Rap’s biggest superstar might be calling it quits on Top Dawg Entertainment, the record label that helped put him on the map.
On Friday, in a message to his fans called “nu thoughts” dropped via Twitter, Kendrick Lamar, announced that he is producing his “final TDE album” after 17 years of being a part of the “cultural imprint.”
If the Compton artist who’s given fans a bevy of beautiful, challenging, and virtuosic verses over the last decade-and-a-half is to be taken at his word it could signal an evolution to his relationship with TDE or, as many fans are fearing, a hip-hop world without Lamar’s voice.
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That latter scenario is still up in the air due to the cryptic phrasing of the message. It being his final “TDE” album could gesture toward another kind of partnership with a brand or label of Lamar’s making. Some have wondered if the announcement means that he’ll be putting more effort and intent behind the pgLang boutique—with an act like Carson, California’s Baby Keem as a collaborator—he established in 2020 alongside TDE president Dave Free. Aside from a promotional mission statement and an announced sponsorship with Calvin Klein, the brand has been pretty dormant for the last year or so.
Lamar’s last album, 2017’s DAMN, was a forceful entry into what was already a crackin’ discography, netting the 34-year-old rapper a Grammy for Best Rap Album as well as a Pulitzer Prize for Music.
But life kept lifin’ for Lamar who, it seems, is concerned with loftier ideas both creatively and personally than just music.
As of 2019, he’s a father, and fiancé to high-school sweetheart Whitney Alford. He’s mentioned desires to get into acting after a guest spot on 50 Cent’s Power, and has numerous brand collaborations and real estate investments.
The key here is that every opportunity is calculated and deliberate. Music, no matter the love, could beget other opportunities for Lamar to stretch his mind and heart in “fulfilling his life’s calling.”
Nevertheless, due to his relative silence between albums and touring, any message from K.Dot is sure to make waves around the industry. Whether pgLang or preaching the good word is his next venture, hip-hop and the world at large will be waiting with bated breath.
