“To me he was everything that true hip-hop heads always wanted. It’s a complex piece of work that wasn’t some cut-and-paste, copied (album),” Basa said.ĭespite its pop star success, “DAMN.” is one of the most highly regarded releases in hip-hop history, following Lamar’s acclaimed albums, 2015′s “To Pimp a Butterfly” and 2012′s “good kid, m.A.A.d city.” I think that’s the quality of a great piece of work - whether it be an album or even a movie - the more you get into it, the more you like it.

“The beauty of ‘DAMN.’ is that the more you listen to it, the more you like it. Nielsen Music says it’s the second best-selling album this year, behind Ed Sheeran’s “Divide,” released March 3. “DAMN.” has sold over 1 million equivalent albums in just three weeks, and it has spent all three weeks at No. “If the forefathers of hip-hop had all gotten together and been like, ‘Man, where do you hope the music will be in 30 years?’ they would have wanted it to be a kid like Kendrick Lamar,” said Peter Rosenberg, the veteran radio personality at Hot 97. Two weeks later, “DAMN.” is finally out, becoming another critically revered and commercially successful album for Lamar, and assimilating his stance as the reigning king of rap and pop music’s unlikely juggernaut. A week later came “Humble,” an insta-hit that topped Billboard’s Hot 100 chart and launched a debate about women and butt injections, creating yet another pop culture moment for Lamar. It started with his song “The Heart Part 4,” which led to a viral guessing game about which rapper - or rappers - he was referring to on the powerful track featuring his signature sharp rhymes.

Lamar was a platinum-selling, Grammy-winning star before “DAMN.,” but the release of his third studio album has put him on another level. He’s the other side of the pillow,” said Tuma Basa, Spotify’s global head of hip-hop.

“In a way, Kendrick is the opposite of a lot of what’s popping right now. Last year it was Beyonce and her epic “Lemonade” visual.

Kendrick lamar new album 2017