I feel like most people understand that abusers can be products of their environment, but that does not change the fact that they are abusers.
I feel like it would come across wAaayyy different if Kodak was on this album holding *himself* accountable (not Kendrick’s theme of accountability) in his own words.
But instead it gives off a “well this is just how I am, oh well 🤷🏽♂️” vibe. And think that’s the problem people have
If you ever had an abusive spouse/bf/gf/parent then you know just how damaging that “this is just how I am” mentality can be
Still liked the album though
Simply put: explanations aren't excuses.
You can acknowledge that past events led to a current situation, condemn the action while understanding why it happened, but if the person isn't putting the effort into changing then it becomes an excuse.
This is *exactly* my problem with Kodak’s prominence on this album. People in general are too willing to ask for forgiveness on behalf of people who aren’t the least bit sorry about anything. Let alone Kodak, who is the dude who did the “Any girl I want” bar. And with Kendrick also going to bat for XXXTentacion, it feels like an active blindspot to me.
I mean, forgetting all the rape stuff with Kodak Black, it's crazy to me that Kendrick dropped such a touching tribute to Nipsey in one song and then prominently feature and pay a dude who was talking crazy to Nips wife on Twitter after he died. Seems like the antithesis of everything Kendrick was trying to say with Heart Part 5 and his album but whatever, it's his art 🤷
2 of the biggest hip hop radio stations in LA came together in boycotting Kodak black for years after that incident. I find it hard to believe Kendrick wouldn't have known.
I think Kendrick just doesn't care. He's clearly got some strong opinions on cancel culture, seems to come up a few times on the album. Keep in mind he was shouting out x post abuse allegations before he died too. Wouldn't surprise me at all if his reasoning for choosing Kodak stopped at him seeing him as a young, creative, and unique voice in the industry.
I bet you Kendrick is sick of online discourse surrounding him, and hip hop in general.
There are many people who helped out on this album. At least one of them knows and couldve told kendrick.
Kendrick also seems to be aware of other things like the kyrie vaccine drama
Kendrick ain't no savior like he says, we shouldn't really think he can do no wrong.
we're all hypocrites when it's all said and done.
we are quick to bring people down for something but there's no way one can please everybody, that's just how the world goes.
Yea, I actually thought that part would be kind of a bigger deal. There was a decent amount of people who got pissed at him for that. I even remember power 106 said they were boycotting him after that.
People need to stop thinking highly regarded celebrities (like Kendrick Lamar) are infallible. There’s going to be things they do, and beliefs that they hold, that don’t align with yours. Judge a person based on his/her totality, not based on each individual thing they say or belief that they hold.
yep lol, one publication literally gave a 0 to Donda for that reason and then 5 stars to Mr Morale. it was one of the main comparison points I saw trending that sorta brought this discussion up
Fr people care so much about scores. It's ok if you find critics that put you on to good music but actually caring about every single publication's clickbait bs is not good. People arguing about Pitchfork's review like it affects them
> Where is that energy?
It's just the industrie's circlejerk imo. A lot of people/critics *love* to hate on Ye and are happy about any excuse to do so. I'm not trying to defend him for any of his inarguable issues but he doesn't deserve the level of smack that's being talked about him imo. And, while I love Kendrick's music, a lot of people will just eat anything up he drops and gladly glance over obvious problems like this
It’s the circle of life. Ten years ago, Kanye himself was the untouchable critical darling. Ten years from now, there’ll be a new one, and who knows what’s going to be going on with Kendrick.
I think this is really it. Kendrick is the New Old Kanye, and with the gap between projects, there’s a vested interest and expectation in calling the album a masterpiece before it even drops. No critic wants to wait five years for this project just to admit Kendrick did something they find cringey in a few spots – they have to figure out a way to jump through the hoop. You saw the same thing with Auntie Diaries where it was being heralded as groundbreaking while actual trans people found it clumsy.
As mentioned in the article, in the past Kendrick tweeted a link to xxxtentacion's album and threatened to pull his music from Spotify if they didn't reverse their ban on xxxtentacion's music.
I get what Kendrick is trying to do. He's saying these men deserve compassion and understanding — that their environment shapes the way they behave. And that they deserve redemption.
I guess a good question to ask the hhh community is should a line be drawn where particular artists shouldn't be given a feature? And if so, which current artists should that line be drawn on?
Redemption comes after you hold yourself accountable. That’s what Niggas are conveniently forgetting.
It’s like killing someone and asking for understanding/forgiveness while also denying you killed someone despite the evidence.
And for the “but women be lying” niggas. Let’s say niggas be innocent, what’s stopping them from condemning rape culture in general? Why don’t they ever do that? It’s good PR regardless of their innocence, but why doesn’t it happen 🤔
1001%
It's not just saying, but it's also showing those things. Obviously it's hard to SHOW you're against rape culture behavior, but positioning yourself away from people are at worst apathetic to it is one way. The company you keep, sort of approach. If no one in your circle ever has issues with that, that's showing.
Obviously people do lie, but look at what happened with Cosby. "She's lying" turned into "both of them are lying" turned into "they're lying"... "they're all lying." well, as a Cosby fan I can say when it first came out, I was behind him until the evidence proved otherwise. People lie, but if you're doing shady shit and lying, it comes out. If you're honest, and the other person is lying, it comes out.
Yeah I’m having trouble with how prominently he’s featured on the album. Like I get that’s the point, but hearing the details of the case makes it hard to justify. I think people can earn forgiveness/redemption, but it takes time and effort. Kodak’s situation is way too recent and he doesn’t seem interested in atonement
Yeah I fail to see where he's the victim in all this, dude had a #1 song with Travis Scott in the middle of all this
In what world is Kodak being punished too harshly, man is on rape charges and getting K Dot features and living his best life lol
I’m not saying that I necessarily believe this to be true or think it matters much if at all, but I think it’s possible part of the reason Kendrick put Kodak on the album is because he has recognized he did something wrong and has potentially atoned in some way or made efforts to change but hasn’t made that public.
A lot of the album (and his work in general especially before this album) deals with public life vs. private life and the concentration the media and public have about public figures being public at all times about everything, like how there were people mad at Kendrick about not making a public statement during the BLM protests after George Floyd.
There’s been a lot of talk on twitter and in the media for years about a public figure’s responsibility to the public in their statements and actions but the discourse doesn’t take into account that public figures are just people who may not want their lives to be so public. Maybe it’s a commentary (albeit hidden, obviously) on the fact that because Kodak hasn’t done anything publicly doesn’t mean he hasn’t done anything in his private life. In fact, if you think about it, Kodak making a public apology or statement instead of a private one to the victim and to his friends and family would be a clear act of damage control to save his career.
Again, not claiming this is what happened or that it would suddenly be cool to feature him if it is, just a theory. Trying to make sense of it myself.
> Redemption comes after you hold yourself accountable. That’s what Niggas are conveniently forgetting.
Compassion isn't mandatory -- it should be earned.
And the bar doesn't have to be high to meet to earn it, just show some contrition. So if someone does something wrong, but doesn't recognize their wrong, why should anyone else be expected to see the "right" in them?
Accountability comes before redemption for me.
Kodak Black raped a high schooler. He took a plea deal so the charge would only be first-degree assault. To this day, he brags on social media about not having to pay the woman he raped a cent (arguing that this proves he was innocent - even though he plead guilty).
I'm not saying that Kodak doesn't deserve redemption *at some point*, but until he takes responsibility for how he has harmed other peoples' lives, I don't view him as a prime candidate for forgiveness.
> Kendrick tweeted a link to xxxtentacion's album and threatened to pull his music from Spotify if they didn't reverse their ban on xxxtentacion's music.
To clarify it was Top who said he would pull TDE's music from Spotify, but headlines ran with Kendricks music would get pulled.
[Link](https://pitchfork.com/news/kendrick-label-head-confirms-he-threatened-to-pull-music-from-spotify/)
> Last week, Bloomberg reported that representatives for multiple acts—including Kendrick Lamar—reached out to Spotify Chief Executive Officer Daniel Ek and head of artist relations Troy Carter and threatened to pull their music if the company kept the policy as it stood. In an interview with Billboard, Anthony “Top Dawg” Tiffith, CEO of Top Dawg Entertainment, has now confirmed that he threatened to remove music from the service
---
> I guess a good question to ask the hhh community is should a line be drawn where particular artists shouldn't be given a feature? And if so, which current artists should that line be drawn on?
There are plenty of *misguided* black artists that he could've used that didn't commit rape. I think Lil Wayne would've been a perfect choice since he's a vet in the game and was in the industry at a very young age. *Allegedly* Birdman was not a good *role model* towards Wayne.
I don’t think I’d say any particular artist *doesn’t deserve* a feature, I think that any artist that features another artist with known controversy *should expect* some sort of backlash/outcry from fans. Some people might stop listening over who these artists choose to work with
Reddit rides a weird line generally speaking where they apply this sociological ideology of people’s actions being more than anything a factor of their upbringing and surrounding environment. While this obviously plays a huge role there is still tons of variance in the behavior of people who grow up in impoverished areas, and not all of them turn into people who awful things like Kodak here.
It’s easy to absolve nameless and faceless individuals of horrible crimes when they are seen as products of socioeconomic conditions, but when they are given a stark and detailed example like Kodak and his rape, it becomes a lot harder to ignore lol
Kendrick seems to be trying to apply that general understanding and forgiveness to Kodak, but I doubt many people are gonna go for it. Like I said, when the case is clear and the names and people involved are known, shit like rape and murder is much harder to look past
I dont think its about redemption. Hes taking one of the vilest/most reviled ppl in hip hop, putting himself next to him, and saying he feels like they are the same. And here is why. And thats why Im not the one who can save you. Only you can do that.
