Kendrick Lamar

Kendrick Lamar Will Reportedly Perform New Music During An Italian Festival

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Fans haven’t heard new music from Kendrick Lamar for nearly five years but according to an Instagram post from Italy’s Milano Summer Festival, that could change soon. The post includes an announcement for Kendrick’s show during the festival taking place at Ippodromo SNAI San Siro in Milan on June 23, where he will apparently be performing new tracks.

The post appears in Italian but translated, reads, “Kendrick Lamar returns to Italy with a super anticipated show which, produced and distributed by Vivo Concerti, will see him perform – after 8 years from his first performance in Italy, in 2014 – at the Milan Summer Festival (Ippodromo Snai) [on] Thursday 23 June 2022.” It also promised that Kendrick “will play the pieces of the new album, long-awaited by the fans.”

There’s been plenty of speculation about Kendrick’s new music with fans convinced he’d debut an all-new song during his Super Bowl halftime performance with Dr. Dre, Eminem, Mary J Blige, and Snoop Dogg. While that didn’t happen (Kendrick instead performed an edited version of his To Pimp A Butterfly single “Alright”), he’s been working on other projects in the meantime, including a movie with the creators of South Park and a new podcast breaking down the creation of his Grammy-winning album To Pimp A Butterfly.

Kendrick Lamar Will Be Breaking Down ‘To Pimp A Butterfly’ In A New Podcast

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Kendrick Lamar had a huge weekend at the Super Bowl, crushing it an all-timer halftime show performance with Snoop Dogg, Dr. Dre, Mary J. Blige, and Eminem. And while Kendrick didn’t debut the mythical new single on Sunday that we’ve all been waiting for, he did just announce a new podcast today about To Pimp A Butterfly, debuting tomorrow on Spotify.

In the second season of Spotify’s The Big Hit Show, Kendrick will be the focus of the five-part series that takes a look at the creation of the groundbreaking collision of hip-hop and jazz. “Going back into the album it was me explaining my experiences and what emotions it brought up from that experience,” he said in a trailer for the new show. “And tell them like, ‘Yo, it’s something bigger than Compton and where we from.’”

The show is hosted by music journalist Alex Pappademas and the first season was all about the Twilight saga. If that sounds a bit off the hip-hop spectrum, it’s because the podcast is an all-encompassing look at pop culture that dubs itself “an epic journey that spans genres, mediums, and generations to explore what happens when a wildly successful piece of pop culture gets so big that it changes the world. This show is about how big hits get dreamed up, how they get made, and what happens when we make them our own.”

It’s rare to have Lamar actually be a part of interviews and media about himself. Even arguably the definitive look at Lamar, journalist Marcus J. Moore’s excellent book, The Butterfly Effect, was an unofficial biography that didn’t feature an interview with the star. The Big Hit Show on TPAB will have Lamar front and center, as well as guests like George Clinton, Rapsody, and more.

The show debuts on Wednesday, 02/16 for free on Spotify, and you can stream it here.

Dr. Dre Reveals What Line The NFL Made Him Remove From His Super Bowl Performance

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Although it has been decades since Dr. Dre himself was at the center of any hip-hop controversies, there was some speculation and debate ahead of his recent Super Bowl halftime show performance that the NFL worried parts of the show could become culture war flashpoints. While the moments in question went off without a hitch, some folks did find plenty to complain about — even after the NFL offered notes on how to tone down potentially troublesome moments during the performance.

Dr. Dre revealed what “minor changes” the NFL made to the set during an interview with TMZ. While he did acknowledge the rumor that the NFL had barred his co-star Eminem from kneeling during his set, Dre said the real changes came during Kendrick Lamar’s portion of the performance. “Em taking the knee, that was Em doing that on his own, and there was no problem with that,” he said. However, regarding Kendrick’s song, “M.A.A.D. City,” the opening line “if Pirus and Crips could all get along” didn’t fly.

“They had a problem with that, so we had to take that out,” he said. “No big deal, we get it. But, all in all, everybody came in, we were professional, everybody was on time. Everybody felt the magnitude of what this thing was, and what we were going to be able to accomplish. It was a fantastic experience.” You can watch Dre’s interview below.

Fans Loved 50 Cent’s Surprise Upside Down Appearance At The Super Bowl Halftime Show

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Though we didn’t get the surprise new Kendrick Lamar single that plenty of people were hopeful would drop, another unexpected gift blessed hip-hop fans at this Super Bowl halftime show. Was it Eminem’s decision to kneel in solidarity with Colin Kaepernick? Well, that was lauded by most people. But no, the real gem that plenty of people were more thankful for was 50 Cent showing up to give us a little preview of his own litany of hits. Rumors that Fif would take the stage were already circulating, but nobody was sure if he was actually going to make it.

So when he entered with an upside down intro to his biggest hit, “In Da Club,” surprising the whole stadium who roared their approval, it was one of the big moments for the show. Obviously, Mary J. Blige killed her performance, Dre was amazing, especially for a man who was very recently hospitalized, and Eminem’s decision to kneel in solidarity with Kaepernick will likely be the biggest headline. Kendrick didn’t drop a new single, but he was electric, and Snoop is always a classic performer. But since fans were expecting all of those artists to show up, and 50 was the surprise guest, well, he was very appreciated for giving fans that moment. Check out some reactions to his performance below.

Watch Dr. Dre, Eminem, Kendrick Lamar, Snoop Dogg And Mary J. Blige Star In An Epic Super Bowl Halftime Show

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Anticipation for this year’s halftime show has reached a fever pitch as rumors about a new single from Kendrick Lamar have followed Dr. Dre’s star-studded lineup for the show. Well, the Kendrick single never materialized, but his performance was so electrified that fans were just as satiated. Between Kung Fu Kenny, Dre himself, Snoop Dogg, Mary J. Blige, Eminem, and a surprise appearance from 50 Cent, how could anyone not feel like this was one of the most epic halftime shows in history?

Though the league has a long history of avoiding booking rappers for the show, this year’s star-studded lineup was clearly designed to buck their past booking decisions and give hip-hop the spotlight. Particularly in a sport that includes so many Black athletes, staffers, and incorporates hip-hop culture in a lot of ways, it seems like a no-brainer that the league would want to embrace the relationship. In another move that feels like a no-brainer, Eminem elected to kneel after his performance of “Lose Yourself,” a clear sign of solidarity with Colin Kaepernick that the NFL had reportedly asked him not to do. Their first mistake? Telling Em what he can and can’t do. Check out the entire performance above, this one is one for the history books.