Episode #247 | 8.26.25
Kendrick Lamar: The Streets, the Studio, and the Struggle for Mercy
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In this episode
Before Kendrick Lamar became one of the greatest lyricists of his generation, he was K.Dot—a kid from Compton with a front-row seat to trauma, loyalty, violence, and survival. This is the story of good kid, m.A.A.d city and the real-life events that fueled it. It’s about a drive-by shooting that changed Kendrick forever. About a murder. About a robbery. About friends who vanished and others who couldn’t be saved. It’s about escaping the cycle without forgetting where you came from. And above all, it’s about mercy—in a world that rarely offers any.
Sources
Promise That You Will Sing About Me: The Power and Poetry of Kendrick Lamar, by Miles Marshall Lewis
Deeper Than Just the Music: Kendrick Lamar's Extended Noisey Bompton Interview (Vice)
Kendrick Lamar & Rick Rubin Have an Epic Conversation (GQ)
The Trials of Kendrick Lamar (Rolling Stone)
Kendrick Lamar on Vulnerability, His Childhood, and “Not Like Us” (Harpers Bizarre)
Kendrick Lamar: 'I Can't Change The World Until I Change Myself First' (NPR)
Kendrick Lamar: Talkin' 'Bout My Generation (Complex)
How NWA, Tupac, And Kendrick Lamar Made The Compton Swap Meet A West Coast Rap Historical Landmark (Uproxx)
Kendrick Lamar's Avalanche Swap Meet Experience with Mom (TikTok)
Kendrick Lamar Talks to Rick Rubin About “Alright,” Eminem, and Kendrick's Next Album (GQ)
Kendrick Lamar: Not Your Average Everyday Rap Savior (SPIN)
TDE: An Origin Story in Three Parts (The Dowsers)
Sing About Me, I'm Dying of Thirst - Kendrick Lamar (Double Scribble)
Kendrick Lamar “Sing About Me” True Story (MTV News)
Credits
Hosted by Jake Brennan.
Written by Zeth Lundy.
Scored and mixed by Matt Beaudoin.
Additional music and score elements by Ryan Spraker.
DISGRACELAND theme song, “Crenshaw Space Boogie,” written and produced by Jake Brennan. Performed by Jake Brennan, Bryce Kanzer, Jay Cannava, and Evan Kenney. Mixed and engineered by Adam Taylor.
*illustrations by Avi Spivak @avispivak