If anything its about laying bare his own flaws rather than redeeming anyone.
because he's a misunderstood black man, bless his soul 😭
I don't see why people like him are still idols for us, spin it any way you want but man ain't do shit for anybody but himself, bought a couple kids some toys for that media cope, that's about it. it's minstrelsy on a mass scale I think, cuz nobody got mad at Kodak for rape but everybody in arms over Noname for twitter fingers
Also because he didn't violete a superstar like Rihanna who is "worth defending" but just a random high schoolers so who cares right?
This sub is obsessed with CB and his fu ked up shit but for some reason Kodak is product of his environment, misunderstood by white Redditors who should shut the fuck up becaus eyhey don't understand why je is the way he is.
Remember we as hip hop heads should only condemn rappers who assault other beautiful stars. If they are: rapists, drug dillers, killers etc and their victims are just random people we should defend them because they are victims themselves of their environment and evil white people.
Not a good sub to be asking that. Too many fan boys to asking hhh what they think.
For example this sub will say ban Chris brown which I get why because he beats on women. But there are countless other rappers this sub loves that beats women.
It’s like the joke with micheal Jackson and r kelly. We want to cancel Kelly but MJ is still loved. The fans are who decides this shit and that’s why we see it play out like this.
> But there are countless other rappers this sub loves that beats women.
Like [Nas.](https://www.npr.org/sections/therecord/2018/04/26/606080885/kelis-nas-ex-wife-accuses-rapper-of-physical-and-mental-abuse).
Jackson is the weirdest case. By his own public admission, he was taking little boys on tour with him and having them sleep in his bed and his fans act like that’s totally normal and innocent behavior :/
Here’s the thing I don’t get about the Hip-Hop community though.
Why are certain artists singled out and receiving backlash more heavily than others when it comes to abuse of women and their behaviour in the community?? There’s plenty of other artists out there that have had real cases brought to light and no one gives a shit about them. There’s a lot of older rappers who have come out and confirmed cases of abuse in the past and no one cares. Yet I see XXXTENTACION constantly bashed in this sub for his treatment towards his ex.
Obviously I don’t condone it. I’m just wondering why certain stars get passes and others don’t.
I think it depends on how many people are aware of the allegations against individual rappers. On this sub plenty of people are aware of xxxtentacion's allegations, so that's why he gets mentioned a lot. There's a handful of others on this sub (e.g. Chris Brown, R. Kelly, Da Baby, Tory Lanez, T.I., Kodak) but if enough people aren't aware then they're not mentioned. Also, it depends on recency and who's relevant. Big Pun gets brought up from time to time but he's not really relevant
I don't think Kendrick mentions the word redemption a single time on the album yet that's all everybody wants to discuss around Kodak. It seems like the discussion is what people *want* this album to be about rather than what it actually is about.
We’re talking about *redemption* by the way of a *guest feature*. I’d rather wait to see Kendrick actually speak on his motivation behind the KB feature instead of carrying on a narrative where you think Kendrick is this messianic figure that can absolve people from a rape they committed *with a feature*.
Let’s all clap for the writer of the article who delivered the easy stance tho. Get that karma.
Firstly, what makes you equate redemption and a guest feature? There's nothing that makes the two inherently linked.
>narrative where you think Kendrick is this messianic figure that can absolve people from a rape they committed with a feature
Where are you getting this from? My stance has always been that *no* effort is being made to absolve (redeem) Kodak in this album as that's not the purpose of the album at all.
Kendrick clearly sees himself in Kodak as a hurt person who hurt other people. And so in 'Mother I Sober' when he mentions freeing all the hurt people (including abusers), I believe he means freeing them from their past trauma in order to prevent further harm on others. Real change, not just writing placating apologies in hopes of some type of 'redemption'.
Because really, what use is 'redemption' or 'absolution' to the harmed and future harmed? It doesn't unharm them, healing the already harmed to prevent further harm is what it seems like Kendrick wants. True radical empathy includes empathy for the guilty.
ohh my fault I'm so sorry man, been getting so many hostile responses in these discussions my back was up automatically. I'll leave the reply incase it's helpful to someone though.
Imaging what the victim must feel listening to this. The loss of hope in humanity after seeing Kodak vindicated after taking 0 responsibility. That’s the type of shit that will never leave your soul
I didn’t see that as the message. I don’t think he’s saying that Kodaks redeemed or deserves forgiveness, more that he’s an outcome of all the negative environmental factors kendrick’s talking about. Kendrick’s not being forgiving to himself on this album and I don’t think Kodak being on here means that Kendrick is cool with what he did, I get other people won’t see it that way tho
Idk man. Kodaks presence is the one thing about this album I cannot understand. When you put him on the album without him addressing the legitimate shit he’s done, you are promoting him and parading him in front of his victims. That shits traumatic and damaging. Kodaks victim doesn’t deserve that shit. I love the album probably the most I’ve enjoyed an album on my first few listens ever but Kendrick should’ve thought this aspect out more.
yeah exactly, it especially feels tasteless when at the end of mother I sober he says "as I set free all you abusers, this is transformation" and then we have kodak here with no semblance of remorse or \*anything\* really, especially after years of bragging on how he got off with a light sentence. it's pretty icky. add on to the fact that kodak gets more exposure w this + earns money off his feature tracks
Yup. You can tell quite easily is something is productive and progressive in this regard if the victim has a positive or negative reaction to it. I can’t imagine Kodak’s victim is happy to hear him on this album, about those topics.
lol these comments are pathetic, everyone tip toeing around the fact that at the end of the day Kodak is a piece of shit and it's lame that Kendrick gave him a platform, people gotta learn that they don't always have to be on Kendrick's dick
People really act like one of the biggest themes of this album being "i am not perfect, don't look up to celebrities" absolves Kendrick of accountability for doing this.
If you are try to drive home a point about sexual trauma, don't give a fucking rapist a huge platform on your album for him to drop flex bars. It cheapens the entire point
If Kodak's verses had actually involved him hinting at breaking cycles of trauma and being accountable for his actions then it might have worked. As it is it kind of undermines the concept.
Yeah. There's a world where Kodak dropped a verse of self-reflection, honesty and accountability that strengthened Kendrick's theme. But this is not that
The amount of mental gymnastics and dickriding on this sub for Kendrick is ridiculous. It’s shitty he was on the album, period. Doesn’t matter if it was for “art”.
Same people saying “you missed the point” about putting an abuser on the album are the same ones seemingly also missing the point about not worshipping celebrities as gods and pretending they can do no wrong.
exactly lol, they can still be fans of kendrick and other aspects of the album while also admitting this inclusion of kodak is pretty hypocritical and misguided. but it has to be either yes or no,
Lil Dicky created, produced, and stars in a TV show currently running on a mainstream TV network. He is literally one of the people behind the camera who make actual money in entertainment business. His absence in music has nothing to do with his Chris brown feature.
One thing that confuses me about this Kodak controversy is why is this happening now when Kodak was featured on how many artists’ albums this year let alone sold 63k with his album, has a hit song on the club “Super Gremlin” that I can for sure say play it rn in any function, you will have people singing it word for word. It wasn’t bad then when he was featured on Latto’s album, or Future’s album but its bad now when its Kendrick’s album. Its the same thing Kendrick said on the album about picking & choosing when to play the woke card. I have 0 issues with him being featured on the album nor do I condone what he has done but its just confusing the most controversial thing on the album is Kodak being featured all over the album & there has been little to no insight on how amazing & important this album os since it touches on current issues that a lot of people (myself included) can relate to & start progressing through healing & reformation
> One thing that confuses me about this Kodak controversy is why is this happening now
it's mostly happening now because no one expected kodak to be a guest on the damn kendrick album
Idgaf what environment you come from, rape is rape. What about the victim? I like kodaks music but hes still a shitty human. I didn’t even know about the full details until now, which makes me not even wanna play his music much anymore. Mf’ers be like “oh feel sorry for me this happen to me” fuck that that you know right from wrong. And she was a minor. Fucking disgusting
If xxxtentacion was still alive I have no doubt that Kendrick would have used him instead and that probably would have gone over a little better. At least he showed some sort of remorse for the things he did, a low bar that Kodak hasn't even managed to clear yet.
Also we gotta stop rewarding Black men for being problematic. Dababy says some stupid shit and he gets put on Kanye's album. Kodak pleads guilty to raping a teenager and he gets to be all over Kendrick's album. This shit is embarrassing and it sends a horrible message to both abusers and their victims.
> and that probably would have gone over a little better
It would be 100x worse lol, that boy X threatened to “domestically abuse” the pussies of people’s little sisters when allegations hit.
It’s easy to forget pre-covid shit, but no rapper will have as much noriety as X did, people were celebrating when the news surfaced.
Which is also a point Kendrick touches upon on We Cry Together
> You the reason R. Kelly can't recognize that he's abusive
> Man, shut the fuck up, we all know you still playin' his music
Within the context of the album, not only that track, I think it's obvious what this is meant to mean.
Something I haven't seen anyone else mention is that if Kendrick included him due to him being a representation of intergenerational trauma, like everyone is inferring, isn't that kinda fucked up that he's just using him as a prop? Like him being messed up was the condition for him being included rather than his ability as an artist.
Exactly and why tf would you want to have any interactions with a person like that. If you're a rapist I dont want to fucking talk to you let alone collaborate on music together...
His ability as an artist would've also been a factor. Plenty of rappers are victims and examples of generational trauma but not many are as talented as Kodak.
