Backseat Freestyle
Kendrick Lamar Lyrics

Uh, Martin had a dream
Referencing Martin Luther King Jr.'s famous 'I Have a Dream' speech.

Martin had a dream
Repeating previous line for emphasis.

Kendrick have a dream
Stating that Kendrick has a dream as well.

All my life I want money and power
Kendrick has had aspirations towards personal wealth and authority.

Respect my mind or die from lead shower
Kendrick demands that others value his intellect, or face the consequences.

I pray my dick get big as the Eiffel Tower
Kendrick desires to obtain a level of power and influence so great that he can overwhelm and dominate society.

So I can fuck the world for seventy-two hours
He sees obtaining this power as a means to exert authority and control over the world for an extended period.

Goddamn I feel amazing, damn I'm in the matrix
Kendrick feels on top of the world, as though he is living in a utopia.

My mind is living on cloud nine and this nine is never on vacation
He feels as though his mental state is always high and never takes a break.

Start up that Maserati and VROOM VROOM! I'm racing
Kendrick is excited to be driving his Maserati fast and aggressively.

Poppin' pills in the lobby and I pray they don't find her naked
Kendrick is indulging in drug use and is concerned about getting caught in a compromising position with someone else.

And I pray you niggas is hatin', shooters go after Judas
Kendrick hopes that his haters will be targeted by those who are willing to stand up for him.

Jesus Christ if I live life on my knees, ain't no need to do this
Kendrick sees no satisfaction in living a submissive life and will not do so.

Park it in front of Lueders, next to that Church's Chicken
Kendrick is parking his car in a specific spot for everyone to see, adjacent to a fast food chain.

All you pussies is losers, all my niggas is winners, screaming
Kendrick views those who are timid and unassertive as losers, while those who are confident and forceful are winners.

Damn I got bitches (okay!) damn I got bitches (okay!)
Kendrick has multiple sexual partners and is happy about it.

Damn I got bitches, wifey, girlfriend and mistress
Kendrick has a variety of women in his life, including a spouse, girlfriend, and extramarital lover.

I've got twenty-five lighters on my dresser, yessir
Kendrick has many lighters on his dresser.

Put fire to that ass, body cast on a stretcher
Kendrick is using a crude metaphor to describe his ability to seduce or overpower sexual partners.

And her body got that ass that a ruler couldn't measure
Kendrick is admiring someone's body shape, implying it is curvy in a way that defies measurement or comparison.

And it make me cum fast but I never get embarrassed
Kendrick finds his sexual partners arousing but is not self-conscious about his body or sexual prowess.

And I recognize you have what I've been wanting since that record
Kendrick is impressed by someone's success and perceives them as having something he desires.

That Adina Howard had pop it fast to impress her
Kendrick is referencing a song by Adina Howard, suggesting that he desires a partner with similar sexual confidence.

She rollin' I'm holding my scrotum and posing
Kendrick is celebrating his masculinity and sexual exploits, and is unashamed of it.

This voice here is golden so fuck y'all I goes in and
Kendrick believes his talent and voice are valuable and will continue to create music despite any detractors.

It's go time
Kendrick is getting ready to take action or engage in something.

I roll in dough with a good grind
Kendrick has earned a lot of money but has worked hard to get it.

And I run at ho with a baton
Kendrick is running towards a sexual partner with a sense of urgency and strength.

That's a relay race with a bouquet
Kendrick is using another crude metaphor to describe his sexual exploits, perhaps referring to a wedding or other intimate event.

They say, "K, you goin' marry mines?"
Others are asking Kendrick if he plans to settle down with one of his partners.

Beeotch! (no way) Beeotch! (no way)
Kendrick is rejecting the notion of settling down and is comfortable remaining single and free to indulge in his desires.

Beeotch! (no way) Beeotch!
Repeating previous line for emphasis.

Okay, I'm never living life confined
Kendrick has no desire to be restrained or limited in his lifestyle choices.

It's a failure even if I'm blind
Kendrick sees any restriction on his lifestyle as a failure, even if he can't see the impact it has on him.

I can tell ya who what when where how?
Kendrick is confident being knowledgeable and informative about a wide range of topics.

To sell ya game right on time
Kendrick is positioning himself as someone who is capable and knowledgeable, able to offer advice to others.

Beeotch! (go play) Beeotch! (go play)
Kendrick is telling others to go and do something, likely because he sees them as unimportant or irrelevant.

Beeotch! (go play) Beeotch!
Repeating previous line for emphasis.

I look like OJ, killing everything from pussy to a mothafuckin' Hit-Boy beat
Kendrick sees himself as a powerful figure, capable of dominating anything from sexual partners to music production.

She pussy poppin' and I got options like an audible, I be
Kendrick has multiple sexual partners and is able to choose who he wants to engage with at any given time.

C-O-M-P-T-O-N, I win then ball at your defeat
Kendrick is proud of his hometown of Compton and believes that he has achieved a level of success that others cannot match.

C-O-M-P-T-O-N, my city mobbin' in the street, yellin'
Kendrick is proud of his community and the people that make it up.

Goddamn I got bitches (okay!) damn I got bitches (okay!)
Repeating previous lines to emphasize his abundant number of sexual partners.

Damn I got bitches, wifey, girlfriend and mistress
Repeating previous lines to emphasize the various types of sexual partners he has.

All my life I want money and power
Repeating previous lines to emphasize that his main goals are wealth and influence.

Respect my mind or nigga
Kendrick demands that others respect his mind, or face the consequences.

Respect my mind or die from lead showers
Repeating previous lines for emphasis.

Let it run Ali
Ali is a reference to Ali Shaheed Muhammad, an American hip hop DJ and member of A Tribe Called Quest. This line is likely a request to let the music continue without interruption.