This past Friday, Kendrick Lamar released his latest full length album, DAMN. The 14 track album distinguishes itself from the rest of Lamar’s discography with its own distinct sound. As expected, the rapper’s huge fanbase quickly reacted all over Twitter as soon as the album released. Fans quickly gave the album high praise as they were taking their first listen:
Accidentally decided to clean my ears after listening to Kendrick Lamar's new album #DAMN pic.twitter.com/vHBYU9oxJ7
— Nectar Collector (@steviadaddy) April 14, 2017
Omggggggg Kendrick went OFF on DNA! WHEW! #DAMN pic.twitter.com/Aav4CxJwRl
— W. (@mickeygallxvich) April 14, 2017
Throughout the tweets of mass praise there were some negative comments as well:
Kendrick Lamar is the most overrated rapper of all time. #damn #trash
— Cihan Yildiz (@thisisstupid93) April 15, 2017
#Damn. is good but not great.
— Downriver's Trillest (@rawest_dawg) April 15, 2017
As with past Kendrick albums, some fans were extremely quick to claim DAMN. is an instant classic:
This @kendricklamar #DAMN is an instant classic. 💯🔥🙏🏻
— Sicc(ottic) (@Siccottic) April 14, 2017
However, I think albums can only be considered classics once we take more time to sit with the album and see if it withstands the test of time:
#damn has been out 3 days and it's already a classic? 🤦🏽♂️🤦🏽♂️🤦🏽♂️ we throw that word "classic" around way too much. Give it some time
— C.A.B. (@cbailey4_) April 16, 2017
As with all Kendrick albums there is a lot to unpack that cannot be understood from just the first listen:
Dot got folks decoding lyrics, cover(s) and formulating theories within 12 hours of his album dropping. #DAMN
— Chuck Dizzle (@iAMChuckDizzle) April 14, 2017
Some internet rap conspiracists even went as far as to claim that Kendrick planned to drop another album today (Easter) due to several tweets and clues they found:
Loving the theory that Kendrick is dropping another album called NATION. He could use his Sunday Coachella show as a resurrection #damn pic.twitter.com/gldbnWaJTA
— Jeremy Ryder Wilson (@jeremywilsonNYC) April 14, 2017
Since it is already Easter, I don’t think we should expect a followup album anytime soon. Instead, we should just be grateful that Kendrick Lamar did drop an album:
YO HOW ABOUT INSTEAD OF YALL SAYING "I HOPE KENDRICK DROP A SECOND ALBUM ON EASTER" YALL BUMP #DAMN ON EASTER YOU UNGRATEFUL PEOPLE
— Simrat Gill (@FindingSim) April 16, 2017
I’m a huge fan of Kendrick. This was a great topic to choose because there are obviously going to be differing tastes for any album that’s dropped. Because Kendrick is so high profile with almost as many Grammy’s as Michael Jackson, it makes sense why people would automatically jump to saying it’s a classic. I think that people need to judge each album individually instead of just throwing it in with the other work this artist has done. I listened to #DAMN and personally wasn’t a huge fan– it didn’t catch my attention as quickly as his other music. The greatest part about this is there’s an ongoing, heated discussion going on Twitter– that means people are charged and excited about it. That alone, I think, is something Kendrick can be proud of. Great post!
I’m glad you wrote about this topic because it shows the different musical tastes that Kendrick Lamar fans have when he releases an album. Since Kendrick Lamar is extremely popular and receives positive press, I can see where it makes sense people would maybe give more praise and accolades to the album, than another artist who isn’t so mainstream. I think your post also highlights how critical a discussion tool Twitter is to see how people react to an album release. Twitter can be a tool used by Kendrick Lamar to understand how his core fan base thinks about his music.