Here you can find links to my posts about each track on Kendrick Lamar’s monumental 2015 album.
Each Post In Order
- To Pimp a Butterfly – #1: Wesley’s Theory - [This is part 1 of a longer series – next track “For Free?”] For a few years now I’ve listened to To Pimp a Butterfly, Kendrick Lamar’s 2015 masterpiece, with my junior English classes. I have learned a lot about music, about the experiences of both Kendrick and of my students, as well as a … Continue reading To Pimp a Butterfly – #1: Wesley’s Theory
- To Pimp A Butterfly #2: “For Free? Interlude” - [This is part 2 of a longer series – previous track “Wesley’s Theory” – next track “King Kunta”] “For Free?” is labelled as an “interlude,” and though it does have the feel of skit that goes between two more properly formed songs, what happens on this track is much more than a transition. Under cover … Continue reading To Pimp A Butterfly #2: “For Free? Interlude”
- To Pimp a Butterfly #3: King Kunta - [This is part 3 of a longer series – previous track “For Free?”– next track “Institutionalized”] If To Pimp a Butterfly were a movie, “King Kunta” would be the close of Act I. Sound-wise, the first three songs share a common up-beat energy: they’re all relatively rhythmic, brash in terms of their use of samples … Continue reading To Pimp a Butterfly #3: King Kunta
- To Pimp a Butterfly #4: Institutionalized - [This is part 4 of a longer series – previous track “King Kunta”– next track “These Walls”] I remember you was conflicted, misusing your influence A technical term to describe what happens over tracks 4-10 is a “cumulative tale,” like the nursery rhymes “this is the house that Jack built” or “I know an old … Continue reading To Pimp a Butterfly #4: Institutionalized
To Pimp a Butterfly #5: These Walls - [This is part 5 of a longer series – previous track “Institutionalized”– next track “u” coming soon] I remember you was conflicted, misusing your influenceSometimes, I did the same As Kendrick Lamar adds lines to his poem through the course of To Pimp a Butterfly, he explores different aspects of his journey away from the … Continue reading To Pimp a Butterfly #5: These Walls
In 2015, when I first listened this album on recommendation of my high school students, it transformed by vision about the possibilities of hip-hop, education, United States history, racism and a whole bunch more. In 2019, I started blogging about each song. Over the years I’ve brought the album into my English classroom in lots of different ways. So now in 2025 I’m continuing the project – especially in light of TPAB’s 10 year anniversary, the Drake vs. Kendrick thing last year, and the Super Bowl halftime show. I believe my vision of Kendrick’s creativity has only deepened since that kid first made me listen to “Mortal Man.”
Original Positions 