Mr. Morale & The Big Steppers
Coming out of the first global pandemic of our lifetimes and after going without so many comforts in our lives that we had taken for granted, 2022 is a year of returning, reclaiming, and restoring. Family gatherings, public gatherings, and traveling freely without a mask. So many things that we probably didn't fully appreciate before are being enjoyed again and their return is even sweeter after living without them for the past 21 months. I think this is especially true with the release of Kendrick Lamar's latest studio album “Mr. Morale & The Big Steppers.”
The Pulitzer Prize winning Damn was 5 years ago. 5 years. During that time we lost Nipsey, Kobe, Aretha, Chadwick Bosman, Andre Harrel, Shock G, DMX, Cicely Tyson and so many others. The frequency of the culture just seemed a little off without contributions from Kendrick. A lesser artist would have faded into irrelevance after such an absence. But not Kendrick. MMTBS is most profound in the context of the maturing of the person of Kendrick Lamar. From Section.80 to MMTBS you are able to witness both the growth of an artist and a man. The very fact that there was a five-year gap between projects shows the maturity of not needing to rush and escaping the feeling of always chasing relevancy. A decade ago, Kendrick was spinning tales that were deeply reflective of his looking around at the places that made him. And through the years that lyrical gaze has turned increasingly inward. Where S80 and GKMC may have analyzed the effects of the environments, TPAB, and Damn start to give voice to the internal struggles of a man. And now MMTBS is a mature assessment of oneself.
From the opening track “United in Grief” Kendrick is unflinchingly honest with his audience, that he has “been going through somethin” which feels more like a response to the refrains of hopes for peace of mind and paradise. From using money and sex to ease the pain to addressing the mixed emotions with how his father raised him to confessing his hypocrisy in how he sometimes was reckless with his own words to coming to terms with his inability to make anyone, even himself happy; MMTBS is therapy. A topic that is referenced several times throughout the project. This is a man sharing his healing and growth with a culture that often rejects the very notion of seeking mental health assistance. On the melodic track ‘Father Time’ he says “Everything them four walls taught me, made habits buried deep. That man knew a lot but not enough to keep me past them streets” This line is so universally relevant and relatable, every person can think back to their own childhood and point to the things their parents did, good or bad, that they found to be deeply a part of who they were as an adult. The most personal track of this 18-piece symphony has to be ‘Mother I Sober’.
“Heal myself, secrets that I hide, buried in these words. Death threats, ego must die, but I let it purge. Pacify broken pieces of me, it was all a blur.”
The return of Kendrick to music is such a comforting space. We all had grown accustomed to regularly having his contributions to the culture, at almost regular intervals. Over the last decade-plus, he had become such a familiar piece of the landscape that I for one expected him to always be present. I don't feel like he has ever been taken for granted or underappreciated. But just like being able to embrace family members again, visit Grandma safely, and have cookouts at your own discretion, these things feel sweeter after experiencing life in their absence. A newfound appreciation of what you value. With this latest offering, Kendrick is not raising his own status as a legendary MC but instead raising the culture as a whole. “I bare my soul and now we’re free.”