K-Dot Rises: Kendrick Lamar's "DAMN." (2017)
Kendrick Lamar flows in all-caps so it's fitting that his latest album, titled DAMN. , is spelled out in jumbo fonts, with the one-word song titles displayed in large-print as if Lamar graffiti-ed them on billboards around SoCal, scaffolding through Compton as rap's Dark Knight. Akin to director Christopher Nolan, K-Dot composes his albums with a blend of art-house gravitas and big-budget fireworks. A hip-hop purist, Lamar recalls the spirit of Dr. Dre's Chronic albums, OutKast's thematic elements and golden-age Wu-Tang projects, packed with an animated cast of characters, captivating skits and plot-thickening interludes. With his first release for the Aftermath label in 2012, good kid, m.A.A.d city , there was a blockbuster breakout. Dr. Dre acted as a marveling Professor X mentoring to Lamar, hovering in the background as Lamar laid out his origin story, joining the elite class of California rap superheroes such as Snoop Dogg and Ice Cube. DAMN. follows on