A Review of 'Mr. Morale & the Big Steppers' By Kendrick Lamar
Nearly 3,000 words trying to correctly discuss Kendrick's most challenging album to date
Kendrick Lamar albums are always an event. As mentioned last week, they do not come around often, but when they do it is the most important thing in my life for at least the next week, likely longer.
The first four full-length albums from Mr. Kendrick Lamar Duckworth were incredible, and the consistency he has shown since “Section.80” in 2011 is unmatched by any other artist working today.
That consistency remains with his fifth project, “Mr. Morale & the Big Steppers,” but with a sound and concept that, per usual, I did not anticipate.
Every Kendrick Lamar album is deeply personal in concept, no matter how large or small the scale of it is. When a new Kendrick project comes out, there’s this feeling that you will be catching up with what and how the artist has been doing.
But “Mr. Morale & the Big Steppers” felt like it could be even more personal before a song from it was even released. The album cover is stripped of any big title or major filter on it. It is simply Kendrick, his fiancée Whitney Alford and his two children in a bedroom. That feels like a personal scene if you ask me.
Sure enough, this new album is another deep dive into the psyche of Kendrick, but done with a much different sound and a different attitude than previous efforts. But enough of the generic statements: Kendrick uses more modern production, goes with a mix of rap and R&B songs and talks about topics all over the board, including the COVID-19 pandemic, the transgender community, cancel culture, toxic masculinity and the many, many personal conflicts he is dealing with.
This double album, his last with Top Dawg Entertainment, is 18 tracks and 72 minutes long, and it completely destroyed me on first listen. I had a hard time coming away with a specific thought of any sort on my first listen, not because it was bad, just because it was so much to take in all at once.
Every Kendrick album is dense with lyrics, hidden meanings, deeper concepts and a whole lot of things that keep people talking about the project for months after the release. This is as dense as a Kendrick album gets, and with a concept that has as direct of a narrative as some of his previous works, but with an execution that is direct, sometimes to the point of off-putting.
But being off-putting is also the point. “Mr. Morale & the Big Steppers” is here to tell the world that Kendrick Lamar is not a perfect man, and not even in the way that “To Pimp a Butterfly” does it with a stronger resolution by the end. Instead, the resolution found here is that there doesn’t have to be a resolution, and that Kendrick Lamar can be a flawed human being with things to work on.
Shall we talk about some songs?
Well, within the first two lines on the intro song “United in Grief,” you get what this double album will be about. Sam Dew, featured throughout the album, sings “I hope you find some peace of mind in this lifetime,” and Alford follows that with “Tell them, tell ‘em, tell them the truth.” Kendrick is here to tell the world what he’s been going through to get that peace of mind, and then we are off to the races.
I feel like no one wants to pick an opener as a favorite from the album, but this is a clear highlight for me. The production is off the walls, Kendrick’s flows and witty lyricism about filling voids with money and a nameless woman are excellent and it’s a great start to what feels like a completely new sound for him.
That hot start continues with “N95,” which has a beat that I am completely obsessed with. This is another banger, this time with Kendrick talking about how fake people act with expensive jewelry, clothes, etc., comparing all of that that to the mask the song is named after. The different deliveries Kendrick uses here are great, and I think the immediate hypocrisy shown is also effective.
I know Kendrick fans are guilty of finding meaning out of the smallest of things (this is just rule of thirds guys please stop). But, intentionally talking about the expensive items bought on song one and immediately insulting doing that same thing on song two certainly feels intentional to me, and plays further into the point of Kendrick’s theme of imperfections.
More bangers, more issues dealt with on “Worldwide Steppers,” with Kendrick discussing infidelity by having an affair with a white women, including a line about ancestors and retaliation that is a true jaw-dropper on first listen. This one is more simple in structure and has a great use of a meme as a sample in the second half, so while it may not be a standout for me, it still adds to a great start to the record.
Then, we get “Die Hard” featuring Blxst and Amanda Reifer. This was a big “What?” moment in my first listen through, not because it was bad, but because I couldn’t believe that Kendrick Lamar was putting an R&B cut like this on the album. He experimented with some melodic cuts on “DAMN.” in “GOD.,” “LOVE.” and “LOYALTY.,” but this one really caught me off guard at first.
And yet, this stands out now as another great track, both on the album and because it shows how much range this man truly has. This is an excellent changeup after three straight fastballs, and the lyrics, while more simplistic, still get through the simple message of being afraid of opening up to a loved one. Also, both the features here are tremendous on the chorus. Just a really lovely listen that could work well on its own.
