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Kendrick Lamar hasn’t always been self assured. The global superstar that got America to crack jokes about Drake’s pedophile allegations has enjoyed an extended victory lap, going from critical and Hip Hop head darling, to bona fide, worldwide popstar without losing any cred.
But to get to this point required an arduous examination of what Kendrick Lamar wanted to do with his life. And Damn may be the key blueprint that led to his current reality.
The Context Before Damn
To Pimp A Butterfly flipped rap on its head, forcing consumers and radio to play by its rules. The album implemented jazz rap to a wider audience, took divisive topics such as police brutality, the suppression of economic gain for Black people, and the struggle to deny temptation, ciphered through the lens of Lamar, a poor young Black kid from Compton, dealing with becoming one of the biggest rappers in the world, feeling the weight of desiring to use his fame for a greater purpose.
9 years ago today, Kendrick Lamar released his fourth studio album, 'DAMN.' 💿
— Kurrco (@Kurrco) April 14, 2026
Favorite tracks on the album? pic.twitter.com/HPu4TA4BZm
The Result Of Damn
Five years later, the result of the worldwide acclaim of TPAB births Damn, Lamar’s first real attempt to go pop, but not lose the respect he built. By all accounts, it worked. Damn was hailed by the masses as a classic, won several Grammys, topped the Billboard 200, had many hits, including the seismic “Humble” and confrontational “DNA,” leaving Lamar untouched. It won a god damn Pulitzer.
At least, that’s how time remembers it. Truthfully, I lived Damn and I can tell you from experience outside of those big hits many people weren’t sure about Kendrick Lamar’s direction. Gone were the blaring saxophones, soulful background singers, and complicated heady concepts. In its place, a shinier, sheen, pop aesthetic, featuring big name guest stars and a clear desire for radio appeal.
The Aftermath Of Damn
But context heals all, and when looking at the success of GNX, you can see Damn as that blueprint. But there’s one key difference. Whereas GNX is a victory lap dancing on his opps with a shrug, Damn serves as a realization that despite trying to do the right thing, he’s still conflicted, miserable, and more paranoid than ever before.
His follow up, Mr. Morale, would end up burning down the notion of the Hip Hop savior Kendrick Lamar. But Damn served as the uneasy push and pull. He wanted to make important music and he got his wish. But instead of changing the world, it only got worse.
With fresh ears and the further context both Mr. Morale and GNX give to this record, I’m ready to give it another try for the first time in full in over three years. This is my ranking of every song from Damn (besides “Blood,” that’s an intro) from worst to best.
13. Love
This is possibly the worst song Kendrick Lamar ever made. I find Zacari’s voice grating and Kendrick’s rhyme scheme becomes quite basic. It doesn’t help that the song balances from Kendrick’s mousy sing song flow and Zacari’s high pitched siren croon. I couldn’t imagine playing this song to the person you love, unless you want them to leave you.
12. GOD
Yeah man, Kendrick can’t sing. They try to pump it up with the reverb and cloudy beat, but this is designed to repulse me. The hook is undeniably catchy, and that might be why it wasn’t immediately panned. But this not it, grating, piercing, the voice changes don’t work, and the thematic resonance isn’t strong enough to save it from damnation.
11. LOYALTY
When I said Damn made a push for commercial appeal, this is one of the tracks that enforced my thinking. “Loyalty” is not an inherently bad song. It’s cool to hear Rihanna and Kendrick trade lines about…well loyalty. The flows sound crisp, but Kendrick’s affect doesn’t work as well here for me. I like hooks, and repeating loyalty a bunch of times does not make a hook. But, it did give us every writer’s favorite bio quote “my resume real enough for two millenniums, ” so that’s something.
10. LUST
It’s the “let me put the head in song.” That’s a line you’re not going to forget. The actual song features a decent groove, but there’s way too much weak Kendrick singing. That third verse though is a clear highlight, as it gives listeners his full thoughts on his feelings of the current state of America and the horror many felt caused by the 2016 election.
