This album requires special attention. In an over saturated market full of monochromatic, ‘look at how rich I am’ rap, it’s always refreshing to hear a project that makes you look within. A project that challenges you to address certain things you may have neglected and confront certain inner conflicts. The fusion of true funk, genuine hip hop, and abundant soul makes this an experience that leaves the listener pondering life or reveling in a new perspective; either way, better for the experience. This is a very complex album and it requires multiple listens to really get all the points and the full impact. I’m going to discuss the more unique tracks and just develop what it seems like Kendrick is trying to convey. But first of all we have to think about the title “To Pimp A Butterfly”. Kendrick is alluding to a a few things with the title. The pimping of his artistic abilities to the masses by record labels, the pimping of his culture to the world while he and his people are hated for the same things, pimping ones soul for success or acceptance; there are countless ways to interpret the title. That’s what makes it so great. The butterfly is the beauty of something in its finished and truest form. Pimping this beauty to gain meaningless, fleeting pleasures or prizes is a terrible thing. But if you look at the album cover it would seem our government/our country that was built off pimping the beauty of the butterfly is now reaping what it sewed. (sips tea) I’m just going to warn you now, scroll down and look for yourself, this is a very long one. Alright, now that we’ve done that, let’s get into it...
“Every nigga is a star..every nigga is a star....”
Wesley’s Theory ft George Clinton & Thundercat
K. Dot himself has said this is his favorite song on the album right now. The above quote is the chorus sung in a sample that begins the song/album. Kendrick spends this track trying to describe how most people would act if they ‘came up’. It’s the classic reaction to new money: I’m buying everything and going fuckin nuts. This is the way you are enticed into the game this nation and society play with people. You end up not knowing how to live that rich life, or how to protect what you have. In the end it often ends up with you having almost nothing and perhaps even being arrested for taxes or something. George Clinton and Kendrick team up over a funk track if I’ve ever heard one. Mr Clinton even blesses us with a solo in which he delivers a cosmic warning as only he can. The chorus,”We shoulda never gave you niggas money! Go back home! Money! Go back home!” is sung throughout ant it just makes the point so clear. The synthesizer, the drums, the sci-fi sounds....man this track is classic. I’m callin it. It’s such a perfect start to this peculiar, but brilliant project. (shout out to Dave Chapelle and Rick James. If you don’t know why don’t worry about it)
A solitary saxophone greets you at the beginning of this break, a roaring chorus erupts and accompanies this tracks arrival. This interlude is really more of a spoken word piece, so it doesn’t feel like a break in the music. So, imagine a ratchet chick you went to high school with. Got it? Ok, that’s how this track starts. A very disappointed woman who embodies hood ideals and only wears 28-inch brazilian weave. She is telling the subject how ‘aint shit’ he is and how her other man is on now because our protagonist (Kendrick) is off. The intellectual music playing in the background really boosts the suspense too. Kendrick created a gem with this line: “This dick aint freeeee!” You want this dick and all this extra shit? What about me? Kendrick manages to rift on this premise over thrilling jazz instrumentation for the remainder of the interlude. This is the black man saying “No.” I built this country, I try to be a good person, I try to achieve my goals, I try and try and I refuse to be belittled by everyone and thought of as useless unless being utilized by someone else. No.
Kendrick Sees himself as the king of his domain; rap, America, the world. Even though a lot of great rappers exist he is the king and he refuses to entertain any other notions pertaining to the subject. However, he acknowledges his blackness and his just recent ascension to pauper from peasant. He knows that he is rich but still a mortal man (MESSAGE!). We are all just living and trying to get by with ‘the man’ hot on our trail, just like Kunta. Kendrick is King Kunta. The leader of the slaves. The savior of the rap game. He is sick of rappers perpetrating behind ghost writers and he is ready to take his throne. This is an interesting song. Its production consists of super funky drums, a quick and hopping bass line, scratching vinyl, guitar, sound effects, man it has it all. It’s all choreographed so well and it just comes out to be pure F-U-N-K. Kendrick in a deep synthesized voice asks,”Now if I give you the funk, you gon take it?” Of course, the ladies tell the honest truth,”We want the funk!” Then the track ends but Kendrick recites the first of a series of reiterations of the intro to a poem he is building to over the entire album. “I remember you was conflicted, misusing ya influence.”