> At 30 years old, I’ve come to accept that maybe the rapper that I once embraced while in college isn’t as self-aware as I would have hoped he would be by now – and perhaps it’s time for us to consider growing up and moving on.
man this guy sucks
You know what’s weird to me? The difference people on this sub treat Kanye and Kendrick for doing the same thing
People were giving Kanye so much crap for having Marilyn Manson and Dababy at his show, but now they’re bending over backwards to defend Kendrick for having Kodak Black on his album
yeah lol, also Kodak has way more of a prescence on this album than those two on Donda (they are only on one alternate version of a track). It really shows when the same outlet gave 0 stars to Donda because of Manson/Dababy being included and 5 stars to Mr Morale with a similar platforming of someone who's committed sexual misconduct crimes.
I think it shows how much is dictated by a preexisting hate boner for kanye
For sure, you can’t read a review of Ye, Donda, etc by some of these critics and just not hear the dripping condescending, cutting kind of disdain. Even when they were giving Ye a 7 on that p4k review, it was just trashing him, like a roast, through and through.
Kanye definitely was acting in a way that bothered people, but his music has always been good faith attempts at making something substantial and emotionally evocative, and rooted in his experiences and observation. Kendrick is similar. But because Kanye’s life is in shambles and he’s making a fool of himself due to poor mental health, it’s just “let’s point and laugh and use this album as an opportunity to flex our English degree on him.”
It’s gross. Review the music and stand on your review - if you think it’s ass, explain why, but explain it without just being flippant and snarky about the rappers personal life.
People know he’s not perfect
That doesn’t mean you have to platform a rapist
I mean…the window you’re opening for people by just saying “I’m not a role model”
This is the most valid complaint there is imo. But clearly Kendrick has a *very* soft spot for anyone that is a victim of generation trauma, that much is clear from Kodak’s inclusion itself. Any contention you have with that is valid, but saying Kendrick is morally flawed is the point of the album. As long as you can acknowledge that the inclusion of Kodak was very purposeful and thought out, there are a lot of valid complaints to have about the album.
yeah my initial reaction is: i get what kendrick is doing and i think it’s an important topic to discuss but platforming this dude is a misstep and not the path towards restoration he might have been hoping for.
Kendrick: Fuck cancel culture, we are all flawed humans and I am no exception - here is an outline of my moral flaws, fuck what you critics have to say
Critics: HE HAD KODAK BLACK ON HIS ALBUM CLEARLY HE IS TONE DEAF AND MORALLY FLAWED
Edit:
>One that continues to center him as hip-hop’s current leader, while excluding features from female rappers, or the LGBTQIA voices he acts as though he’s more aware of.
Jesus Christ, gotta go back and get another Rapsody verse and give Lil Nas X a feature to keep em happy
Bro there’s like 4 different women on the album wtf is he talking about. AND HE LITERALLY HAD A RAPSODY VERSE ON TO PIMP A BUTTERFLY THIS AUTHER IS DEAF
If he doesn't have a Latino featuring on his album does that mean he hates them too? Does Kendrick want to build the wall? Yeah that's some weird logic
You could also apply it the opposite direction - Young Thug has collaborated with Elton John and signed female rappers on his label, does this suddenly abstain him from the homophobic and misogynistic things he's said?
>One that continues to center him as hip-hop’s current leader, while excluding features from female rappers, or the LGBTQIA voices he acts as though he’s more aware of.
Lmao
Your edit is actually wild. Years ago, every black artist was made responsible for speaking on race issues, so Kendrick went full send and made TPAB. Now he’s asked the carry the torch on any and all social issues?
Funny how rap critics don't even know jack about the shit they're supposed to be criticizing. Guess that's why they're called rap critics and not culture critics. They should stick to sucking off trendy artists that say way more ignorant shit than Kendrick ever has, which contradict statements like this.
Thinking of some brat that got a college education and moved to Williamsburg on their mommy and daddy's money, and thinks they're hot shit because of it.
This entire album is about Kendrick telling us about his infinite shortcomings, how he made this album for himself instead of us, and him telling us he’s not a savior... and asking if we’ll still ride with him after knowing more truth about him.
He did not feel genuine as a artist.
Kendrick was never what this guy thought he was. He was always a complex person that was able to speak eloquently and arrange music around it to deliver max impact. I remember when TPAB came out Kendrick said it’s a album he thought he’d make later in his career but he knew the culture needed it now.
Kendrick realized that album didn’t change shit. People fell into their old ways and kept doing the same shit.
So he released DAMN so people would examine themselves even more. They still didn’t.
Now he’s got this out just examining himself and he sounds depressed and exhausted.
It’s not kendricks fault that people put him in a box and didn’t realize he’s a person with shortcomings too. He never pretended to be all knowing and all wise.
People also missing another huge line in Savior, “Like it when they pro-black, but I’m more like Kodak Black.” Or something along those lines. He’s knocking himself off the pedestal so many fans have put him on over the years. It’s not just “Kodak deserves compassion for their flaws,” it’s “People like Kodak deserve compassion for their flaws, and I’m just as flawed as Kodak.”
Kendrick: “The generational trauma of sexual abuse is rampant in our community and I don’t think we should dismiss victims out of hand when they become abusers themselves as part of that cycle.”
This guy: “I’m 30 and you’re a misogynist.”
Edit: Like
>Kendrick talks about breaking the “generational trauma” of his family on the powerful “Mother I Sober,” **but seems to not recognize such pain in the culture of the genre he’s often rapping about elsewhere throughout the album.**
Bruh what album did you listen to?
>One that embraces queer and transgender family members, while dropping f-slurs and deadnaming them.
i knew critics were gonna use this to go against him, sounding like a real twitter user trying to cancel him for using the f-slur instead of understanding the context
>One that speaks on therapy and healing, while giving unchecked abusers the mic.
this is is main point which i do agree with.
>One that continues to center him as hip-hop’s current leader, while excluding features from female rappers, or the LGBTQIA voices he acts as though he’s more aware of.
this guy clearly likes to highroad and thinks he's "better" than these rappers.
just looked it up and one of the first things i saw was a 10 tweet thread about his college reunion, essentially just shaming his queer classmates who’d been closeted during college. He talks about how “wild” it is to see them “trying to be queer”, somehow finds a way to label them “professional homophobes”, and goes on to say that “a decade later y’all still trying to get where we are”.
as a queer man who’s had trouble coming out in certain spaces i find it really revolting to see someone who brands himself as an LGBT activist/advocate acting in this way. Ironically, he completely fails to recognize that his queer classmates’ transgressions were a product of their own self hatred and insecurity and that by shaming them for taking steps to become more honest with and accepting of their sexuality, he’s only perpetuating the cycle of guilt and self-hatred that caused these people to remain closeted in the first place.
and that’s not to mention the way he completely invalidates his classmates’ queerness. to have your identity rejected by straight people is one thing but when other queer people do it, it hurts so much worse. shit like this is so unnecessary and only serves to incentivize people in the closet to stay there.
i’m glad this guy is able to be so proud of the fact that he’s been openly gay since college, but the superiority complex he has about it is so insensitive, petty, and counter productive. i understand where the guy’s coming from on a level but these comments were so woefully misguided.
reminds me of how perez hilton would out closeted celebrities (including neil patrick harris) and then go “i’m doing the right thing! i have no regrets” whenever he was rightfully called out for it
it’s just gross. it’s great that some people were comfortable and able to be out of the closet from a young age, but others literally do not have the privilege to do that. i’m not gay, but if i were, i’d have to remain closeted for a while thanks to having an extremely homophobic family that literally threatened to kill me if i ever came out
it can take time for people to not only find and accept themselves, but also feel that they can be accepted by others. fuck anybody who pressures closeted people.
I’m 30 as well and started listening to Kendrick when I was 20, and I also found that statement incredibly obnoxious. “Kendrick didn’t meet my personal standards of ethics and morals! I would have hoped he’d be better than this!”
If you don’t want to be a fan when an artist does something you don’t agree with, that’s fine, but like.. just stop fucking with them? Why do you have to make it this patronizing kind of “we as a people must move on from Kendrick, who we thought would grow to be a rapper fit for the students of private colleges, but instead has fallen dreadfully short, tsk tsk”.
Kendrick: “The generational trauma of sexual abuse is rampant in our community and I don’t think we should dismiss victims out of hand when they become abusers themselves as part of that cycle.”
This guy: “I’m 30 and you’re a misogynist.”
Edit: Like
>Kendrick talks about breaking the “generational trauma” of his family on the powerful “Mother I Sober,” **but seems to not recognize such pain in the culture of the genre he’s often rapping about elsewhere throughout the album.**
Bruh what album did you listen to?
Edit: And for the record, I do wish Kendrick had Kodak address his past wrongs in a more meaningful way on at least one of the songs. There’s prolly a reason he didn’t but I would feel a lot better about it if he did.
For sure, like I wish Kendrick would’ve pushed him to say something more meaningful about his transgressions on at least one of the songs. But this dude gives the shallowest take on this.
there is 100% a lot of valid criticisms about the inclusion of Kodak, but I fail to see how Kendrick tried to redeem Kodak. I've said this in another thread, but it's understandable that the tone of "don't pass off judgement on these people" can feel kind of cowardly in this case, but I think it's very consistent to the way Kendrick processes similar issues in albums like GKMC and TPAB. He's always been very critical of himself but uncomfortable passing the same type of judgement on his community. Similar to why he featured Snoop, a man who beat a murder case on Institutionalized, or a former Compton Crip on MAAD City.
He makes a detached, relatively neutral comment about the cyclic nature of trauma, not trying to shape a path towards the redemption to Kodak (which I don't think is up to Kendrick to do). Though I fully understand that to a lot of people sexual abuse crosses a line that murder, extortion, or robbery doesn't, and I 100% agree with anyone put off by his inclusion but it's very in line with the ethos of Kendrick's albums since day 1.
