my sensibilities, blacker the berry, aint gotta lie, i are all really good, the first half didn't really stick with me, kendrick exists in this space where I can see he's talented but his flow and production feel to work against him not with him often. When I see people put this as a 'GOAT' album I wish I could understand why. My best bet is in a sea of mumblerap brag-rap he's the only one speaking conscious and elevated.

To Pimp a Butterfly is just one of those albums where you had to be there to fully experience. Kendrick Lamar always had potential to harness the complexities of life and use it as a force to make galvanizing, transformative art and here is where that potential is realized. It is rare to know when a phenomenon is worth wrapping oneself in and, in this case, it is something that makes an investment in an artist of Kendrick's caliber valid. Ten years on, needless to say, it's been an awesome journey.

Perfect

Its drags a bit, and I prefer good kid, but its still an amazing album. I love the variety of musical styles. Closer to a 4.5