Institutionalized ft Bilal, Anna Wise & Snoop Dogg
This track starts with drums and a snare with the beat coming in very cerebral and light. Kendrick comes in in a nasally tone, describing how being from the ghetto can trap an individual in a certain mind state. in effect you are institutionalized. You can gain riches and popularity but you are still going to think the same way. The hood and the social conditions that cause it to exist shape the way you think and you are forever institutionalized. The beat switches up and now it sounds like a 90′s jazz-hip hop single. Kendrick comes in calm. From what I can tell he is describing the experience of coming up but still hanging with the same people. Kendrick reacts to this situation by quoting his grandmother: “Shit don’t change until ya get up and wash yo ass, nigga!” Snoop comes in and just spits the chorus like a pimp. I mean seriously he just sounds like an OG spittin game, but I guess he always does, huh?
These Walls ft Bilal, Anna Wise & Thundercats
This track begins with Kendrick continuing the poem he ended King Kunta with with fingers snapping in the background. “I remember you was conflicted, misusing ya influence. Sometimes I did the same.” Suddenly a woman’s moans are heard. It isn’t immediately apparent whether they’re of agony or pleasure but after the next few it sounds more painful. “If these walls could talk.” is chanted louder and louder until the song jumps in with drums and a great bopping melody. The song starts so dim and dark and it bursts into this joyous song that can send you off floating to the beat. As the title implies Kendrick is describing the pleasure of a woman and the pleasure both he and she can enjoy together. He relates a woman’s walls with the ‘walls closing in’ and how if they could talk they would be screaming at him, but he intends on tearing them down. This song is the first one on the album where Kendrick is just giving us a pleasant display of figurative and metaphoric ability. He is delivering euphemism after euphemism and metaphor after metaphor over such a happy beat. This song really makes you wanna funk out. It’s just a summer track waiting for the weather to break. Then the beat breaks down over electric keys and a waning sax. Kendrick tells of his nights within the walls of someones wife/girlfriend. If her walls could talk they would tell her man of the times her and Kendrick spent together. Fittingly, the beat falls into deeper echoing. Again, Kendrick continues his poem: “I remember you was conflicted, misusing ya influence. Sometimes I did the same. Abusing my power, full of resentment. Resentment that turned into a deep depression. I found myself screaming in a hotel room.”
Screams into the instrumental darkness start off as Kendrick releases his anguish. “Loving you is complicated” is chanted from Kendrick and others. The deep depression that he is thrown into. The pain felt by one who is not so in love with themselves. The discipline it takes for some to thoroughly and constantly love themselves. Anxiety, depression, dark thoughts; it’s all part of the struggle to love ones self. It complicates our pursuit of inner light and truth. It makes us question our own motives and thoughts and feelings without any real energy except that which we give it by paying any attention to it. ‘u’ are why it’s so hard to pass this class, or get this raise, or get that girl, or make any friends. It’s all ‘u’. The sax is wailing and the bass is like a war drum over sci fi horror effects. This track is Kendrick simply showing us how our insecurities and self hatred would sound if we said it out loud. It’s dark and scary. It really just sounds mean and vindictive. There is always a part of us who plays the devil’s advocate. A part of us that is susceptible to dark influence or easily falls into a habit of self loathing. This leads into the next part of the song where Kendrick is apparently very drunk, clumsily guzzling liquor and stumbling around. throwing all the blame at ‘u’. Claiming ‘u’ wont stay loyal to your friends and ‘u’ the reason momma left. ‘u’ aint try. The sax comes in and drives the point home.
This track is much needed after such a dark and serious track. Pharrell on the hook so you know it’s all good. The song lifts you up through a bouncing rhythm that lets you know its gon be alright. But Kendrick begins to introduce us to Luci (Lucifer) in the second verse. You can just hang with Luci and everything can be alright. But that’s more of a passing notion at this point. For now as long as God got us we gon be alright. Just keep your head up high and it’s gon be alright. Then the poem: “I remember you was conflicted, misusing ya influence. Sometimes I did the same. Abusing my power, full of resentment. Resentment that turned into a deep depression. I found myself screaming in a hotel room. I didn’t wanna self destruct. The evils of Luci was all around me. So I went running for answers.”