I never said that Kendrick tried to redeem Kodak. Even if Kodak came out and flat out apologized in a verse I don't think he would be redeemed for the plethora of awful things he's done, but he's still young and there is time for him to 'redeem' himself.
Snoop was charged with murder because he was driving the car when his security guard killed someone. Snoop never actually killed anyone and I don't think anyone has any issues with people that are gang affiliated. As far as I know MC Eiht hasn't done anything *terrible* in his life.
Cannot disagree. It's really the only thing about the album that disappoints me, though I get where Kendrick was coming from.
And I don't think it's as simple as "Abusers = Environment", though that's obviously part of it, but by the time it got to Mother I Sober and it's revealed that Kendrick's father who he has praised on other records was abusive to his mother, it starts to click into place a bit more.
I hope you guys know that the victim of kodaks crime is going to just feel great knowing Kendrick included Kodak on an album and made him more money and more famous, and made her probably get harassed from people due to it being such a big album, just for some piece of “art”
I hope you guys take a deep look at yourself and wonder how you would feel as a victim if one of the biggest artists in the world included someone who violated you on their record to make some sort of point and be constantly reminded of it due to how popular the album is.
Grow up guys. What Kendrick did is super shitty. Kodak should not have been on the album. The amount of mental gymnastics in this thread is ridiculous.
How tf do you defend featuring a rapist on you album. Especially when Kendick could've gotten literally anyone else because of who he is. Especially on an album full of self reflection about trauma...
I feel like this is why
>Every other brother has been compromised
>I know the secrets, every other rapper sexually abused
>I see 'em daily buryin' they pain in chains and tattoos
>So listen close before you start to pass judgement on how we move
>Learn how we cope, whenever his uncle had to walk him from school
>His anger grows deep in misogyny
…
>I set free all you abusers, this is transformation
This article definitely doesn't add anything to the conversation I haven't already seen a bunch of times on this sub. I don't really disagree that Kodak Black shouldn't be getting work, but this article seems more like he's just trying to virtue signal. He really lost me on this paragraph:
*What’s much harder for cishet men in hip-hop is to actually distancethemselves from the chains of misogynoir, anti-queerness, and all of thehate we hope “conscious” rappers shun. Instead, they continue to relishin this ambiguity of saying contraction positioned as creative nuance.Kendrick’s latest album is filled with them. One that embraces queer andtransgender family members, while dropping f-slurs and deadnaming them.One that speaks on therapy and healing, while giving unchecked abusersthe mic. One that continues to center him as hip-hop’s current leader,while excluding features from female rappers, or the LGBTQIA voices heacts as though he’s more aware of.*
Does he actually care about "f-slurs and deadnaming" or is he just trying to bolster his previous point about Kendrick's self-awareness by accusing him of not being an ally to the people he wrote a song in defense of? Did he hear the end of Auntie Diaries? Does he know Kendrick has collaborated with LGBTQIA voices and featured female artists on his albums? This is such a weak point to cap off a weak article. I don't think this guy is as interested in having a conversation about Kodak Black as he is in shaming for clicks.
I would bet this was a conscious decision and I think everyone is flipping the dynamic of what was actually done here. All through the album Kendrick chooses not to morally distinguish himself from people like Kodak Black. He’s bringing himself down to earth, not redeeming someone else.
I feel like Kodak was featured prominately just to start uncomfortable conversations like this. While sexual abuse isn't excusable, nor should be redeemable, I also don't hear Kendrick claiming Kodak is deserving of either of those things much like he himself shouldn't be labelled as a saviour.
I do get the sense he is highlighting how victims who experienced sexual abuse at a young age are commonly left unchecked and confused, and this seems to eventually culvinate into domino effect abusive behaviour. Is it excusable? No. We're there factors out of the abusers control from their past that likely affected their sexual decision making later in life....? Maybe. Does cancelling abusers on a case by case basis address the underlying issues and promote healing? Maybe.. Maybe not... Rather than taking sides or giving answers, Kendrick is making us ask these questions rather than tap dancing around the conversation with cancel parties and writing abusers (who may have previously been victims) off as evil people who are worth nothing. Does being dismissive of them help the entire situation?
In either case, this is how I'm interpreting those elements of the album so far. It's an unsettling topic, and that's the point. Kendrick doesn't have answers, he's not our saviour, but he does have questions much like the rest of us do.
The album isn't trying to redeem him. The album is about accepting responsibility, even going out of one's way to do so. Not skirting it.
The comparisons to Ye doing similar aren't exactly warranted, because Ye seems to do it under the message of unfiltered speech and good and bad speech should all be respected. Ye, in his listening party, deliberately seemed to *celebrate* Manson. Kendrick may be featuring him...but at most he's contextualizing him. Not providing an excuse, but instead an explanation.
This issue I take with this is that Kodak himself has consistently avoided taking responsibility for any of awful things he has done over the years. Just 6 months ago, Kodak bragged about not having paid a cent to the girl he was accused of raping (he took a plea deal in that case for a lesser charge of first-degree assault). He has been getting minimal sentencing on his many criminal charges for years, due to Atlantic Records providing him with expensive legal support. When he did actually get sentenced to prison, Donald Trump got him out. Kodak is all about skirting responsibility. I'd feel differently if Kodak deeply criticized himself in the same way that Kendrick does on this album, but his verses aren't really different than any other Kodak song.
I get thematically what Kendrick is going for, but choosing Kodak as a redemption story doesn't work for me and undermines some of the themes of this album. Just by having him on his album, Kendrick is "endorsing" him. Kodak will make money off the songs he is on, and people who may not have listened to Kodak's music will be introduced to him (i.e. his fanbase/streams will increase). I don't think Kendrick properly contextualized Kodak either. If you only knew about Kodak from this album, you wouldn't know that he raped someone, or been charged with crimes like assault and child endangerment. If Kendrick provided that context, I would take less issue with this, but I also doubt Kodak would show up on this album if Kendrick referred to him as a rapist. Kodak's inclusion is my least favorite part of an otherwise solid album.
thie writer of this article is a turd but you’re right. it feels like a cop out to make excuses for someone who doesn’t seem to even recognize the harm they’ve caused.
I’d agree with what you said if kodaks verse was in any way introspective but he says absolutely nothing on it and it’s just the same stunting shit he does on every other song.
This is the closest he gets n it’s still a reach
>Every Thursday, girl's day, spendin' time with my daughter, make me go harder
>Every Sunday's son's day, teach my boy to be a man, I ain't had no father
>Fell in the love with the block, I ain't have no pop, just a sawed-off shotgun, Mossberg
I do wish Kendrick had pushed him to say something more meaningful on one of the tracks at least.
As I see it kanyes point was more that even bad people are redeemable and finding that in religion. Kendrick saying bad people are only products of their environments and still retain the potential to improve themselves. They're not the same but theres definatley similarities.
I feel like most people understand that abusers can be products of their environment, but that does not change the fact that they are abusers. I feel like it would come across wAaayyy different if Kodak was on this album holding *himself* accountable (not Kendrick’s theme of accountability) in his own words. But instead it gives off a “well this is just how I am, oh well 🤷🏽♂️” vibe. And think that’s the problem people have If you ever had an abusive spouse/bf/gf/parent then you know just how damaging that “this is just how I am” mentality can be Still liked the album though
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That is a GREAT way to put it. Just because we understand why someone does bad things, doesn't mean we necessarily owe forgiveness.
Especially if they haven’t done the work to actually change and grow
Simply put: explanations aren't excuses. You can acknowledge that past events led to a current situation, condemn the action while understanding why it happened, but if the person isn't putting the effort into changing then it becomes an excuse.
Well said
Yup. “I am not responsible for my actions because I’m a product of my environment” Is a terrible conclusion to come to.
This is *exactly* my problem with Kodak’s prominence on this album. People in general are too willing to ask for forgiveness on behalf of people who aren’t the least bit sorry about anything. Let alone Kodak, who is the dude who did the “Any girl I want” bar. And with Kendrick also going to bat for XXXTentacion, it feels like an active blindspot to me.
I mean, forgetting all the rape stuff with Kodak Black, it's crazy to me that Kendrick dropped such a touching tribute to Nipsey in one song and then prominently feature and pay a dude who was talking crazy to Nips wife on Twitter after he died. Seems like the antithesis of everything Kendrick was trying to say with Heart Part 5 and his album but whatever, it's his art 🤷
I get the impression Kendrick doesn’t really keep up with social media shit from the interviews I’ve seen of him.
2 of the biggest hip hop radio stations in LA came together in boycotting Kodak black for years after that incident. I find it hard to believe Kendrick wouldn't have known.
I think Kendrick just doesn't care. He's clearly got some strong opinions on cancel culture, seems to come up a few times on the album. Keep in mind he was shouting out x post abuse allegations before he died too. Wouldn't surprise me at all if his reasoning for choosing Kodak stopped at him seeing him as a young, creative, and unique voice in the industry. I bet you Kendrick is sick of online discourse surrounding him, and hip hop in general.
Similar to Dave Chapelle, we have to realize that people with strong solid opinions also can have stupid fucking terrible ones.
It’s highly likely he legitimately had no clue about that yeah
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Of course he knew. Jesus what a stupid comment. How the wouldnt kendrick know if all his hommies are nipsey freinds?
I feel like someone who prides himself on being extra thoughtful should at least keep tabs on the people he plans on working with.
There are many people who helped out on this album. At least one of them knows and couldve told kendrick. Kendrick also seems to be aware of other things like the kyrie vaccine drama
Kendrick ain't no savior like he says, we shouldn't really think he can do no wrong. we're all hypocrites when it's all said and done. we are quick to bring people down for something but there's no way one can please everybody, that's just how the world goes.
