Whatever your problem,Mr.
Morale & the Big Stepperswants you to talk it through.
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Kendrick Lamaris in a tight spot.
He wants to unpack generational trauma and unlearn toxic thought patterns.
His new album,Mr.
Morale & the Big Steppers, delivers this news withan air of apology.
It is forcing uncomfortable conversations.
It is rebuffing hero worship.
The albums cross-purposes are intriguing.
The cat is out the bag, Lamar raps in Savior, I am not your savior.
He wants us to know hes human and fallible just like us.
He also wants to map out the hundred ways were fucking up.
Like the beloved OutKast release,Mr.
But really, there are three distinct threads braided into its 18-song track list.
Moralecovers a lot of scenes and swats a lot of wasps nests.
The messiness seems pointed.
The album is very considered and more balanced upon closer inspection than the wilder pull quotes may suggest.
(How useful is your queer-allyship anthem if your straight fans react bynaggingyour queer fans, though?)
K. Dot always floats.
(Hi, Dave.)
It seems like self-congratulating posturing.
Why fuss about haters and clout chasers if familys the most important connection?
Mr. Morale and the Big Steppersis a prickly listen, but its annoying us on its way to enlightenment.
(If youre put out by What the fuck is cancel culture, dawg?
or theweird bars about masksor the language in Auntie Diaries or the Kodak appearances … will he even respond?
The list of successful male rappers who dont platform abusers is short.)
When its not trying to rattle the listener,Mr.
Count Me Out and Silent Hill both prove Kendrick can nail the tuneful, cloistered excess Drake excels at.
Like the latest season ofAtlanta,Mr.
Moraleis juggling dark comedy and serious subject matter, crassness and concern.
But its moments of brilliance are offset by jarring choices.
You start thinking Kendricks onto something, and he sets about throwing you off his trail.
The self-righteous ire of Steppers is followed by Die Hard, the smoothest love song in the batch.
The lengthy story songs float between past and present in ways that make them tricky to follow.
(This is one whereKendricks knack for letting his characters speak for themselveswould have come in handy.
The medium is the message.
Whatever your problem,Mr.
Moralewants you to talk it through.
Its simple to tap out when you could afford mansions and jet-setting.
Better this than the careful trend watching going on in theDondaalbums.
It beats the repetition and diminishing returns plaguing other rappers a decade into their major-label tenure.
He didnt have to knock as much shit over as he did this time.Mr.
Moralemightve been a chiller experience if dude had gotten more into psychedelics andAlan Watts talksthan teetotaling and Tolle.
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