GNX (2024) - Kendrick Lamar

2024 was a big year for Kendrick Lamar. After winning the softest rap battle ever with Drake ("You need therapy", "No, you need therapy"....what ever happened to 'that's why I f**ked yo' b**ch, you fat motherf**ker'), and being announced as the Superbowl halftime show headliner, things were already shaping up quite well. Then, out of nowhere, he dropped this album just in time to claim back his throne and remind everyone that is the best rapper in the game. All in all, quite a productive time. 

In the past, Kendrick has set the bar for modern rap albums very high. After the success of 'Good Kid, M.A.A.D City' he dropped 2015s 'To Pimp a Butterfly' which astonished most people with it's sheer scope. That was followed by the best album he's released to date - 'Damn' (2017) and in 2022 he released 'Mr. Morale and the Hotsteppers' which, again, continued to push the boundaries in terms of production and, in particular, subject matter. There are really no throwaway tracks on a Kendrick Lamar album and he rarely, if ever, creates music that you could ever consider casual listening. You are supposed to switch everything else off and listen. He won't accept anything less, it seems. 

Indeed 'GNX' (named after a vintage Buick Model purchased earlier in the year) begins on this familiar note. There is the ultra dramatic intro sung by Mexican mariachi singer Deyra Barrera leading us into 'wacced out murals' which sees Kendrick addressing a multitude of haters over an increasingly heavy and angry sounding beat. This list includes Snoop Dogg, Lil Wayne and many other industry figures. Kendrick sounds suitably peeved throughout yet, possibly for the first time in his career, it feels a little same old same old. I am aware that this is probably a sacrilegious statement in many circles but to me it just feels a bit stagnant. It's almost as if Kendrick Lamar is doing a satire of...Kendrick Lamar.

However, things brighten after this opening number. 'squabble up' is a Debbie Deb-sampling bouncy club anthem, albeit a very weird one. Similar to 'King Kunta', it's a slow burner that actually works better the more you listen to it and it is nice to hear something other than righteous indignation. The chorus of "I feel good, get the f*ck out my faaaace" left me humming along for days after. 'luther' is a dip into, dare I say, sensual R&B territory and makes for yet another wonderful change of pace. SZA and Kendrick duetting about lurve over a dreamy string-laden beat makes the dark nights of winter go by that bit easier. 

'man at the garden' (all songs are stylised in lower case, I'm not a muppet) sounds so much like 'One Mic' by Nas that it's very hard to enjoy as a song on it's own merit and I'm not ashamed to say that it took me many listens to get past this. Thankfully I think I'm finally there and this song is worthy of respect. Furthermore, if any further evidence was needed that Kendrick Lamar can out-rap anyone in the world this track would be the one to cement the point. One undeniable fact is that the man knows how to flow and as the song builds, it really does hit you quite sternly in the emotion bone. Certainly an album highlight.

The guttural bass of 'hey now' really puts you in the front seat of a low rider rolling through the streets of Compton late at night and absolutely rocks the speakers. Keeping the beats banging, 'reincarnated' uses an old 2Pac classic while Lamar talks from the point of view of a spirit that has worked it's way through multiple lives to find the spirit of Kendrick himself by the end. Again, not many people in this day and age are thinking about hip hop on this level and it really is a joy to listen to. 

Then a strange thing happens. The momentum seems to suddenly slow. 'TV Off', which is arguably the centrepiece of the album, sounds big but left me a bit flat, and from here things start to sag a bit. This is not the fault of Kendrick Lamar himself, we just start to get into a section of tracks where there is a number of guest appearances from the likes of Lefty Gunplay and Wallie the Sensei. Who? Exactly. I'm not saying this is inherently a bad thing, I am after all a middle aged man and probably haven't kept up with the up and comers in the rap game of late, it is more that when dealing with an artist of this quality who is operating at such a high level, bringing in guest rappers feels a little bit like going to see Michael Jordan play only for him to keep passing to Judd Buechler and Bill Wennington. 

Also, with posse cuts such as 'gnx' or 'dodger blue' I just don't get the point of attempting one unless you're trying to bring a classic to the table. If you're not trying to be the next 'Scenario' or 'The Symphony' then really what is the point? Posse cuts can serve as a great way to introduce new talent to the game, I get it, but the great ones usually feature a showstopping moment from at least someone on the song (ala Nicki Minaj on 'Monster' or Big Pun on 'John Blaze'). This album features multiple songs with guest appearances and I found not one of them memorable. But that's just me. 

Don't get me wrong, there is much to still enjoy, particularly the old school west coast thump of 'dodger blue', it just starts to feel more like a mixtape than a full-blown album and when you compare it to something like 'To Pimp A Butterfly' it all feels quite tame and uninspired. 'heart pt. 6' is a great hip hop song - the beat is laid back and Kendrick's raps are immaculate, talking pointedly about his days coming up and before the fame etc - and album closer 'gloria' gives a similar vibe and closes us out strong. Both songs show Lamar at his absolute finest, giving us music to not just nod your head to, but to think about too. But does it all make for a great album? For me it does not. 

As with all Kendrick albums, they require multiple listens before being able to accurately distill what's happening. However, after many attempts with this one, it just feels a bit thin on the bone compared to his previous efforts. It's still an excellent album. But this is an artist who has multiple seminal records to his name and this just doesn't live up to what we've come to expect from the man himself. His wordplay is still flawless and there's some great music to enjoy here, it just doesn't quite add up to something greater than the sum of it's parts. I'd even go so far as to say that the song 'gnx' is flat out weak. That is something you don't often say about a Lamar effort. If you're just beginning your journey into his catalogue, there are many better efforts out there to start with. This is still good, but when great has become the standard, good feels like a long way off. 

★★★☆☆

JB.