When Twitter broke the news of Kendrick Lamar’s new album untitled unmastered. Thursday night, the gears immediately started to turn.
Why? Why this album at this time, out the blue with no real title, song titles, promotion or cover art? Why only eight tracks and 35 minutes? In 2016, it’s the records that seem to possess the smallest amount of planning that actually contain the most thought. Therefore, I was noticeably intrigued when our own Anthony Hueston offered up his theory as to why Kendrick Lamar would opt to pull off the patented “three-step drop” (as coined by HHSR) with this record at this juncture. “Kendrick is planning a move to Roc Nation,” he said. “It’s happening right before our eyes.”
We’re in no position to speak in absolutes (like so many choose to do these days), but Anthony’s off the cuff thesis did have some merit. Unsubstantiated merit, but merit nonetheless. And the more I thought about it, the more sense it made for all parties involved.
So with that, here are five reasons why Kendrick Lamar’s release of untitled unmastered. could mean he’s plotting an exodus from Interscope to partner with Jay Z and Roc Nation:
1) The Three-Step Drop Approach For untitled unmastered.
Again, no promotion, cover art, song titles, album title, or any real warning went into this project. The surprise album is always fun for fans, but can largely be seen as a strategic move by an artist looking to get out of a deal with their current label while putting out minimal effort, make a quick buck, or both. HHSR discussed this last year when Drake dropped If You’re Reading This, It’s Too Late, and Lil Wayne released Free Weezy Album, both of which were efforts to wrestle away from Birdman and Cash Money’s kung-fu grip.
Many artists have dozens, if not hundreds of songs in the can ready for release on a rainy day. Currently, there’s no noticeably stormy weather hovering over the offices of Interscope and Aftermath, but that doesn’t mean Kendrick wouldn’t attempt to improve his situation if greener pastures were on the horizon. In essence, free agency equals options, and who doesn’t like options?
2) Kendrick’s Relationship With Jay Z
Nobody has more respect for the greats that rocked the mic before him than Kendrick Lamar (see TPAB). So it’s only natural that Kendrick would be eager to forge a relationship with rap’s greatest living legend. Even though Jay did appear on the “Bitch Don’t Kill My Vibe Remix” several years ago, we had never seen Kendrick and Jay Z in the same place before. Hence, seeing them together at the Super Bowl, and again together courtside at a recent Clippers game would certainly cause hip-hop heads to take notice.
There appears to be a budding relationship here, but it extends beyond just box seats and basketball. For years, Kendrick has been linked to Jay’s Roc Nation protégé J Cole. While the duo has yet to release their long-rumored and highly-anticipated joint album, they did collaborate on their own “Black Friday” interpretations just a few months ago. This would be topped only by K Dot joining forces for the first time with Jay’s other rambunctious “little brother” Kanye West on West’s “No More Parties in LA“. It was the first time K & K had ever appeared on the same track, and all this happened within the last three months.
Contrary to the belief of those who’ve always felt he was a cold and distant businessman not concerned with “the struggle”, Jay Z’s list philanthropic endeavors is longer than the O.J. trial (which evidently is still going on). This level of kindhearted do-goodedness, particularly towards the Black community, is exactly the sort of thing that would peak the interest of the politically charged Lamar. Kendrick is always speaking out about something either audibly through his music, or visually through his live performances.
Interestingly, both Kendrick and Carter have expressed a desire to be more like the other through song. It was Hov who said back in 2003, “Truthfully I wanna rhyme like Common Sense/ (But I did five mil) I ain’t been rhyming like Common since”, and it was Kendrick who on “untitled 07 2014-2016” (the only song from untitled unmastered. that appears to have been written in 2016) said the following:
“I feel like Pacino in Godfather, I’m charged/ Our father who art in heaven, Kendrick at large/ Came in the game with a plan of beating the odds/ What an accomplishment/ Broken promises kept my focus anonymous til I dealt with the consequence/ The greatest, the latest mogul, you know what time it is”
Clearly, the two share common interests, and the revelation that Kendrick fancies himself as “the greatest, the latest mogul” is undoubtedly a plus for Shawn Carter. Who could forget that Jay Z is the poster child for economical empowerment for black people within the hip-hop era? Jigga is quick to remind us he started his own independent record label when he couldn’t get a deal, and he had the foresight to purchase a streaming music service and make it his own last year. Of course, he’s also made it a point to address his own people who criticized this move, and the institutional racism it spawned.
Bossin’ up is in Hov’s blood, just as social justice pumps through Kendrick’s. Together they could merge the two universes in ways rap has never seen before.
Sidebar: Furthermore, it appears Kendrick’s pro-black agenda has rubbed off on Hov’s better half, as Beyoncé has gotten much more “conscious” of late (by her standards anyway). It’s pretty safe to assume the “Beyoncé” song stuff is all water under the bridge.
3) The Catch Up
Drake is an absolute supernova in hip-hop, and he’s wielded his power without hesitation in any number of ways. He’s formed a united front with Future, he’s released singles without albums that would become Grammy-nominated and three-step dropped platinum albums, and he’s controlling NBA All-Star Weekend. Kendrick appeared to be falling behind in the arms race for hip-hop supremacy. By deploying untitled unmastered., Kendrick moves one step closer to getting out of his deal with Aftermath/Interscope, allowing him to link up with someone more powerful than Birdman, Wayne, Hendrix or anybody Drizzy has teamed up with to date.
It’s also worth noting that Anthony “Top Dawg” Tiffith himself said fans should thank longtime friend of Jay Z, LeBron James, for the release of untitled unmastered.. The way the stars aligned for this release seem to allow Kendrick to cover all basis and put himself once again on par with Drake within a pop culture and relevancy context.