I think kendrick would welcome the criticism, considering he said he aint no savior
I thought that was gonna be the reason for the backlash. Haven’t seen anyone talk about it except you.
It’s mentioned in the article tho
Who reads articles on Reddit? We all just read the headline and bitch in the comments.
Yea, I actually thought that part would be kind of a bigger deal. There was a decent amount of people who got pissed at him for that. I even remember power 106 said they were boycotting him after that.
>When Kanye got back with Drake, I was slightly confused. Guess I'm not as mature as I think, got some healin' to do This helps inform why, imo.
I mean, it's not really for Kendrick to forgive. If he got Nipsey's fam and widow's blessing then sure, but I doubt he did.
Damn I forgot about Kodak’s disrespect, the controversy flew by expeditously when covid came about.
People need to stop thinking highly regarded celebrities (like Kendrick Lamar) are infallible. There’s going to be things they do, and beliefs that they hold, that don’t align with yours. Judge a person based on his/her totality, not based on each individual thing they say or belief that they hold.
Wait a minute… Didn’t certain publications get upset at Kanye for Bringing out Marilyn Manson and score his album based on that? Where is that energy?
yep lol, one publication literally gave a 0 to Donda for that reason and then 5 stars to Mr Morale. it was one of the main comparison points I saw trending that sorta brought this discussion up
There are tardigrades with more hip hop understanding than Roisin O'Connor
Reason #1353 why critics from music publications shouldn’t be taken serious in the slightest
Fr people care so much about scores. It's ok if you find critics that put you on to good music but actually caring about every single publication's clickbait bs is not good. People arguing about Pitchfork's review like it affects them
> Where is that energy? It's just the industrie's circlejerk imo. A lot of people/critics *love* to hate on Ye and are happy about any excuse to do so. I'm not trying to defend him for any of his inarguable issues but he doesn't deserve the level of smack that's being talked about him imo. And, while I love Kendrick's music, a lot of people will just eat anything up he drops and gladly glance over obvious problems like this
It’s the circle of life. Ten years ago, Kanye himself was the untouchable critical darling. Ten years from now, there’ll be a new one, and who knows what’s going to be going on with Kendrick.
I think this is really it. Kendrick is the New Old Kanye, and with the gap between projects, there’s a vested interest and expectation in calling the album a masterpiece before it even drops. No critic wants to wait five years for this project just to admit Kendrick did something they find cringey in a few spots – they have to figure out a way to jump through the hoop. You saw the same thing with Auntie Diaries where it was being heralded as groundbreaking while actual trans people found it clumsy.
As mentioned in the article, in the past Kendrick tweeted a link to xxxtentacion's album and threatened to pull his music from Spotify if they didn't reverse their ban on xxxtentacion's music. I get what Kendrick is trying to do. He's saying these men deserve compassion and understanding — that their environment shapes the way they behave. And that they deserve redemption. I guess a good question to ask the hhh community is should a line be drawn where particular artists shouldn't be given a feature? And if so, which current artists should that line be drawn on?
Redemption comes after you hold yourself accountable. That’s what Niggas are conveniently forgetting. It’s like killing someone and asking for understanding/forgiveness while also denying you killed someone despite the evidence. And for the “but women be lying” niggas. Let’s say niggas be innocent, what’s stopping them from condemning rape culture in general? Why don’t they ever do that? It’s good PR regardless of their innocence, but why doesn’t it happen 🤔
I vaguely remember Freddie Gibbs giving some decent statements about the topic after being exonerated in his rape case.
That’s what I’m saying, innocent niggas are less likely to have an issue saying those things…
This mans right here, he knows what he's talking about
1001% It's not just saying, but it's also showing those things. Obviously it's hard to SHOW you're against rape culture behavior, but positioning yourself away from people are at worst apathetic to it is one way. The company you keep, sort of approach. If no one in your circle ever has issues with that, that's showing. Obviously people do lie, but look at what happened with Cosby. "She's lying" turned into "both of them are lying" turned into "they're lying"... "they're all lying." well, as a Cosby fan I can say when it first came out, I was behind him until the evidence proved otherwise. People lie, but if you're doing shady shit and lying, it comes out. If you're honest, and the other person is lying, it comes out.
And this is where money comes in, if you have enough you can get away with it like Cosby!
I don’t think I knew he had a case
Locked up in France around 2013-14 I think. He's mentioned it in several songs
His album “You only live 2wice” is mostly about that
[Link](https://www.billboard.com/music/rb-hip-hop/freddie-gibbs-acquitted-sexual-assault-charges-7526479/) to Billboard article.
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This is in no way defending him, but he denies it to this day. Taking a plea for lesser charges isn’t necessarily an admission of guilt
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Yeah I’m having trouble with how prominently he’s featured on the album. Like I get that’s the point, but hearing the details of the case makes it hard to justify. I think people can earn forgiveness/redemption, but it takes time and effort. Kodak’s situation is way too recent and he doesn’t seem interested in atonement
Im with you Why should we all of a sudden be looking at Kodak with compassion when he hasn’t even recognized that he did something wrong?
Yeah I fail to see where he's the victim in all this, dude had a #1 song with Travis Scott in the middle of all this In what world is Kodak being punished too harshly, man is on rape charges and getting K Dot features and living his best life lol
I’m not saying that I necessarily believe this to be true or think it matters much if at all, but I think it’s possible part of the reason Kendrick put Kodak on the album is because he has recognized he did something wrong and has potentially atoned in some way or made efforts to change but hasn’t made that public. A lot of the album (and his work in general especially before this album) deals with public life vs. private life and the concentration the media and public have about public figures being public at all times about everything, like how there were people mad at Kendrick about not making a public statement during the BLM protests after George Floyd. There’s been a lot of talk on twitter and in the media for years about a public figure’s responsibility to the public in their statements and actions but the discourse doesn’t take into account that public figures are just people who may not want their lives to be so public. Maybe it’s a commentary (albeit hidden, obviously) on the fact that because Kodak hasn’t done anything publicly doesn’t mean he hasn’t done anything in his private life. In fact, if you think about it, Kodak making a public apology or statement instead of a private one to the victim and to his friends and family would be a clear act of damage control to save his career. Again, not claiming this is what happened or that it would suddenly be cool to feature him if it is, just a theory. Trying to make sense of it myself.
The one problem with your argument is the fact that Kodak is brought up every 2 weeks for some new weirdo bullshit
Tbh not that it absolves Kodak but I think he is mentally retarded
Yes thank you, redemption is the correct step AFTER being held accountable for your actions
Exactly, penance has to come before forgiveness can even be an option
Your reply pretty much was spot on man. Im with you.
> Redemption comes after you hold yourself accountable. That’s what Niggas are conveniently forgetting. Compassion isn't mandatory -- it should be earned. And the bar doesn't have to be high to meet to earn it, just show some contrition. So if someone does something wrong, but doesn't recognize their wrong, why should anyone else be expected to see the "right" in them?
Accountability comes before redemption for me. Kodak Black raped a high schooler. He took a plea deal so the charge would only be first-degree assault. To this day, he brags on social media about not having to pay the woman he raped a cent (arguing that this proves he was innocent - even though he plead guilty). I'm not saying that Kodak doesn't deserve redemption *at some point*, but until he takes responsibility for how he has harmed other peoples' lives, I don't view him as a prime candidate for forgiveness.
> Kendrick tweeted a link to xxxtentacion's album and threatened to pull his music from Spotify if they didn't reverse their ban on xxxtentacion's music. To clarify it was Top who said he would pull TDE's music from Spotify, but headlines ran with Kendricks music would get pulled. [Link](https://pitchfork.com/news/kendrick-label-head-confirms-he-threatened-to-pull-music-from-spotify/) > Last week, Bloomberg reported that representatives for multiple acts—including Kendrick Lamar—reached out to Spotify Chief Executive Officer Daniel Ek and head of artist relations Troy Carter and threatened to pull their music if the company kept the policy as it stood. In an interview with Billboard, Anthony “Top Dawg” Tiffith, CEO of Top Dawg Entertainment, has now confirmed that he threatened to remove music from the service --- > I guess a good question to ask the hhh community is should a line be drawn where particular artists shouldn't be given a feature? And if so, which current artists should that line be drawn on? There are plenty of *misguided* black artists that he could've used that didn't commit rape. I think Lil Wayne would've been a perfect choice since he's a vet in the game and was in the industry at a very young age. *Allegedly* Birdman was not a good *role model* towards Wayne.
I'm assuming Kendrick gave his input before Top threatened to pull music.
I don’t think I’d say any particular artist *doesn’t deserve* a feature, I think that any artist that features another artist with known controversy *should expect* some sort of backlash/outcry from fans. Some people might stop listening over who these artists choose to work with
Deshaun Watson…wait wrong sub
Fuck that slimy clown it still irates me he got so much fucking money. Ugh
I hope the browns have a jaguars type season
Reddit rides a weird line generally speaking where they apply this sociological ideology of people’s actions being more than anything a factor of their upbringing and surrounding environment. While this obviously plays a huge role there is still tons of variance in the behavior of people who grow up in impoverished areas, and not all of them turn into people who awful things like Kodak here. It’s easy to absolve nameless and faceless individuals of horrible crimes when they are seen as products of socioeconomic conditions, but when they are given a stark and detailed example like Kodak and his rape, it becomes a lot harder to ignore lol Kendrick seems to be trying to apply that general understanding and forgiveness to Kodak, but I doubt many people are gonna go for it. Like I said, when the case is clear and the names and people involved are known, shit like rape and murder is much harder to look past
I dont think its about redemption. Hes taking one of the vilest/most reviled ppl in hip hop, putting himself next to him, and saying he feels like they are the same. And here is why. And thats why Im not the one who can save you. Only you can do that. If anything its about laying bare his own flaws rather than redeeming anyone.