Hey speaking of highlights, “Father Time” is one of the very best songs on this record. More issues Kendrick is dealing with, this time his bottled up emotions thanks to how his father raised him. The story is very concise here, the production is nice and upbeat despite the down lyrics and I will always be up for a Sampha feature no matter where I am. Sampha is truly, deeply underrated, and his chorus here is tremendous.
The end of this first half of the double album is a tad rocky, at least in comparison to the five songs before them. That is to say, I like a lot of this, but maybe don’t quite love it. The “Rich (Interlude)” is a Kodak Black spoken word piece with a lovely piano that increases in intensity as a backdrop.
I’ll be the first to say: I don’t really like Kodak Black. I don’t particularly enjoy his music, and I don’t like the human being behind the music. That said, the spoken word story of his rise and battles with poverty make for an interesting interlude that I think is pretty solid despite the artist involved (and I will talk more about him later).
This leads into “Rich Spirit,” another smoother, slower cut that doesn’t do as much for me as “Die Hard” did. I think Sam Dew again gives a nice little boost to the track and the chorus, plus the instrumental behind said chorus, is lovely. But overall, there’s not as much meat on this one, and the music itself don’t do enough for me to make up for it.
For better or for worse, Kendrick makes sure you get all the meat on the damn bone with the next song, “We Cry Together,” One of the two most polarizing moments on the album from what I’ve seen.
This track is about a brutal argument between a couple that leads to a viscous onslaught of insults before reaching higher and ultimately ending up in them making up.
A few undeniably great things about this song from my view:
The Florence Welch intro is just delightful. I did not anticipate hearing her on this, and what a pleasant surprise it was.
Taylour Paige was known as an actress first before this feature, and you can tell in all the best ways. This is an unbelievably good performance, and I’m calling it a performance because it truly feels that way with all the emotion and little skit moments throughout it.
I think this is a wild, exciting moment toward the end of Disc One, and I generally enjoyed it from start to finish. I think the end portion where both get their hits on larger topics (feminism, R. Kelly, etc.) is heavy handed and doesn’t hit the themes as hard as Kendrick was hoping for, but it’s not enough to take away from the fireworks that came before it in this absolutely insane six-minute song.
Disc One ends on “Purple Hearts,” a R&B cut with a despicably good beat from Sounwave and company. I mean that thing is insane with the percussion and futuristic synths that come at you right away.
Thanks to Summer Walker’s terrific inclusion and an unexpected feature from Ghostface Killah, this closing track to the first half is able to be rather straightforward and accessible without losing the album’s themes along the way.
Disc Two starts with “Count Me Out,” a pivotal moment on the album and in Kendrick’s arc within the record. Opening early with Alford calling this a “breakthrough,” Kendrick goes on a lyrical journey about how much pressure he has put on himself, how much it tore him up inside and how he needs to learn to love himself.
These may not be new themes to the album, but this is the first time where it feels like progress in getting to that conclusion. I love the “And I’m tripping and falling” sample used throughout the track, and the outro leads excellently into the next song, “Crown.”
This is a slow build of a song, but one that has really grown on me with more listens. I think the meaning here — Kendrick’s inability to make everyone happy while still getting near-universal critical acclaim for his music — is a powerful talking point that ties well into this album’s messages. My favorite moment of the song is the bridge, which quotes Shakespeare (“Heavy is the head that chose to wear the crown”) to most accurately represent Kendrick’s rise, and the struggles that go with it.
“Silent Hill” featuring Kodak is up next, and this feels like the most traditional trap rap song on the album. It’s still pretty enjoyable, I specifically like the little pew pew space gun-type noises in the beat, but it’s not one that moves the needle for me. Kodak’s feature is probably one of the best in his career, but that means it was simply above average.
The next song is the final of two interludes, and the more effective of the pair. “Savior (Interlude)” is a lengthy, excellent Baby Keem (Kendrick’s cousin) verse behind what sounds like a string orchestra. It’s a big flex song about how he’s grown up and turned into a success and helped everyone around him along the way. It’s a perfect buildup into the pairing track, “Savior.”
This is a fascinating song from start to finish, and another major highlight and moment for the album. It immediately starts with Kendrick saying that prominent Black figures like himself, J. Cole, Future and LeBron James should not be considered anyone’s savior, then goes into his own imperfections, as well as the imperfections of society.
