King Kuntaby Kendrick Lamar

Kendrick will be hitting Seattle this weekend when he plays at Lumen Field along with SZA this Saturday night! -- Describing the track, Lamar explained that it was "the story of struggle and standing up for what you believe in. No matter how many barriers you gotta break down, no matter how many escape routes you gotta run to tell the truth. That's what I think we all can relate to." Read the KEXP review of this 2015 release at www.kexp.org. oklama.com www.kexp.org

Describing the track, Lamar explained that it was "the story of struggle and standing up for what you believe in. No matter how many barriers you gotta break down, no matter how many escape routes you gotta run to tell the truth. That's what I think we all can relate to." Read the KEXP review of this 2015 release at www.kexp.org. oklama.com www.kexp.org

To Pimp A Butterfly was released on this day in 2015. Describing the track, Lamar explained that it was "the story of struggle and standing up for what you believe in. No matter how many barriers you gotta break down, no matter how many escape routes you gotta run to tell the truth. That's what I think we all can relate to." Read the KEXP review of this 2015 release at www.kexp.org. oklama.com www.kexp.org

Going out to Erik in Olympia Produced by Mark "Sounwave" Spears, this politically charged funk track finds Lamar rapping about the Kunta Kinte character from the famed Roots mini-series: "Now I run the game got the whole world talkin', King Kunta Everybody wanna cut the legs off him" The African Kunta Kinte was brought as a slave from Gambia to Virginia in 1767. The story of Kinte, whose right foot was cut off because of his attempts to escape his plantation. is the basis of Alex Haley's novel Roots: The Saga of an American Family, which was made into a popular TV mini-series in 1977. www.songfacts.com Describing the track, Lamar explained that it was "the story of struggle and standing up for what you believe in. No matter how many barriers you gotta break down, no matter how many escape routes you gotta run to tell the truth. That's what I think we all can relate to." Read the KEXP review of this 2015 release at www.kexp.org. oklama.com www.kexp.org

Going out to Erik in Olympia Produced by Mark "Sounwave" Spears, this politically charged funk track finds Lamar rapping about the Kunta Kinte character from the famed Roots mini-series: "Now I run the game got the whole world talkin', King Kunta Everybody wanna cut the legs off him" The African Kunta Kinte was brought as a slave from Gambia to Virginia in 1767. The story of Kinte, whose right foot was cut off because of his attempts to escape his plantation. is the basis of Alex Haley's novel Roots: The Saga of an American Family, which was made into a popular TV mini-series in 1977. www.songfacts.com

Produced by Mark "Sounwave" Spears, this politically charged funk track finds Lamar rapping about the Kunta Kinte character from the famed Roots mini-series: "Now I run the game got the whole world talkin', King Kunta Everybody wanna cut the legs off him" The African Kunta Kinte was brought as a slave from Gambia to Virginia in 1767. The story of Kinte, whose right foot was cut off because of his attempts to escape his plantation. is the basis of Alex Haley's novel Roots: The Saga of an American Family, which was made into a popular TV mini-series in 1977. www.songfacts.com

Describing the track, Lamar explained that it was "the story of struggle and standing up for what you believe in. No matter how many barriers you gotta break down, no matter how many escape routes you gotta run to tell the truth. That's what I think we all can relate to." Read the KEXP review of this 2015 release at www.kexp.org. oklama.com www.kexp.org

Describing the track, Lamar explained that it was "the story of struggle and standing up for what you believe in. No matter how many barriers you gotta break down, no matter how many escape routes you gotta run to tell the truth. That's what I think we all can relate to." Read the KEXP review of this 2015 release at www.kexp.org. oklama.com www.kexp.org

Describing the track, Lamar explained that it was "the story of struggle and standing up for what you believe in. No matter how many barriers you gotta break down, no matter how many escape routes you gotta run to tell the truth. That's what I think we all can relate to." Read the KEXP review of this 2015 release at www.kexp.org

Describing the track, Lamar explained that it was "the story of struggle and standing up for what you believe in. No matter how many barriers you gotta break down, no matter how many escape routes you gotta run to tell the truth. That's what I think we all can relate to." Read the KEXP review of this 2015 release at www.kexp.org

Describing the track, Lamar explained that it was "the story of struggle and standing up for what you believe in. No matter how many barriers you gotta break down, no matter how many escape routes you gotta run to tell the truth. That's what I think we all can relate to." Read the KEXP review of this 2015 release at www.kexp.org

#55! You can read the KEXP review of this 2015 release from Kendrick Lamar here: www.kexp.org

Kendrick Lamar will be performing at Climate Pledge Arena on Saturday, August 27th! bit.ly Describing the track, Lamar explained that it was "the story of struggle and standing up for what you believe in. No matter how many barriers you gotta break down, no matter how many escape routes you gotta run to tell the truth. That's what I think we all can relate to." You can see the KEXP review of this 2015 release from Kendrick Lamar here: www.kexp.org oklama.com It’s KEXP’s 50th anniversary! To celebrate we’re playing songs you know and love from 2015! kexp.org/50/

Describing the track, Lamar explained that it was "the story of struggle and standing up for what you believe in. No matter how many barriers you gotta break down, no matter how many escape routes you gotta run to tell the truth. That's what I think we all can relate to." You can see the KEXP review of this 2015 release from Kendrick Lamar here: www.kexp.org

Describing the track, Lamar explained that it was "the story of struggle and standing up for what you believe in. No matter how many barriers you gotta break down, no matter how many escape routes you gotta run to tell the truth. That's what I think we all can relate to." You can see the KEXP review of this 2015 release from Kendrick Lamar here: www.kexp.org

