Kendrick Lamar is blazing new paths for rap and hip-hop as the creator first non-jazz or classical album to win the Pulitzer Prize for music.
The Pulitzer committee praised the album, “DAMN.”, as, “...a virtuosic song collection unified by its vernacular authenticity and rhythmic dynamism that offers affecting vignettes capturing the complexity of modern African-American life.”
DAMN. was released April 14th, 2017 and debuted at number one on the Billboard charts in the United States after selling 603,000 units in the first week. According to Billboard, as of April 2018, the album has sold 1,002,000 copies and earned 3,137,000 album-equivalent units in the US. The album also won Album of the Year at the BET Hip Hop Awards, the Grammy Awards, and the iHeartRadio Music Awards.
This is not the first commercial success the rapper has seen. In 2012, when Lamar signed to Interscope Records and Aftermath Entertainment, his first album “good kid, m.A.A.d city” debuted at number two on the Billboard charts. The album also earned Lamar his first platinum certification for copies sold.
Among millennial audiences Kendrick has gained a reputation as the voice of an era for his lyrical genius and storytelling ability. Songs like m.A.A.D city, and Humble. have gained him attention on a national scale. The success of “DAMN.” only highlights how far his career has developed since his days as an independent rapper going by the stage name “K-Dot”. It’s clear Kendrick Lamar is an influencer in the rap genre and that he is likely to continue to shake up the music industry.