The line “Like it when they pro-Black, but I’m more Kodak Black” gives a great summation of Kendrick opening up about his own character flaws, while making Kodak’s inclusions on the album make more sense. Keem’s chorus here is excellent, and really hammers down that Kendrick wants to know if people — either close to him or society as a whole — will still embrace him and be happy for him once they know he is not as perfect as it seems.
There’s so much in this song, and I think Kendrick does an excellent job talking about all of these major discussion points in a way that feels prominent to his own struggle, all while driving his point home: he’s flawed, he’s not going to save you and that’s fine.
Finally, we get to “Auntie Diaries,” the most polarizing track here and the one that has left me most conflicted. First, to talk about what the song is about: Kendrick discusses his aunt and cousin turning into a man and woman, respectively, how the community and a younger Kendrick reacted to those changes and how he has grown to understand that it should be accepted.
When painted with broad strokes, this is a deeply important song for someone like Kendrick Lamar to make. Gender identity is not a topic often discussed in rap music, so for the most acclaimed rapper in the world to speak in a positive light about the topic is a great first step.
Unfortunately, the way Kendrick goes about messaging it feels flawed. First, and more obviously, there’s multiple uses of a homophobic slur. I think that the use to say that Kendrick didn’t know better and to compare it to when he told a white girl on stage to not say the N-word is understandable from a messaging standpoint. But I also think he could have just alluded to the word and the point would have been driven home all the same. Kendrick also misgenders his aunt and cousin throughout the song, something that, again, was avoidable.
I understand a lot of the point of this album is that Kendrick is a flawed man opening that up to the world and fighting through a multitude of deep-rooted issues. I also think a lot of what this song does is important. But, I do think he comes up just short on making the statement he could have on such an important topic.
This is followed by a heavy hitter in “Mr. Morale.” This is Kendrick over a Pharrell Williams beat, so of course it’s incredible. Here, Kendrick talks about trauma, both in mainstream cases like R. Kelly and Oprah Winfrey, as well as closer to home instances with his mother and cousin. The latter half of it segues into “Mother I Sober,” the emotional crux of the album.
This is a harrowing seven-minute song that goes into Kendrick’s upbringing, how his family though he was molested by his cousin, how he used rapping as a coping mechanism for trauma, how achieving fame didn’t fix all of his problems, his mother’s experiences with abuse and how he ties that in with cheating on his fiancée. After that, he expands the scope to how assault is hidden by males within the Black community.
For how many topics there are on this song, it never feels forced and it all is brilliantly told by the only man who could possibly do it all justice. The song ends with Kendrick setting free all these pains in his heart, and the hearts of those impacted by these terrible instances. This is one of Kendrick’s very best songs, helped along by a lovely Beth Gibbons feature and a heartfelt interlude at the end featuring Alford and their daughter.
Finally, we get to the closer, “Mirror,” another masterpiece to end this terrific record. It’s about what this whole album is about: Kendrick Lamar is an imperfect man, and he’s now letting us all know that without a clear resolution. As I said about 2,000 words ago, the answer is that he is willing to let everyone know that to be himself.
This is another Pharrell beat, and it’s terrific, and Kendrick’s singing here, specifically on the chorus, is excellent. I love this track both in its sound and its overall meaning for everything we listened to in this absolute odyssey of an album.
Over 18 songs, Kendrick Lamar once again tells us about what he’s been going through, but “Mr. Morale & the Big Steppers” does so in a much different, less polished way, and in some ways the album is better for it.
Being able to unravel the true psyche of Kendrick in a completely new way makes for a fascinating listen, and it helps that almost every song here hits in a big way despite some detours into sounds I did not anticipate.
If I’m picking the ultimate highlights, I’m going “United In Grief,” “N95,” “Father Time,” “Count Me Out,” “Savior,” “Mother I Sober” and “Mirror.” That is nearly half the record, I’m aware, but that speaks to how high the highs are throughout this thing.
Sure, there are some missteps, a handful of songs that were close to perfection but just missed the mark one way or another, and another song that was close to making the impact it should have made. But with an album like “Mr. Morale & the Big Steppers” — which prides itself on displaying everything that makes the artist behind it a human being — there was bound to be some imperfections.
Is it my favorite Kendrick Lamar album? It is not, and it is likely falling to third or fourth with “DAMN.” But when the bar is as high as it is for Kendrick, getting at or near the podium is good enough for a true contender for album of the year.
Rating: 9.2/10
(Yeah I’m going with the annoying Pitchfork tenth decimal place ranking, it doesn’t feel like a 9 or 9.5 to me leave me alone)
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