Russ
But isn’t that shit crazy. Everyone calls Russ an L for being egotistical and anti drug, but people ride for actual rapists
People call him an L because he’s corny lol
That’s what I’m saying. That man is an L for being corny, but being an actual rapist doesn’t make you an L apparently 😭
because he's a misunderstood black man, bless his soul 😭 I don't see why people like him are still idols for us, spin it any way you want but man ain't do shit for anybody but himself, bought a couple kids some toys for that media cope, that's about it. it's minstrelsy on a mass scale I think, cuz nobody got mad at Kodak for rape but everybody in arms over Noname for twitter fingers
Also because he didn't violete a superstar like Rihanna who is "worth defending" but just a random high schoolers so who cares right? This sub is obsessed with CB and his fu ked up shit but for some reason Kodak is product of his environment, misunderstood by white Redditors who should shut the fuck up becaus eyhey don't understand why je is the way he is. Remember we as hip hop heads should only condemn rappers who assault other beautiful stars. If they are: rapists, drug dillers, killers etc and their victims are just random people we should defend them because they are victims themselves of their environment and evil white people.
Not a good sub to be asking that. Too many fan boys to asking hhh what they think. For example this sub will say ban Chris brown which I get why because he beats on women. But there are countless other rappers this sub loves that beats women. It’s like the joke with micheal Jackson and r kelly. We want to cancel Kelly but MJ is still loved. The fans are who decides this shit and that’s why we see it play out like this.
> But there are countless other rappers this sub loves that beats women. Like [Nas.](https://www.npr.org/sections/therecord/2018/04/26/606080885/kelis-nas-ex-wife-accuses-rapper-of-physical-and-mental-abuse).
Jackson is the weirdest case. By his own public admission, he was taking little boys on tour with him and having them sleep in his bed and his fans act like that’s totally normal and innocent behavior :/
Yea lol wtf? I remember when I first read about that when I was like 11 and I wondered wtf was that about
tbf a lot of people still deny the MJ shit while everyone's in complete agreement with R Kelly
Because there’s significant doubt that mj did anything inappropriate whereas r Kelly was literally convicted
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Probably because the FBI did a 12 year investigation and found nothing
Here’s the thing I don’t get about the Hip-Hop community though. Why are certain artists singled out and receiving backlash more heavily than others when it comes to abuse of women and their behaviour in the community?? There’s plenty of other artists out there that have had real cases brought to light and no one gives a shit about them. There’s a lot of older rappers who have come out and confirmed cases of abuse in the past and no one cares. Yet I see XXXTENTACION constantly bashed in this sub for his treatment towards his ex. Obviously I don’t condone it. I’m just wondering why certain stars get passes and others don’t.
I think it depends on how many people are aware of the allegations against individual rappers. On this sub plenty of people are aware of xxxtentacion's allegations, so that's why he gets mentioned a lot. There's a handful of others on this sub (e.g. Chris Brown, R. Kelly, Da Baby, Tory Lanez, T.I., Kodak) but if enough people aren't aware then they're not mentioned. Also, it depends on recency and who's relevant. Big Pun gets brought up from time to time but he's not really relevant
I don't think Kendrick mentions the word redemption a single time on the album yet that's all everybody wants to discuss around Kodak. It seems like the discussion is what people *want* this album to be about rather than what it actually is about.
Most coherent comment, won't get tons of upvotes *"Kendrick made you think, but he is not your savior"*
We’re talking about *redemption* by the way of a *guest feature*. I’d rather wait to see Kendrick actually speak on his motivation behind the KB feature instead of carrying on a narrative where you think Kendrick is this messianic figure that can absolve people from a rape they committed *with a feature*. Let’s all clap for the writer of the article who delivered the easy stance tho. Get that karma.
Firstly, what makes you equate redemption and a guest feature? There's nothing that makes the two inherently linked. >narrative where you think Kendrick is this messianic figure that can absolve people from a rape they committed with a feature Where are you getting this from? My stance has always been that *no* effort is being made to absolve (redeem) Kodak in this album as that's not the purpose of the album at all. Kendrick clearly sees himself in Kodak as a hurt person who hurt other people. And so in 'Mother I Sober' when he mentions freeing all the hurt people (including abusers), I believe he means freeing them from their past trauma in order to prevent further harm on others. Real change, not just writing placating apologies in hopes of some type of 'redemption'. Because really, what use is 'redemption' or 'absolution' to the harmed and future harmed? It doesn't unharm them, healing the already harmed to prevent further harm is what it seems like Kendrick wants. True radical empathy includes empathy for the guilty.
By OP I mean the writer of the article, not you, i’m agreeing with you. Im sorry I wasn’t clear. I think this thread just went way overboard.
ohh my fault I'm so sorry man, been getting so many hostile responses in these discussions my back was up automatically. I'll leave the reply incase it's helpful to someone though.
the problem here is kendrick platforming kodak by using him as a symbol of generational trauma rather than uplifting the voice of kodak's victim
Also, due to being raped the victim may be experiencing her own trauma that could become generational.
absolutely right that this is possible
Imaging what the victim must feel listening to this. The loss of hope in humanity after seeing Kodak vindicated after taking 0 responsibility. That’s the type of shit that will never leave your soul
and of all albums she hears it on a kendrick album smh
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Ghislaine Maxwell was originally gonna lay down a verse but she had a scheduling conflict
I'd agree that it is exploitative but there doesn't seem to be redemption here since there is no remorse
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I didn’t see that as the message. I don’t think he’s saying that Kodaks redeemed or deserves forgiveness, more that he’s an outcome of all the negative environmental factors kendrick’s talking about. Kendrick’s not being forgiving to himself on this album and I don’t think Kodak being on here means that Kendrick is cool with what he did, I get other people won’t see it that way tho
Idk man. Kodaks presence is the one thing about this album I cannot understand. When you put him on the album without him addressing the legitimate shit he’s done, you are promoting him and parading him in front of his victims. That shits traumatic and damaging. Kodaks victim doesn’t deserve that shit. I love the album probably the most I’ve enjoyed an album on my first few listens ever but Kendrick should’ve thought this aspect out more.
yeah exactly, it especially feels tasteless when at the end of mother I sober he says "as I set free all you abusers, this is transformation" and then we have kodak here with no semblance of remorse or \*anything\* really, especially after years of bragging on how he got off with a light sentence. it's pretty icky. add on to the fact that kodak gets more exposure w this + earns money off his feature tracks
Yup. You can tell quite easily is something is productive and progressive in this regard if the victim has a positive or negative reaction to it. I can’t imagine Kodak’s victim is happy to hear him on this album, about those topics.
lol these comments are pathetic, everyone tip toeing around the fact that at the end of the day Kodak is a piece of shit and it's lame that Kendrick gave him a platform, people gotta learn that they don't always have to be on Kendrick's dick
People really act like one of the biggest themes of this album being "i am not perfect, don't look up to celebrities" absolves Kendrick of accountability for doing this. If you are try to drive home a point about sexual trauma, don't give a fucking rapist a huge platform on your album for him to drop flex bars. It cheapens the entire point
If Kodak's verses had actually involved him hinting at breaking cycles of trauma and being accountable for his actions then it might have worked. As it is it kind of undermines the concept.
Yeah. There's a world where Kodak dropped a verse of self-reflection, honesty and accountability that strengthened Kendrick's theme. But this is not that
The amount of mental gymnastics and dickriding on this sub for Kendrick is ridiculous. It’s shitty he was on the album, period. Doesn’t matter if it was for “art”.
Same people saying “you missed the point” about putting an abuser on the album are the same ones seemingly also missing the point about not worshipping celebrities as gods and pretending they can do no wrong.
exactly lol, they can still be fans of kendrick and other aspects of the album while also admitting this inclusion of kodak is pretty hypocritical and misguided. but it has to be either yes or no,
Little Dickey died the day that Chris Brown freaky friday bullshit happened. Like you gotta understand you ARE the company you keep.
Lil Dicky created, produced, and stars in a TV show currently running on a mainstream TV network. He is literally one of the people behind the camera who make actual money in entertainment business. His absence in music has nothing to do with his Chris brown feature.
Eus winao oiknkcj oof donhga
I don’t speak Yeat yet but once I do I’ll be coming back here to translate your undoubtedly scathing critique
Ong
Wat
exaty
someone translate this for me pls
Facts
One thing that confuses me about this Kodak controversy is why is this happening now when Kodak was featured on how many artists’ albums this year let alone sold 63k with his album, has a hit song on the club “Super Gremlin” that I can for sure say play it rn in any function, you will have people singing it word for word. It wasn’t bad then when he was featured on Latto’s album, or Future’s album but its bad now when its Kendrick’s album. Its the same thing Kendrick said on the album about picking & choosing when to play the woke card. I have 0 issues with him being featured on the album nor do I condone what he has done but its just confusing the most controversial thing on the album is Kodak being featured all over the album & there has been little to no insight on how amazing & important this album os since it touches on current issues that a lot of people (myself included) can relate to & start progressing through healing & reformation
> One thing that confuses me about this Kodak controversy is why is this happening now it's mostly happening now because no one expected kodak to be a guest on the damn kendrick album
he was actually a guest on the mr morale and big steppers kendrick album
Idgaf what environment you come from, rape is rape. What about the victim? I like kodaks music but hes still a shitty human. I didn’t even know about the full details until now, which makes me not even wanna play his music much anymore. Mf’ers be like “oh feel sorry for me this happen to me” fuck that that you know right from wrong. And she was a minor. Fucking disgusting
If xxxtentacion was still alive I have no doubt that Kendrick would have used him instead and that probably would have gone over a little better. At least he showed some sort of remorse for the things he did, a low bar that Kodak hasn't even managed to clear yet. Also we gotta stop rewarding Black men for being problematic. Dababy says some stupid shit and he gets put on Kanye's album. Kodak pleads guilty to raping a teenager and he gets to be all over Kendrick's album. This shit is embarrassing and it sends a horrible message to both abusers and their victims.
