kendrick lamar's new album

Released: Oct 2012

Label: Top Dawg / Aftermath / Interscope

Kendrick Lamar is a fascinatingly quirky artist, which makes it both surprising and heartening that he's being embraced by the rap mainstream. His good kid, m.A.A.d. city weaves hilarious cameos from his parents into a story about a teenage Kendrick borrowing their car for a joyride with his friends through Compton that nearly costs him his life. "The Art of Peer Pressure," "Money Trees" and "m.A.A.d. city" aren't exactly catchy radio material, but Lamar's riveting lyrics and off-center musical vision, like using a helium voice for "Swimming Pools (Drank)," makes them memorable.