With Kendrick Lamar’s highly-anticipated forthcoming album expected April 7, our excitement is at an all time high. We can’t stop listening to his new single “The Heart Part 4” and are curiously wondering what we can expect from his next project as more clues come together on what the LP might sound like.
Kendrick’s collaborator Syk Sense has given us a little insight to what we might expect to hear come April 7. Syk Sense was one of the four producers involved with “The Heart Part 4” and has joined podcaster EricTheYoungGawd for an interview saying the beats on the project are “some of the hardest shit I ever heard” and "it's not like that jazzy sound you would think.” He also mentioned it's similar to what we heard on "Untitled 07" off untitled unmastered.
"I got homies who produced on there that produced some crazy shit, I'm talking about big. It's some of the hardest shit I ever heard. And the fact that it's connected to Kendrick as well makes it that much better. I haven't heard the songs he did with the beats, but I've heard the beats. We've got some pretty heavy new guys on here that's really going to make for themselves off these beats"...“It’s I would say like uhh, fucking that hard shit. It’s not like the jazzy sound you would think. It’s like fucking Memphis, fucking like… I don’t know what to call it. It’s L.A., it’s Memphis.” - Syk Sense
We can’t wait to hear what the LP sounds like. On “The Heart Part 4” one thing is apparent: Kendrick is angry. This is a scary thought for other rappers as he calls himself the greatest rapper alive and will likely aim to hold onto that claim with bars on the new album. He also recently called himself the greatest rapper alive on his collaboration with Isaiah Rashad, so it seems like he feels he has something to prove. This has us thinking he doesn't hold back on the new project.
On his new single, Kendrick also calls out other rappers, most likely Big Sean or Drake, with lines like “My fans can’t wait for me to son ya punk ass and crush ya whole lil’ shit / I’ll Big Pun ya punk ass you a scared lil’ bitch / Tiptoeing’ around my name n*gga you lame / And when I get at you homie don’t you just tell me you was just playin” and “ho, Jay-Z Hall of Fame, sit yo punk ass down”. Drake has compared himself to Jay-Z in the past and Kdot gives him this reminder that Jay-Z was inducted into the songwriting hall of fame.
Another set of lines likely taking shots at Drake: “Tables turned, lesson learned, my best look / You jumped sides on me, now you ‘bout to meet Westbrook / Go celebrate with your team and let victory vouch you / Just know the next game played, I might slap the shit out you.” With Drake’s frequent adoration for Kevin Durant, it’s looking like Kendrick is calling him out with these lines comparing himself to Russell Westbrook after Durant switched teams on him. Not to mention Kendrick dropped this loose single just days after Drake's More Life playlist stealing some of his thunder.
Kendrick clearly has a chip on his shoulder and is aiming to make a statement. In the new track, Kendrick also mentions his last two albums being classics and says “my next album, the whole industry on the ice pack / with TOC, you see the flames in my e-y-e’s; it’s not a game”. Sounds like he has some heat ready for us.
Kendrick previously told The NY Times the project was “very urgent” and he's moved on from TPAB:
“I think now, how wayward things have gone within the past few months, my focus is ultimately going back to my community and the other communities around the world where they’re doing the groundwork. ‘To Pimp a Butterfly’ was addressing the problem. I’m in a space now where I’m not addressing the problem anymore,” - Kendrick
Each project Kendrick has released moves his sound forward as he continues to experiment on each release. While we don’t know what’s in store for us on April 7, we feel it’s safe to say it will be a different sound from 2015’s To Pimp A Butterfly. We absolutely love TPAB, but the thought of Kendrick going in over some hard beats just has us too excited. The hype is at an all time high with little known about the project so we’re all just going to have to wait and see what’s next. Enjoy!
Kendrick Lamar - The Heart Part 4 | Stream Only
Photo credit: Paola Kudacki for GQ