In a rare moment of transparency, rapper Kendrick Lamar wrote an endearing message reflecting on his latest album, Mr. Morale & The Big Steppers, and its accompanying tour. He reflected on the power of rap music and its impact on his own perception of self and its importance as a medium for self-expression.

The message was shared to the rapper’s Instagram Stories according to HipHopDX which noted that Kendrick said that it took him “twenty years” to write one of the songs on the critically acclaimed album. “Mother I Sober,” forced him to confront his destructive “lustful nature.”

“ngl jesus jojo and mary. took a n-gga twenty years to find mother i sober,” Kendrick began. “rap has truly helped my expansion of self. beyond the perception of who I believed to be. on jojo. music is air to a young n-gga at this point. mr morale. the catalyst of my self expression.”

He added, “ill never forget the process of falling in love with imperfection. the piano. my fans. the stories of reconciliation i hear from penitentiaries to small villages. Some words will find you today. Some will find you in 10. find your children type shit. sitting in the corner like an old book.”

Of the tour, he noted, “im forever underground. infratrating [sic] the mainstream a la carte. these cities still beautiful to watch. on jojo. ily. -ok ok!”

The message came on a rare day of activity on the rapper’s usually dormant Instagram page. He deleted previous posts and filled his page with photos from the tour—which is still ongoing.

He also added a number of candid shots of himself and several with supporting acts Baby Keem—his cousin and Tanna Leone. Both artists are signed to Kendrick’s pgLang label.

On the tour Kendrick has been wearing a black Louis Vuitton suit designed by the late Virgil Abloh and a bejeweled silver glove in tribute to Michael Jackson. The 65-date world tour wraps up on December 16 at the Spark Arena in Auckland, New Zealand.