Harmonizing vocalists bring in this break. Deep breathing and chimes come in next and kind of set up this alice in wonderland effect right before the sax comes back to set up the perfect vibe for this track. The idea of being for sale or ones soul being available to purchase or commandeer is what Kendrick is trying to convey. “They say if you scared, go to church. But remember, he knows the bible too.” This song is personifying Luci’s desire to consume Kendrick and how willing he is to pay if he has to. Luci even claims Sherane has nothing on what he can give Kendrick. The production is jazzy, airy, and sort of festive, actually. It just sounds good like the rest of the album does. The subject matter exists in a duality with the vibes of the tracks. Almost like Kendrick wanted to show the power of being upbeat through the temptation to sell out or the difficulty of resisting negativity. Then he begins to recite the poem again: “I remember you was conflicted, misusing ya influence. Sometimes I did the same. Abusing my power, full of resentment. Resentment that turned into a deep depression. I found myself screaming in a hotel room. I didn’t wanna self destruct. The evils of Luci was all around me. So I went running for answers. Until I came home.”
On Hood Politics he continues the poem: “I remember you was conflicted, misusing ya influence. Sometimes I did the same. Abusing my power, full of resentment. Resentment that turned into a deep depression. I found myself screaming in a hotel room. I didn’t wanna self destruct. The evils of Luci was all around me. So I went running for answers. Until I came home. But that didn’t stop survivors guilt. Going back and forth trying to convince myself of the stripes I’d earned. Or maybe how A1 my foundation was. But while my loved ones was fighting a continuing war back in the city, I was entering a new one.”
How Much Does A Dollar Cost ft. James Fauntleroy & Ronald Isley
The piano and the claps on this track are crisp and pronounced that they almost overpower Kendrick’s voice at times. But it’s cool, though. It just makes you feel it even deeper. This track has a soulful quality to it and the message is simple: Be kind too all and walk a righteous path. The song describes the classic ‘savior as a beggar’ story. But Kendrick takes this and puts it in such modern detail that the context can be felt through speakers like brail under a blind mans finger. The message is driven home with vivid depictions of a man who has seen some hard times assuring Kendrick he has kicked his habits and just needs help getting back on his feet. Of course, Kendrick being a kind man sees a human in need and wants to help but is conflicted because he wants to keep what he has earned. He wants to keep what he has worked hard for just like anyone else would. It isn’t selfish to want what is yours, is it? In this struggle Kendrick justifies not giving the man any of his money through this logic and that leads to the man revealing himself as the messiah, the savior, God. Letting Kendrick know just how big of a mistake he has made: “...I’ll tell you just how much a dollar cost. The price of having a spot in heaven, embrace your loss, I am God.” At this point anyone would be regretful and full of sorrow for their tragic misstep. The venerable Ron Isley comes in for just a short time to bless us with a true human reaction to such a harsh realization:
“I wash my hands, I said my graceWhat more do you want from me?Tears of a clown, guess I'm not all what is meant to beShades of grey will never change if I condoneTurn this page, help me change, so right my wrongs”
This track is very significant. Because it shows that we must have compassion for others even if we are hard working and deserving ourselves. It is not just about us as individuals, we must embrace our humanity and work to improve the lives of all. Even the unlikeliest among us can be of great importance and accomplish great things.
This song is beautiful. If you are a black person this song is especially beautiful. The complexion of ones skin has affected you more and you can relate to the idea of just ignoring complexion. Just knowing its all skin and its all beautiful. To be color struck is to be focused on the shallow and the meaningless. The beat is another bopping joint. The funk that started off the album is not as dominant at this point. The last few tracks have been more jazz and old school soul influenced. I’m serious man, Dilla would be proud. Rhapsody graces us with a verse on this track. She uses her seemlss flow to reinforce Kendrick’s point: Black is beautiful, regardless of shade or complexion.