Describing the track, Lamar explained that it was "the story of struggle and standing up for what you believe in. No matter how many barriers you gotta break down, no matter how many escape routes you gotta run to tell the truth. That's what I think we all can relate to." You can see the KEXP review of this 2015 release from Kendrick Lamar here: www.kexp.org

Playing the Super Bowl Halftime show next weekend with Dr. Dre, Snoop Doog, Mary J Blige and Eminem Kendrick had to give writing credits to Michael Jackson for the Annie are you OK line

Describing the track, Lamar explained that it was "the story of struggle and standing up for what you believe in. No matter how many barriers you gotta break down, no matter how many escape routes you gotta run to tell the truth. That's what I think we all can relate to." You can see the KEXP review of this 2015 release from Kendrick Lamar here: www.kexp.org

"King Kunta" sampled James Brown's "The Payback." -- Describing the track, Lamar explained that it was "the story of struggle and standing up for what you believe in. No matter how many barriers you gotta break down, no matter how many escape routes you gotta run to tell the truth. That's what I think we all can relate to." You can see the KEXP review of this 2015 release from Kendrick Lamar here: www.kexp.org -- Watch the official music video: youtu.be

Describing the track, Lamar explained that it was "the story of struggle and standing up for what you believe in. No matter how many barriers you gotta break down, no matter how many escape routes you gotta run to tell the truth. That's what I think we all can relate to." You can see the KEXP review of this 2015 release from Kendrick Lamar here: www.kexp.org

Describing the track, Lamar explained that it was "the story of struggle and standing up for what you believe in. No matter how many barriers you gotta break down, no matter how many escape routes you gotta run to tell the truth. That's what I think we all can relate to." You can see the KEXP review of this 2015 release from Kendrick Lamar here: www.kexp.org

Describing the track, Lamar explained that it was "the story of struggle and standing up for what you believe in. No matter how many barriers you gotta break down, no matter how many escape routes you gotta run to tell the truth. That's what I think we all can relate to." You can see the KEXP review of this 2015 release from Kendrick Lamar here: www.kexp.org

Watch the official music video: youtu.be - and revisit KEXP's review of the album: www.kexp.org

Read KEXP's review of this album here: www.kexp.org Watch the official music video: youtu.be

Read KEXP's review of this album here: www.kexp.org Watch the official music video: youtu.be

Describing the track, Lamar explained that it was "the story of struggle and standing up for what you believe in. No matter how many barriers you gotta break down, no matter how many escape routes you gotta run to tell the truth. That's what I think we all can relate to." You can see the KEXP review of this 2015 release from Kendrick Lamar here: www.kexp.org

You can see the KEXP review of this 2015 release from Kendrick Lamar here: www.kexp.org kexp.org

Describing the track, Lamar explained that it was "the story of struggle and standing up for what you believe in. No matter how many barriers you gotta break down, no matter how many escape routes you gotta run to tell the truth. That's what I think we all can relate to." Here are the lyrics: www.lyricsbox.com

Describing the track, Lamar explained that it was "the story of struggle and standing up for what you believe in. No matter how many barriers you gotta break down, no matter how many escape routes you gotta run to tell the truth. That's what I think we all can relate to." Here are the lyrics: www.lyricsbox.com

You can see our review of this 2015 release from Kendrick Lamar here: www.kexp.org

Listener Geoff writes us this morning: "Streaming from beautiful Louisville, KY today. I love your station and visited the café when I was in Seattle last year. I would hang out there all day if we had a spot like that. I was wondering if you would play either Kendrick Lamar – King Kunta or something off of the new Yves Tumor."

Happy 33rd birthday to Kendrick Lamar, born on this day in 1987!

Take a trip through time and read KEXP's album review of Kendrick Lamar's masterpiece To Pimp A Butterfly: www.kexp.org

Take a trip through time and read KEXP's album review of Kendrick Lamar's masterpiece To Pimp A Butterfly: www.kexp.org

Now I run the game, got the whole world talkin'

Number 55. This 2015 release was the third by rapper Kendrick Lamar. "To Pimp A Butterfly sounded unlike anything Lamar had done before: a genre-busting jubilee in honour of the funkiest, freshest and most out-there elements of African-American music. He assembled a crack band of the most exciting jazz musicians of the day, installing saxophone colossus Kamasi Washington as musical director.": www.udiscovermusic.com

"King Kunta" is a reference to the archetypal rebellious slave Kunta Kinte, the basis of the main character from the Alex Haley novel, Roots: The Saga of an American Family. The song also contains references to Chinua Achebe's novel Things Fall Apart.

Title references Kunta Kinte, a character from "Roots: The Saga of an American Family" by Alex Haley, story of a Gambian man that was enslaved and brought to America.

At First He made a name for himself as K. Dot. At the age of 16 in 2003, he issued his debut mixtape, The Hub City Threat: Minor of the Year.

revisit the legendary music video: www.youtube.com

but he ain't stressed

"King Kunta" is a reference to the archetypal rebellious slave Kunta Kinte, the basis of the main character from the Alex Haley novel, Roots: The Saga of an American Family. The song also contains references to Chinua Achebe's novel Things Fall Apart. The song contains an interpolation of "Get Nekkid" (2000), written by Johnny Burns (a.k.a. Mausberg), performed by Mausberg, and produced by DJ Quik; resung lyrics from "Smooth Criminal" (1987), written and performed by Michael Jackson; elements of the 1974 James Brown song "The Payback", written by Brown, Fred Wesley, and John Starks; and a sample from the 1994 song "We Want the Funk", written and performed by Ahmad Lewis. Background vocals are provided by Whitney Alford. bit.ly

Kendrick Lamar will be at the Tacoma Dome on Tues. Aug. 1st! Tickets still available on www.kendricklamar.com.