4) Kendrick Has Maxed Out At Aftermath/Interscope
After launching the careers of Eminem, 50 Cent and The Game, and making an absolute KILLING from the Beats By Dre deal with Apple (a cool $3 BILLION to be exact), Dr. Dre and Jimmy Iovine have all but moved on from the music industry in terms of artist development. While Jimmy was helping create the Apple Music streaming service, Dre was busy seeking closure on his musical career, which due to failing to ever drop “Detox”, was something he never had before. Dr. Dre was able to find this closure in the form of last year’s Straight Outta Compton movie and album; now he’s creating his own television series loosely based on his life.
Kendrick Lamar doesn’t seem to fall in either of their plans.
It’s likely that K Dot’s relationship with Dre, both Compton natives of course, had a lot to do with his and Top Dawg Entertainment’s signing with Aftermath/Interscope in 2012. But on the record, Kendrick noted in an interview with CBC.ca that the decision to link with Aftermath/Interscope wasn’t about money. “It was about who understood the vision. And Dre and Jimmy Iovine understood,” Lamar said. “They understand how the growth of an independent company, like Aftermath, can develop into something that becomes its own Interscope, and that’s what we’re doing with Top Dawg Entertainment.”
Jimmy and Dre certainty understand that, but more than Hovito? The man who took Roc-A-Fella records from the trunk of his car and New York nightclubs in the mid-90s to the single biggest independent label in hip-hop, and a partnership and ultimately a complete takeover of Def Jam? Dr. Dre was already a household name when he launched Aftermath after splitting with Suge Knight and Death Row. Jay Z started Roc-A-Fella from nothing. The talent, desire and business acumen required to pull that off is astonishing— Jay Z has all of it in spades.
Four years after merging with Dre and Jimmy, TDE has released exactly four albums under the Aftermath/Interscope umbrella, including untitled unmastered.. Three of them were Kendrick solo albums, with Schoolboy Q’s Oxymoron being released through Interscope only. Ab-Soul and Jay Rock each released solo albums within the last two years, but neither were affiliated with Aftermath/Interscope, and it shows. Each record received moderate to good critical acclaim, but neither did significant numbers.
This dude is bigger than just rap.
Jay Z has walked many miles in Kendrick’s Chuck Taylors. He’s been the Shawn Michaels to the rest of his crew’s Degeneration X. He’s been the best rapper alive. He’s built businesses from the ground up. He’s taken stands on social issues. He’s been a trendsetter and has made waves culturally. He’s been the face of music. He’s “done made more millionaires than the lotto did”, and he’s done it all simultaneously. For all his accomplishments, Dr. Dre cannot say the same.
It’s unclear exactly how many albums are left on TDE’s Aftermath/Interscope deal, but a defection to the Jay Z-led Roc Nation feels like the most efficient move for Top Dawg’s crew. The point here isn’t to say Kendrick has dragged TDE as far as he can, but that he’s taken TDE as far as he can under Aftermath/Interscope.
5) Jay Z Remains Relevant
We spoke earlier about Kendrick’s relevancy. On that note, in addition to living vicariously through the raging black lyricist that gave us “The Blacker The Berry”, Jay Z’s greatest motivation for partnering with Kendrick Lamar is it provides him with a turnkey conduit to relevancy.
It’s hard to imagine a rap world where Jay Z wasn’t at the forefront of the industry— we haven’t lived in that world in nearly 20 years! But it’s going on three years since Magna Carta Holy Grail fell out of the sky during the NBA Finals, an album which didn’t quite resonate with most like some of his past works, and Jay Z’s stature within the game is beginning to evolve. The people who grew with Shawn during his rise to “King of New York” status are now in their 30s and 40s. The drivers of the culture are now young enough to be his children, as Carter is now 46 years old and a father himself. Not only is Jay getting longer in the tooth, but so are the people he’s so often leaned on for ideas, production and support (Timbaland, Swizz Beatz, DJ Premiere, Just Blaze, Kanye, Scarface, Rick Ross, Jeezy, Nas, Pharrell etc.).
Many fail to realize it, but when an OG partners with a new jack that has the juice for a song or project, it’s a mutually beneficial relationship. The co-sign gives the young’n a bump in credibility in exchange for relevance for the old head. Relevance to an old head is like a 32-pack of Aquafina to the man roaming the Sahara. Ultimately, the swap of audiences is a far more valuable currency than the actual dollars that are wired between accounts. So when Jay (finally) linked up with T.I. last week, it made a few waves, but not as many as when he inked the now insanely popular DJ Khaled to a management deal under Roc Nation.
Sidebar: Not that Khaled is young, but he has managed to tap into a younger demographic via Snapchat, which by the way, who saw that coming??? Khaled is the comeback player of the year!
Jay is a sports fanatic— he’s now running his team like a coach/GM, and if available, Kendrick is easily the biggest free agent on the market. At this stage of his career, Hov is like Gregg Popovich who knows Kendrick is his Kawhi Leonard waiting in the wings. After years of petty disses back and forth with Drake, Hova is going next level. Besides, who better to defend “Steph Curry with the shot” than KL? (Get it?)
It’s necessary for Jay to make power moves like this because his career as a musician might be finally drying up with the younger audiences who push the culture forward. Fortunately, America’s political climate is ripe for an artist like Kendrick Lamar to ascend to even greater heights than he’s attained on his own; Jay Z — who historically has been far more conscious than he’s ever been given credit for — has the keys to the penthouse.
Maybe this partnership never happens, but that would be regrettable. For it seems Kendrick Lamar and TDE has hit a glass ceiling under their current management, and without a superstar like K Lamar, Jay Z will continue to slowly, and somewhat tragically spiral into Spike Lee/Jack Nicholson/Billy Crystal status: a rich old guy who used to be great, and still shows flashes of brilliance on occasion, but mostly just attends a lot of basketball games.