So, this track was controversial to me at first. I didn’t like it at first. But it’s real. It just points out how America, black people included, loves to build up black people just to shoot them down; literally. The fetish we have with all that is gangster, hardcore, dangerous, and black is a dangerous lover affair. We love to look at a black person as a novelty to be played with and disposed of whenever the fad tires out. It’s disgusting and eventually it will lead to serious consequences. The hypocrisy of black people loving one another and not hating the killing of one another is absurd and Kendrick wants people to acknowledge that.
You Aint Gotta Lie (Momma Said)
This track is simple and sweet: Dont front. The end.
Kendrick put this out as a single and we all know it. Some hate it but Kendrick said on Hot 97 that this was his favorite song he’s made in a long time. It’s a track about loving yourself and that’s more important than most of us realize. It’s hard to have total confidence and love yourself. Because it usually takes years to learn who we are and then we can finally start trying to love our selves. This song helps make that seem ok. This album version is a ‘live’ version with crowd noise and interaction. Half way through Kendrick is interrupted by disruption from the crowd and he intervenes in the conflict to tell them black people have to stop playing victim and take responsibility for our actions. He goes on to rap about an ancient term: Negus (nee-guss). A word of Ethiopian origin that was used to describe rich, black kings in ancient times. Kendrick uses this to relate to the modern widespread use of ‘niggas’. It’s pretty brilliant and I have to say it really makes you think about how easy it is to switch perspectives with a little effort and knowledge.
This song is interesting because Kendrick is questioning the loyalty of his listeners. He references Michael Jackson, Jesse Jackson, and other celebrities that reached critical acclaim for their accomplishments but were dropped and admonished by everyone when they slipped and were found to be imperfect like the rest of us. The Bass and the sax along with the drums make this strolling beat a pleasant introspective journey. “When shit hit the fan, is you still a fan?” Kendrick wants to be acknowledged as a history maker, but for good. He needs our loyalty and our trust in him because he wants us to believe his message. This is where his album concludes but not before he finishes his poem:
“I remember you was conflicted
Misusing your influence
Sometimes I did the same
Abusing my power, full of resentment
Resentment that turned into a deep depression
Found myself screaming in the hotel room
I didn’t wanna self destruct
The evils of Lucy was all around me
So I went running for answers
Until I came home
But that didn’t stop survivor’s guilt
Going back and forth trying to convince myself the stripes I earned
Or maybe how A-1 my foundation was
But while my loved ones was fighting the continuous war back in the city, I was entering a new one
A war that was based on apartheid and discrimination
Made me wanna go back to the city and tell the homies what I learned
The word was respect
Just because you wore a different gang colour than mine's
Doesn’t mean I can’t respect you as a black man
Forgetting all the pain and hurt we caused each other in these streets
If I respect you, we unify and stop the enemy from killing us
But I don’t know, I’m no mortal man, maybe I’m just another nigga”
Upon finishing Kendrick begins to have a conversation with Tupac and we realize that his whole time he has been reciting this poem to Pac. It’s cool as fuck the first time you listen because you feel like you are just listening to two legends kickin it. These are unreleased Pac interviews and Kendrick used them to have a conversation with him about the lower classes rising up, black men in America, and the hope music brings for the future. Saxophone and piano play as Kendrick recites to Pac something he thinks is poignant to the times.:
“The caterpillar is a prisoner to the streets that conceived it
Its only job is to eat or consume everything around it, in order to protect itself from this mad city
While consuming its environment the caterpillar begins to notice ways to survive
One thing it noticed is how much the world shuns him, but praises the butterfly
The butterfly represents the talent, the thoughtfulness, and the beauty within the caterpillar
But having a harsh outlook on life the caterpillar sees the butterfly as weak and figures out a way to pimp it to his own benefits
Already surrounded by this mad city the caterpillar goes to work on the cocoon which institutionalizes him
He can no longer see past his own thoughts
He’s trapped
When trapped inside these walls certain ideas take roots, such as going home, and bringing back new concepts to this mad city
The result?
Wings begin to emerge, breaking the cycle of feeling stagnant
Finally free, the butterfly sheds light on situations that the caterpillar never considered, ending the internal struggle
Although the butterfly and caterpillar are completely different, they are one and the same."
