Kendrick m.A.A.dness: Elite 8
Welcome back to Kendrick m.A.A.dness, where Micah and Daniel attempt to tackle the behemoth that is 32 Kendrick Lamar tracks, in head-to-head fashion. We've come to the Elite 8, wherein we have to painfully choose 4 more classic songs to eliminate in order to reach a .... (drumroll).... Final Four!
Just a reminder that yes, Daniel did accidentally delete our initial post explaining the songs in and seeds of the bracket. And did so in a way the entire post is non-recoverable. Here’s a SparkNotes version:
The two of us, along with Housemate Clint, populated the bracket
36 songs made the bracket, with the last 8 ‘at-large’ songs in the play-in games
The top seeds were the top-selling single from each of the respective solo studio albums
Seeding was based on commercial performance, though there was a 2-per-album limit on each seed line, so as to avoid DAMN. and Black Panther getting ALL of the top seeds
Also, if you've missed all the previous installments, here's our analysis of the play-in matchups, the First Round, and the Sweet 16.
And with all the appropriate disclaimers out of the way, here we go!
MICAH
(2) ‘DNA.’ over (1) ‘HiiiPoWeR’
This is a perfect example of practice makes perfect. Both are songs are celebrations of blackness, assertions of royal heritage and a call for reclamation of it, and shots fired at unnamed (assumed hip-hop) assailants. I’m happy the bracket worked itself out like this (for this matchup at least) because it pits Lamar’s first single off his debut album against the best song off his most recent and most highly acclaimed album. It’s really fun to listen to both back-to-back and hear the similarities and differences between two highlight tracks made five years apart.
Unfortunately for ‘HiiiPoWeR’, ‘DNA.’ improved on everything the former might have lacked without sacrificing anything it did well. To be fair, Kendrick laid the framework for 'DNA.' with songs like ‘HiiiPoWeR’. But ‘DNA.’ is the accumulation of years of retooling, reworking, redefining a genre. It’s simply a better song than ‘HiiPoWeR’, nostalgia and origins be damned (get it?).
(5) ‘The Blacker The Berry’ over (2) ‘LOVE.
This region, in my eyes, is the weakest of the four (though that’s a misleading statement because it was still incredibly difficult). I just mention that because I didn’t imagine ‘Blacker’ being in my Final Four. Now that it’s there, I’m not mad about it.
‘LOVE.’ is an incredible feel-good love song. The production is top-notch, the vocals are perfection, and the feels are very real. It’s probably one of the easiest-listen songs in Kendrick’s discography. Now, that’s not a bad thing. I -- presumably more than my partner-in-crime Daniel -- am always one to fall for the song with the vibes. They are my kryptonite.
But the anger, the vigor, the pure putrid hatred with which Kendrick launches into his first verse and carries through three verses is more shocking (and as a white dude, sobering) than any song I’ve ever heard. While not perhaps his most beautiful, nor best-produced, nor lyrically-deft, it is Kendrick at his most passionate. And that deserves a spot in the Final Four.
DANIEL
(5) ‘m.A.A.d City’ over (2) ‘The Heart Part IV’
I wanted to be sure to give ‘The Heart Part IV’ the shoutout it deserves. As Micah said yesterday, “The number of easter eggs packed into the verses are mind-boggling.” Agreed, sir. ‘Part IV’ functioned perfectly as a promo track for DAMN., announcing a king’s return and firing shots at anyone who dared to belittle the throne. What’s more, it withstands the test of time, as a standalone song, with its not one, not two, not three, but FOUR (IV) ((!)) beat switches, and insane closing set of lyrics. All this to say: there’s a reason this oft-forgotten track has come so far in both Micah and my brackets.
BUT, as I remarked yesterday, the more I listen to ‘m.A.A.d city’, the more I love it even more than I already had. It’s vintage Kendrick, with lyrics that break your heart and kick ass in equal proportions. I dare any fan of his to listen to this track and not get goosebumps from the opening 10 seconds.
(8) ‘Sing About Me, I’m Dying Of Thirst’ over (7) ‘Money Trees’
Cinderella keeps dancing! ‘Sing About Me’, the Loyola-Chicago of the Kendrick bracket, reaches the Final 4. And what’s most remarkable about this tremendous song’s run is that it’s had to beat some GOOD songs to get there; that was no different in this round. ‘Money Trees’ is, quite possibly, the most underrated track in Kendrick’s whole discography. All fans know its greatness, of course, but it was never released as a single, and didn’t receive the radio play many other Good Kid, m.A.A.d city songs did. It probably should have-- such a good, simple beat, such a catchy refrain to complement visual lyricism, and Jay Rock offers one of the best guest verses on any Kendrick song, ever.
Yes, all this is true, and it still wasn’t enough to topple the 8-seed. It’s a testament to the power and quality of ‘Sing About Me.’ I’ve said so much there is to say about that one, and I’ll have even more to say it…in a later blog.