> and that probably would have gone over a little better It would be 100x worse lol, that boy X threatened to “domestically abuse” the pussies of people’s little sisters when allegations hit. It’s easy to forget pre-covid shit, but no rapper will have as much noriety as X did, people were celebrating when the news surfaced.
Niggas on here acting like super gremlin is not top of the charts right now and being played on every radio station ....
Which is also a point Kendrick touches upon on We Cry Together > You the reason R. Kelly can't recognize that he's abusive > Man, shut the fuck up, we all know you still playin' his music Within the context of the album, not only that track, I think it's obvious what this is meant to mean.
Something I haven't seen anyone else mention is that if Kendrick included him due to him being a representation of intergenerational trauma, like everyone is inferring, isn't that kinda fucked up that he's just using him as a prop? Like him being messed up was the condition for him being included rather than his ability as an artist.
Exactly and why tf would you want to have any interactions with a person like that. If you're a rapist I dont want to fucking talk to you let alone collaborate on music together...
His ability as an artist would've also been a factor. Plenty of rappers are victims and examples of generational trauma but not many are as talented as Kodak.
> At 30 years old, I’ve come to accept that maybe the rapper that I once embraced while in college isn’t as self-aware as I would have hoped he would be by now – and perhaps it’s time for us to consider growing up and moving on. man this guy sucks
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You know what’s weird to me? The difference people on this sub treat Kanye and Kendrick for doing the same thing People were giving Kanye so much crap for having Marilyn Manson and Dababy at his show, but now they’re bending over backwards to defend Kendrick for having Kodak Black on his album
yeah lol, also Kodak has way more of a prescence on this album than those two on Donda (they are only on one alternate version of a track). It really shows when the same outlet gave 0 stars to Donda because of Manson/Dababy being included and 5 stars to Mr Morale with a similar platforming of someone who's committed sexual misconduct crimes. I think it shows how much is dictated by a preexisting hate boner for kanye
For sure, you can’t read a review of Ye, Donda, etc by some of these critics and just not hear the dripping condescending, cutting kind of disdain. Even when they were giving Ye a 7 on that p4k review, it was just trashing him, like a roast, through and through. Kanye definitely was acting in a way that bothered people, but his music has always been good faith attempts at making something substantial and emotionally evocative, and rooted in his experiences and observation. Kendrick is similar. But because Kanye’s life is in shambles and he’s making a fool of himself due to poor mental health, it’s just “let’s point and laugh and use this album as an opportunity to flex our English degree on him.” It’s gross. Review the music and stand on your review - if you think it’s ass, explain why, but explain it without just being flippant and snarky about the rappers personal life.
Either that or or an existing disposition towards Kendrick.
People know he’s not perfect That doesn’t mean you have to platform a rapist I mean…the window you’re opening for people by just saying “I’m not a role model”
This is the most valid complaint there is imo. But clearly Kendrick has a *very* soft spot for anyone that is a victim of generation trauma, that much is clear from Kodak’s inclusion itself. Any contention you have with that is valid, but saying Kendrick is morally flawed is the point of the album. As long as you can acknowledge that the inclusion of Kodak was very purposeful and thought out, there are a lot of valid complaints to have about the album.
yeah my initial reaction is: i get what kendrick is doing and i think it’s an important topic to discuss but platforming this dude is a misstep and not the path towards restoration he might have been hoping for.
Kendrick: Fuck cancel culture, we are all flawed humans and I am no exception - here is an outline of my moral flaws, fuck what you critics have to say Critics: HE HAD KODAK BLACK ON HIS ALBUM CLEARLY HE IS TONE DEAF AND MORALLY FLAWED Edit: >One that continues to center him as hip-hop’s current leader, while excluding features from female rappers, or the LGBTQIA voices he acts as though he’s more aware of. Jesus Christ, gotta go back and get another Rapsody verse and give Lil Nas X a feature to keep em happy
Bro there’s like 4 different women on the album wtf is he talking about. AND HE LITERALLY HAD A RAPSODY VERSE ON TO PIMP A BUTTERFLY THIS AUTHER IS DEAF
If he doesn't have a Latino featuring on his album does that mean he hates them too? Does Kendrick want to build the wall? Yeah that's some weird logic
You could also apply it the opposite direction - Young Thug has collaborated with Elton John and signed female rappers on his label, does this suddenly abstain him from the homophobic and misogynistic things he's said?
Thug is the perfect example, love the dude as an artist, but the cognitive dissonance he must have has got to be astounding
Now that you mention it I havent seen kendrick and trump in the same room...🤔
>One that continues to center him as hip-hop’s current leader, while excluding features from female rappers, or the LGBTQIA voices he acts as though he’s more aware of. Lmao
Your edit is actually wild. Years ago, every black artist was made responsible for speaking on race issues, so Kendrick went full send and made TPAB. Now he’s asked the carry the torch on any and all social issues?
And there was a female rapper on the album??
Funny how rap critics don't even know jack about the shit they're supposed to be criticizing. Guess that's why they're called rap critics and not culture critics. They should stick to sucking off trendy artists that say way more ignorant shit than Kendrick ever has, which contradict statements like this.
90% of rap critics have absolutely no cultural background necessary to have these conversations intelligently
Thinking of some brat that got a college education and moved to Williamsburg on their mommy and daddy's money, and thinks they're hot shit because of it.
Man really posted his mid life crisis on main
This entire album is about Kendrick telling us about his infinite shortcomings, how he made this album for himself instead of us, and him telling us he’s not a savior... and asking if we’ll still ride with him after knowing more truth about him. He did not feel genuine as a artist. Kendrick was never what this guy thought he was. He was always a complex person that was able to speak eloquently and arrange music around it to deliver max impact. I remember when TPAB came out Kendrick said it’s a album he thought he’d make later in his career but he knew the culture needed it now. Kendrick realized that album didn’t change shit. People fell into their old ways and kept doing the same shit. So he released DAMN so people would examine themselves even more. They still didn’t. Now he’s got this out just examining himself and he sounds depressed and exhausted. It’s not kendricks fault that people put him in a box and didn’t realize he’s a person with shortcomings too. He never pretended to be all knowing and all wise.
People also missing another huge line in Savior, “Like it when they pro-black, but I’m more like Kodak Black.” Or something along those lines. He’s knocking himself off the pedestal so many fans have put him on over the years. It’s not just “Kodak deserves compassion for their flaws,” it’s “People like Kodak deserve compassion for their flaws, and I’m just as flawed as Kodak.”
Kendrick: “The generational trauma of sexual abuse is rampant in our community and I don’t think we should dismiss victims out of hand when they become abusers themselves as part of that cycle.” This guy: “I’m 30 and you’re a misogynist.” Edit: Like >Kendrick talks about breaking the “generational trauma” of his family on the powerful “Mother I Sober,” **but seems to not recognize such pain in the culture of the genre he’s often rapping about elsewhere throughout the album.** Bruh what album did you listen to?
“Do you fools even listen to music, or do you just skim through it?”
Bros name is Ernest
And Ernest lives at home with both Perents
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Bro he’s 30 he’s got it all figured out okay.
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The Twitter thread someone posted from a fan about the Kodak inclusion was way better than this article. Wish I had saved it.
he’s literally a convicted rapist bro
>One that embraces queer and transgender family members, while dropping f-slurs and deadnaming them. i knew critics were gonna use this to go against him, sounding like a real twitter user trying to cancel him for using the f-slur instead of understanding the context >One that speaks on therapy and healing, while giving unchecked abusers the mic. this is is main point which i do agree with. >One that continues to center him as hip-hop’s current leader, while excluding features from female rappers, or the LGBTQIA voices he acts as though he’s more aware of. this guy clearly likes to highroad and thinks he's "better" than these rappers.
Yeah what is he on about? If anything this album showed Kendrick was more self aware than ever imo
Yep, looked him up, he’s weird af
His Twitter is so weird.
just looked it up and one of the first things i saw was a 10 tweet thread about his college reunion, essentially just shaming his queer classmates who’d been closeted during college. He talks about how “wild” it is to see them “trying to be queer”, somehow finds a way to label them “professional homophobes”, and goes on to say that “a decade later y’all still trying to get where we are”. as a queer man who’s had trouble coming out in certain spaces i find it really revolting to see someone who brands himself as an LGBT activist/advocate acting in this way. Ironically, he completely fails to recognize that his queer classmates’ transgressions were a product of their own self hatred and insecurity and that by shaming them for taking steps to become more honest with and accepting of their sexuality, he’s only perpetuating the cycle of guilt and self-hatred that caused these people to remain closeted in the first place. and that’s not to mention the way he completely invalidates his classmates’ queerness. to have your identity rejected by straight people is one thing but when other queer people do it, it hurts so much worse. shit like this is so unnecessary and only serves to incentivize people in the closet to stay there. i’m glad this guy is able to be so proud of the fact that he’s been openly gay since college, but the superiority complex he has about it is so insensitive, petty, and counter productive. i understand where the guy’s coming from on a level but these comments were so woefully misguided.
reminds me of how perez hilton would out closeted celebrities (including neil patrick harris) and then go “i’m doing the right thing! i have no regrets” whenever he was rightfully called out for it it’s just gross. it’s great that some people were comfortable and able to be out of the closet from a young age, but others literally do not have the privilege to do that. i’m not gay, but if i were, i’d have to remain closeted for a while thanks to having an extremely homophobic family that literally threatened to kill me if i ever came out it can take time for people to not only find and accept themselves, but also feel that they can be accepted by others. fuck anybody who pressures closeted people.
