Kendrick Lamar Releases Good Kid, M.A.A.D City

Timelines Involved

Kendrick Lamar

Analysis

Kendrick Lamar releases his second studio album under Top Dawg Entertainment, Aftermath Entertainment and Interscope Records. The cover art for the album calls itself a short film and the album is structured in the way to portray that.

This album was received incredibly well, ranking at the top of many music critics top of the year chart. Kendrick and this album were nominated for in total 7 Grammys though ended up winning none. Most notably losing best rap album and best new artist to Macklemore which Macklemore ended up apologizing for.

Making Of Article Summary

An extensive 'making of' article was published by complex a day after the release of the album. Kendrick Lamar and other Top Dawg members talk about each track of the album in detail. A summary of what they said about them album are in the paragraphs below.

Kendrick Lamar's album "good kid, m.A.A.d city" was conceptualized years before its release, with Lamar describing it as a "dark movie album" that explores his teenage experiences in Compton. According to TDE President Punch (Anthony Tiffith's cousin), Lamar had the concept before all his mixtapes, even selecting the album cover two years in advance. The project was crafted meticulously while Lamar was touring with Drake, showcasing what Punch called his "focused and strong minded" approach to his craft. Lamar maintained complete creative control throughout the process, which he considered "one of the best feelings in the world," allowing him to create the dark, cinematic narrative he envisioned.

The album tells the story of "one day in the life of me and my homeboys," structured with a non-linear narrative that Lamar compared to "a Pulp Fiction feel." The authenticity of the album is enhanced by skits featuring Lamar's actual parents and friends, which MixedByAli (TDE's engineer who began recording ringtones in high school) explained "take place in '04" and serve as "reminders of what's going on in the story." These skits tie the storyline together by capturing genuine moments between Lamar and his associates before significant events in the narrative, such as "the house lick" or "meeting up with girls," creating an immersive experience that requires multiple listens to fully comprehend.

The album represents what Punch called "the whole introduction of Kendrick Lamar," completing a carefully planned trilogy that began with the "Kendrick Lamar EP" and continued with "Overly Dedicated" (which originally was meant to be remixes but evolved into a full project). Songs like "Average Joe" and "Keisha's Song" from "Overly Dedicated" and "Section.80" were initially intended for "good kid, m.A.A.d city" but were repurposed as Lamar's vision evolved. MixedByAli described the album as "the '80s babies album," noting that "everybody in our age bracket has experienced at least one thing that he talks about," from exposure to parents taking drugs to house parties and drinking.

TDE's ambitions extended beyond just creating a successful album; as Punch explained, their purpose was "to make a classic album" comparable to Jay-Z's "Reasonable Doubt", Dr. Dre's "The Chronic", and Nas's "Illmatic". This mindset reflects what MixedByAli called TDE's philosophy of "hard music and hard work," with the team aiming to "hustle like we broke" regardless of their growing success or Dr. Dre's support. Punch outlined TDE's goal to be "mentioned with the great companies: Roc-A-Fella, Death Row, Cash Money all the way up to Interscope and Aftermath," with future plans including projects from Schoolboy Q, Jay Rock, Ab-Soul, and the collective Black Hippy, demonstrating their forward-thinking approach to building a hip-hop dynasty.

Critical Reception

Kendrick Lamar's sophomore album "good kid, m.A.A.d city" received widespread critical acclaim upon its release in October 2012. The album earned a score of 91 on Metacritic based on 36 professional reviews, indicating "universal acclaim." Critics particularly praised Lamar's lyrical ability and narrative skills, with Rolling Stone's Jody Rosen noting that the album "warrants a place in that storied lineage" of "Seventies blaxploitation soundtracks and Nineties gangsta rap blaxploitation revivals." The Chicago Tribune's Greg Kot applauded Lamar for giving "gangsta tropes... a twist," while Pitchfork's Jayson Greene highlighted how the album successfully tied "straightforward rap thrills" to its "weighty material." AllMusic editor David Jeffries described it as "some kind of elevated gangsta rap," praising Lamar's "mix of true talk, open heart, open mind, and extended hand." Some critics expressed minor reservations, with NME's Hazel Sheffield suggesting it "might lack the raw appeal" of Lamar's previous work, and The Guardian's Alex Macpherson finding Lamar's "depiction of downtrodden women" to be "unnecessarily prurient and unconvincing."^[1]

Accolades

"Good kid, m.A.A.d city" appeared on numerous year-end lists, being named the best album of 2012 by BBC, Complex, Fact, New York, and Pitchfork. It received high rankings from other publications including Billboard, Chicago Tribune, MTV, Spin, and Time. The album won Album of the Year at the 2013 BET Hip Hop Awards and earned four Grammy nominations, including Album of The Year and Best Rap Album—its loss in the latter category to Macklemore & Ryan Lewis's "The Heist" was later described by Rolling Stone as an "infamous snub." The album's legacy continued to grow in subsequent years, being placed at number 115 on Rolling Stone's "500 Greatest Albums of All Time" list in both 2020 and 2023, and ranking number one on Rolling Stone's "50 Greatest Concept Albums of All Time" list in 2022. Notably, in October 2022, the album had spent a total of 10 years (520 weeks) on the Billboard 200, making it the first hip-hop studio album to achieve this milestone. By April 2018, it had sold 1,720,000 copies and was certified triple platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA).^[1]