The Rundown: Kendrick Lamar, good kid, m.A.A.d. city

Did Kendrick live up to the ever-heightening hype?

Album of the Year: Kendrick Lamar – good kid, m.A.A.d. city - Kendrick Lamar rocked critics and listeners alike with the release of his debut album good kid, m.A.A.d. city, which went platinum and is considered a classic in many circles.   (Photo: Interscope Records)
"Sherane a.k.a Master Splinter's Daughter" - Kendrick Lamar opens the album with the juxtaposition of good and evil, a theme that runs throughout. Here, in a look forward at the album narrative to follow, he's just a in-puppy-love Compton teenager trying to get some—until reality interrupts, in the form of two guys in black hoodies. The tinkling pianos and phasing snare drums, a blend of early-2000s Dr. Dre G-funk and Drake's drowsy, 40-helmed beats, are a good mission statement for the album's lush, expertly crafted production.  (photo: John Ricard / BET).
"B---h, Don't Kill My Vibe" - Don't like Kendrick Lamar's delivery? Don't stress—he's got about five or six different styles of spitting. Here, he goes from his thoughtful, articulate regular-guy flow to a strange, otherworldly, almost robotic sing-songy flow, while the production favors classic UGK, all guitar wahs and 808s.    (Photo: Neilson Barnard/WireImage for VEVO)"Backseat Freestyle" - Kendrick Lamar rhymes with new, never-heard-before levels of intensity on this left-field Hit-Boy club banger. By the end, he's built up to an eff-the-world yell, making it clear this album is going to have dangerous moments as well as deep ones.   (Photo: Moses Robinson/Getty Images for Heineken)

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The Rundown: Kendrick Lamar, good kid, m.A.A.d. city - After months—years, really—of building expectations, consistently improving music, a steadily building profile, Kendrick Lamar has finally delivered his major-label debut, good kid, m.A.A.d. city. But did he live up to the deafening buzz, the ever-heightening hype? Is he a worthy addition to Dr. Dre's legacy of classic music and amazing proteges? And will he revive L.A., and the West Coast as a whole, as a rap powerhouse? Click on for the Rundown, a track-by-track review of good kid, m.A.A.d city that will answer these questions and much more. —Alex Gale (Photo: Interscope Records)

Photo By Interscope Records

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