Kendrick Lamar Duckworth, born on June 17, 1987, is a highly influential American rapper and songwriter known for his progressive musical styles and socially conscious songwriting. Raised in Compton, California, Lamar initially performed under the stage name K.Dot, quickly gaining local recognition and securing a recording contract with Top Dawg Entertainment (TDE) in 2005.
As a founding member of the hip hop supergroup Black Hippy, Lamar later adopted his first and middle names professionally. In 2011, he released his debut studio album Section.80, which was met with positive reviews and featured his debut single “HiiiiPower”. His second studio album, Good Kid, M.A.A.D City, released in 2012 under Dr. Dre’s Aftermath Entertainment and Interscope Records, received widespread critical acclaim and commercial success with singles like “Swimming Pools (Drank)”, “Backseat Freestyle”, and “Bitch, Don’t Kill My Vibe”, drawing influence from West Coast and gangsta rap.
Lamar’s jazz-flavored third studio album, To Pimp a Butterfly (2015), earned universal acclaim and topped the Billboard 200, followed by his first Billboard Hot 100 number-one single with the remix of Taylor Swift’s “Bad Blood”. His fourth studio album, Damn (2017), showcased experimentation with R&B, pop, and psychedelic soul, and its single “Humble” reached number one on the charts. Notably, Damn was awarded the Pulitzer Prize for Music, a first for a non-classical and non-jazz work.
After a four-year hiatus, Lamar returned with his fifth studio album, Mr. Morale & the Big Steppers (2022), marking his departure from TDE. Throughout his career, Lamar has achieved remarkable commercial success, with all of his studio albums certified platinum or higher by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA), selling over 70 million records in the United States alone.
His extraordinary talent has earned him numerous accolades, including 17 Grammy Awards, a Primetime Emmy Award, two American Music Awards, six Billboard Music Awards, 11 MTV Video Music Awards, and a Brit Award, along with a nomination for an Academy Award. Lamar has been featured on prestigious lists such as the Time 100 and Forbes 30 Under 30, and three of his studio albums were included in Rolling Stone’s 2020 ranking of the 500 Greatest Albums of All Time.
Additionally, Kendrick Lamar has directed and produced multiple music videos and films in collaboration with his creative partner Dave Free, co-founding the creative collective PGLang. His impact on the music industry and society as a whole has earned him recognition, cementing his place as a generational icon and one of the greatest hip hop artists of his time.