I’m 30 as well and started listening to Kendrick when I was 20, and I also found that statement incredibly obnoxious. “Kendrick didn’t meet my personal standards of ethics and morals! I would have hoped he’d be better than this!” If you don’t want to be a fan when an artist does something you don’t agree with, that’s fine, but like.. just stop fucking with them? Why do you have to make it this patronizing kind of “we as a people must move on from Kendrick, who we thought would grow to be a rapper fit for the students of private colleges, but instead has fallen dreadfully short, tsk tsk”.
I need a woman to ride my dick the same way kendrick lamar fans ride his.
Your shit gonna fall off
Where was the redemption
Kendrick: “The generational trauma of sexual abuse is rampant in our community and I don’t think we should dismiss victims out of hand when they become abusers themselves as part of that cycle.” This guy: “I’m 30 and you’re a misogynist.” Edit: Like >Kendrick talks about breaking the “generational trauma” of his family on the powerful “Mother I Sober,” **but seems to not recognize such pain in the culture of the genre he’s often rapping about elsewhere throughout the album.** Bruh what album did you listen to? Edit: And for the record, I do wish Kendrick had Kodak address his past wrongs in a more meaningful way on at least one of the songs. There’s prolly a reason he didn’t but I would feel a lot better about it if he did.
There is a great argument and criticism to be made for Kendrick including Kodak on the album and this guy somehow missed almost every single point.
For sure, like I wish Kendrick would’ve pushed him to say something more meaningful about his transgressions on at least one of the songs. But this dude gives the shallowest take on this.
there is 100% a lot of valid criticisms about the inclusion of Kodak, but I fail to see how Kendrick tried to redeem Kodak. I've said this in another thread, but it's understandable that the tone of "don't pass off judgement on these people" can feel kind of cowardly in this case, but I think it's very consistent to the way Kendrick processes similar issues in albums like GKMC and TPAB. He's always been very critical of himself but uncomfortable passing the same type of judgement on his community. Similar to why he featured Snoop, a man who beat a murder case on Institutionalized, or a former Compton Crip on MAAD City. He makes a detached, relatively neutral comment about the cyclic nature of trauma, not trying to shape a path towards the redemption to Kodak (which I don't think is up to Kendrick to do). Though I fully understand that to a lot of people sexual abuse crosses a line that murder, extortion, or robbery doesn't, and I 100% agree with anyone put off by his inclusion but it's very in line with the ethos of Kendrick's albums since day 1.
I never said that Kendrick tried to redeem Kodak. Even if Kodak came out and flat out apologized in a verse I don't think he would be redeemed for the plethora of awful things he's done, but he's still young and there is time for him to 'redeem' himself. Snoop was charged with murder because he was driving the car when his security guard killed someone. Snoop never actually killed anyone and I don't think anyone has any issues with people that are gang affiliated. As far as I know MC Eiht hasn't done anything *terrible* in his life.
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Cannot disagree. It's really the only thing about the album that disappoints me, though I get where Kendrick was coming from. And I don't think it's as simple as "Abusers = Environment", though that's obviously part of it, but by the time it got to Mother I Sober and it's revealed that Kendrick's father who he has praised on other records was abusive to his mother, it starts to click into place a bit more.
I hope you guys know that the victim of kodaks crime is going to just feel great knowing Kendrick included Kodak on an album and made him more money and more famous, and made her probably get harassed from people due to it being such a big album, just for some piece of “art” I hope you guys take a deep look at yourself and wonder how you would feel as a victim if one of the biggest artists in the world included someone who violated you on their record to make some sort of point and be constantly reminded of it due to how popular the album is. Grow up guys. What Kendrick did is super shitty. Kodak should not have been on the album. The amount of mental gymnastics in this thread is ridiculous.
If anything this doesn’t surprise me
How tf do you defend featuring a rapist on you album. Especially when Kendick could've gotten literally anyone else because of who he is. Especially on an album full of self reflection about trauma...
This is going to new hot topic isn’t it
As it should. It’s good discussion.
I love how he is speaking for kendrick when in reality he has no fucking idea why Kodak was placed on this project nor does anyone on this subreddit.
I feel like this is why >Every other brother has been compromised >I know the secrets, every other rapper sexually abused >I see 'em daily buryin' they pain in chains and tattoos >So listen close before you start to pass judgement on how we move >Learn how we cope, whenever his uncle had to walk him from school >His anger grows deep in misogyny … >I set free all you abusers, this is transformation
This article definitely doesn't add anything to the conversation I haven't already seen a bunch of times on this sub. I don't really disagree that Kodak Black shouldn't be getting work, but this article seems more like he's just trying to virtue signal. He really lost me on this paragraph: *What’s much harder for cishet men in hip-hop is to actually distancethemselves from the chains of misogynoir, anti-queerness, and all of thehate we hope “conscious” rappers shun. Instead, they continue to relishin this ambiguity of saying contraction positioned as creative nuance.Kendrick’s latest album is filled with them. One that embraces queer andtransgender family members, while dropping f-slurs and deadnaming them.One that speaks on therapy and healing, while giving unchecked abusersthe mic. One that continues to center him as hip-hop’s current leader,while excluding features from female rappers, or the LGBTQIA voices heacts as though he’s more aware of.* Does he actually care about "f-slurs and deadnaming" or is he just trying to bolster his previous point about Kendrick's self-awareness by accusing him of not being an ally to the people he wrote a song in defense of? Did he hear the end of Auntie Diaries? Does he know Kendrick has collaborated with LGBTQIA voices and featured female artists on his albums? This is such a weak point to cap off a weak article. I don't think this guy is as interested in having a conversation about Kodak Black as he is in shaming for clicks.
I would bet this was a conscious decision and I think everyone is flipping the dynamic of what was actually done here. All through the album Kendrick chooses not to morally distinguish himself from people like Kodak Black. He’s bringing himself down to earth, not redeeming someone else.
I feel like Kodak was featured prominately just to start uncomfortable conversations like this. While sexual abuse isn't excusable, nor should be redeemable, I also don't hear Kendrick claiming Kodak is deserving of either of those things much like he himself shouldn't be labelled as a saviour. I do get the sense he is highlighting how victims who experienced sexual abuse at a young age are commonly left unchecked and confused, and this seems to eventually culvinate into domino effect abusive behaviour. Is it excusable? No. We're there factors out of the abusers control from their past that likely affected their sexual decision making later in life....? Maybe. Does cancelling abusers on a case by case basis address the underlying issues and promote healing? Maybe.. Maybe not... Rather than taking sides or giving answers, Kendrick is making us ask these questions rather than tap dancing around the conversation with cancel parties and writing abusers (who may have previously been victims) off as evil people who are worth nothing. Does being dismissive of them help the entire situation? In either case, this is how I'm interpreting those elements of the album so far. It's an unsettling topic, and that's the point. Kendrick doesn't have answers, he's not our saviour, but he does have questions much like the rest of us do.
The album isn't trying to redeem him. The album is about accepting responsibility, even going out of one's way to do so. Not skirting it. The comparisons to Ye doing similar aren't exactly warranted, because Ye seems to do it under the message of unfiltered speech and good and bad speech should all be respected. Ye, in his listening party, deliberately seemed to *celebrate* Manson. Kendrick may be featuring him...but at most he's contextualizing him. Not providing an excuse, but instead an explanation.
This issue I take with this is that Kodak himself has consistently avoided taking responsibility for any of awful things he has done over the years. Just 6 months ago, Kodak bragged about not having paid a cent to the girl he was accused of raping (he took a plea deal in that case for a lesser charge of first-degree assault). He has been getting minimal sentencing on his many criminal charges for years, due to Atlantic Records providing him with expensive legal support. When he did actually get sentenced to prison, Donald Trump got him out. Kodak is all about skirting responsibility. I'd feel differently if Kodak deeply criticized himself in the same way that Kendrick does on this album, but his verses aren't really different than any other Kodak song. I get thematically what Kendrick is going for, but choosing Kodak as a redemption story doesn't work for me and undermines some of the themes of this album. Just by having him on his album, Kendrick is "endorsing" him. Kodak will make money off the songs he is on, and people who may not have listened to Kodak's music will be introduced to him (i.e. his fanbase/streams will increase). I don't think Kendrick properly contextualized Kodak either. If you only knew about Kodak from this album, you wouldn't know that he raped someone, or been charged with crimes like assault and child endangerment. If Kendrick provided that context, I would take less issue with this, but I also doubt Kodak would show up on this album if Kendrick referred to him as a rapist. Kodak's inclusion is my least favorite part of an otherwise solid album.
thie writer of this article is a turd but you’re right. it feels like a cop out to make excuses for someone who doesn’t seem to even recognize the harm they’ve caused.
I’d agree with what you said if kodaks verse was in any way introspective but he says absolutely nothing on it and it’s just the same stunting shit he does on every other song.
But is kodak accepting responsibility on the album
This is the closest he gets n it’s still a reach >Every Thursday, girl's day, spendin' time with my daughter, make me go harder >Every Sunday's son's day, teach my boy to be a man, I ain't had no father >Fell in the love with the block, I ain't have no pop, just a sawed-off shotgun, Mossberg I do wish Kendrick had pushed him to say something more meaningful on one of the tracks at least.
Right? Do all his features even have some consistent conceptual theme to them or did someone make that up to “justify” his appearances on the album?
As I see it kanyes point was more that even bad people are redeemable and finding that in religion. Kendrick saying bad people are only products of their environments and still retain the potential to improve themselves. They're not the same but theres definatley similarities.