9. PRIDE
I didn’t remember this song at all and I’m kind of split on it. The rapping is quite good as Kendrick tackles all his inner voices while the Mac Demarco-esque guitar strums along. But aside from the haunting “maybe I wasn’t there,” fading out like a spirit leaving this realm, I struggle to retain as much compared to other tracks, which function much better.
8. HUMBLE
Hot take, I think “Humble” is fine. The music video added more to the song than it would have without it. But as a song, I’m sorry, using a beat that sounds eerily similar to Jimmy Wopo’s opus “Elm Street,” isn’t gonna move the needle for me in comparison. “Humble” was a moment, and continues to be a cultural touchstone. I just think in hindsight, aside from some quotables, it doesn’t match the level of some of these other cuts.
7. YAH
I go back and forth with “Yah” and on this listen I grew more appreciation for it. Kendrick Lamar’s dead affect emphasizes his need to go through the motions of controversy. He won’t allow Fox News to label him, fans politicize him. He’s trying to stop the women from changing him, but recognizes he’s losing his purpose. What was this all for? I can appreciate a track that trudges through all the noise to end up finding solace in family, with the instrumentals acting as the flow state Lamar must enter to keep going.
6. DUCKWORTH
Probably another controversial ranking. I’m not a huge fan of songs with “twists.” Sure, if the song itself is really good (Eminem’s “Stan”) then once the twist is revealed, the song can still stand on its own. But for me, “Duckworth” loses much of its power when the sliding doors moment of Kendrick’s father being spared by the man who would one day found TDE, Anthony “Top Dawg” Tiffith is revealed. Not necessarily the power of the story itself, but the desire to relisten to the song. It’s an incredible story, but that doesn’t always make for music I want to constantly listen to.
5. ELEMENT
Probably the song I come back to the most off Damn. “Element” follows that same trail of disgust Kendrick Lamar expresses to the world, but with a touch of humor that makes it more palatable. It’s been a staple on my contemplation playlist for years and part of that is the groove-filled 808s that adds rhythm to long walks of reflections. “The make it look sexy” refrain distracts the listener from the bitterness lying within the song, and balancing all those elements makes it a clear highlight.
4. FEAR
I appreciate the way Kendrick Lamar is able to give voice to the nihilism of underprivileged Black youth. From the overworked, overstressed abusive parents, to the scarring truth of knowing death could come at any time, from anyone, especially the police, it expressed the horrors of the murders of Trayvon Martin, Michael Brown, Tamir Rice, and countless others. I feel out of my element here because it rings disingenuous to rank a song that I find incredibly impressive and important, but do not want to listen to as much as others. Call it the Twin Peaks: Fire Walk With Me of the album.
3. FEEL
Whereas other songs on Damn mask their discontent with upbeat production, Feel does not give listeners the liberty of escape. The meditative wail of anguished confession forces us to sit with Kendrick in his lowest moment of insecurity. At times, Kendrick’s theatrics distract me from his central message. But the raw nature of “FEEL,” doesn’t implement any frills, forcing you to sit in its silence.
2. DNA
The success of “DNA” taught Kendrick Lamar how to create a seismic message song that could also be played in basketball arenas long before “Not Like Us.” A powerful record of confrontation and defiance with an exhibition of flow switches as Lamar celebrates, critiques, and examines Black heritage. It’s catchy, it’s quotable, a history lesson disguised as a jock jam. I don’t know anyone who doesn’t like “DNA,” and frankly I hope I never meet that person.
1. XXX
This has always been one of my favorites off this album and that hasn’t changed. The complex layered storytelling, the eerie atmosphere of the beat switches, the way each part of the song evokes Kendrick’s internal contradiction, grappling with the uncomfortable truths of America, and the rug pull Black America felt after the Obama years were followed up by Trump. There’s too much to unpack in one short blurb, but even on this listen, I think this is clearly the best song on the album.
