Enjoy the list. Enjoy and share anything new you discover. Enjoy the time that we're living in that we have an unending amount of quality music out there Enjoy the Spotify playlist and enjoy my singles list which will be up pretty soon.
1. Kendrick Lamar - To Pimp A Butterfly
The consensus on how great this album is so overwhelming that I'm not even sure how to approach it in a way that no one has yet, so I'll just name my top ten favorite moments instead:
10) The first time you hear Thundercat's harmonies in the background during "Complexion (2 Zulu Love)."
9) The placement of "You Ain't Gotta Lie (Momma Said)" so late in the album sequencing as a brief palate cleanser between some of the heavier material.
8) "This dick ain't freeeee..."
7) The conversation between Kendrick and 2Pac on album closer "Mortal Man," which puts the whole experience into context. It's as if To Pimp A Butterfly was an essay about what it's like to be African-American in 2015 submitted to be graded by Professor Shakur.
6) The first time the chords move up a half-step in "King Kunta" as Lamar lambastes rappers employing ghostwriters.
5) Every single vocal inflection Anna Wise does on "These Walls" and when Bilal bursts through during the chorus.
4) The moment the beat drops on "Alright" and you feel like you can take on anything the world has to throw at you.
3) The last verse of "The Blacker The Berry."
2) The audacity of rapping over the jazzy time signature of"For Sale (Interlude)".
1) The gravity when you finally reach the end of "How Much A Dollar Cost?"
The jig is up, I seen you from a mile away losin' focus
And I'm insensitive, and I lack empathy
He looked at me and said, "Your potential is bittersweet"
I looked at him and said, "Every nickel is mines to keep"
He looked at me and said, "Know the truth, it'll set you free
You're lookin' at the Messiah, the son of Jehovah, the higher power
The choir that spoke the word, the Holy Spirit
The nerve of Nazareth, and I'll tell you just how much a dollar cost
The price of having a spot in Heaven, embrace your loss, I am God"
