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shook up the world last week with the surprise release of the single “The Heart Part 5” and its soul-stirring accompanying video. Now that his fifth album
Mr. Morale & The Big Steppers is finally out in the world, folks on Twitter are chiming in with a number of varied thoughts on the project.
Mr. Morale & The Big Steppers is a double album and will be the last Kendrick Lamar album released under the Top Dawg Entertainment label. Like other previous works from K-Dot, the album leans into a concept of duality, trauma, addiction, relationship woes, and the like all through the lens of Black America.
The album doesn’t have the benefit of a big single to propel it to casual listeners; this is an album for true Kendrick Lamar fans who know how to at least attempt to absorb the themes within. Many of the subjects are difficult to fathom. Sexual identity. Gender politics. Mental health. Abuse in all forms. What portions are autobiographical and others that are played up isn’t easy to determine so this album begs repeat listening sessions.
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While there are no expected TDE features, Taylour Paige, Blxst, Amanda Reifer, Summer Walker, Ghostface Killah, Sampha, and Lamar’s cousin Baby Keem add their various textures. One controversial figure present across the album is Florida star Kodak Black.
Considering Kodak’s legal troubles, including a sexual assault case where he entered into a plea deal in April 2021, looms heavily across the album and some believe that his inclusion on the album was intentional.
On Twitter, the reaction to
Mr. Morale & The Big Steppers is moving at a rapid clip. We’ve got those tweets listed out below.
Find the album at your preferred DSPs via Kendrick Lamar’s tweet directly under this sentence.
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