He began to gain major recognition in 2010 after his first retail release, Overly Dedicated. The following year, Lamar independently released his first studio album Section.80, which included his debut single, "HiiiPoWeR" which was produced by J. Cole. By that time, he had amassed a large Internet following and collaborated with several artists in the hip-hop industry, including The Game, Snoop Dogg, Busta Rhymes, Lil Wayne and Drake.
Lamar secured a major-label record deal with Aftermath and Interscope Records, in 2012. His major-label debut, good kid, m.A.A.d city, was released in October 2012 to critical success. The record contained the top 40 singles "Swimming Pools (Drank)", "Bitch, Don't Kill My Vibe", and "Poetic Justice". It debuted at number two on the U.S. Billboard 200 chart and was later certified platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA). Lamar won his first Grammy Award for "i", the lead single from his critically acclaimed third album To Pimp a Butterfly (2015). The album drew on free jazz, funk, soul, and spoken word debuted atop the charts in the U.S. and the UK, and won the Grammy Award for Best Rap Album at the 58th ceremony. In 2016, Lamar released untitled unmastered., a collection of unreleased demos that originated during the recording sessions for Butterfly.
Lamar has received several accolades throughout his career, including seven Grammy Awards. In early 2013, MTV named Lamar the number one "Hottest MC in the Game", on their annual list. Time named Lamar one of the 100 most influential people in the world in 2016.
Lamar's fourth album, DAMN. was released on April 17, 2017, to widespread critical acclaim. It debuted at number one on the Billboard 200, earning Lamar his third consecutive number-one album in the United States. The album was supported by the lead single, "Humble.". Lamar won the Pulitzer Prize for DAMN.
Lamar's fifth album Mr. Morale & the Big Steppers was released on May 13, 2022, his first album in five years.
Ronald Reagan Era
Kendrick Lamar Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Ninety miles per hour down Compton Boulevard
With the top down, screamin', "We don't give a fuck"
Drink my 40 ounce of freedom while I roll my blunt
'Cause the kids just ain't alright
Oh shit, nigga
Somethin' 'bout to happen
Hope the dogs don't smell it
Welcome to vigilante, 80's so don't you ask me
I'm hungry, my body's antsy, I rip through your fuckin' pantry
Peelin' off like a Xanny, examine my orchestra
Granny said when I'm old enough, I'll be sure to be all I can be
You niggas Marcus Camby, washed up
Pussy, fix your panties, I'm Mr. Marcus, you gettin' fucked, uh
You ain't heard nothin' harder since Daddy Kane
Take it vain, Vicodins couldn't ease the pain
Lightning bolts hit your body, you thought it rained
Not a cloud in sight, just the shit that I write strong enough
To stand in front of a travelin' freight train
Are you trained, to go against Dracula?
Draggin' the record industry by my fangs
AK clips, money clips and gold chains
You walk around with a P90 like it's the 90's
Bullet to your temple, your homocide'll remind me
That Compton Crip niggas ain't nothin' to fuck with
Bompton Piru's ain't nothing to fuck with
Compton eses ain't nothin' to fuck with
But they fuck with me, and bitch, I love it
Whoopty-whoop, woopty-woop-woop
Whoopty-whoop, woopty-woop-woopty-woop-woop
(California Dungeons)
Whoopty-whoop, woopty-woop-woop
Whoopty-whoop, woopty-woop-woopty-woop-woop
(California Dungeons)
Let's hit the county buildin', gotta cash my check
Spend it all on a 40 ounce to the neck
And in retrospect, I remember December being the hottest
Squad cars, neighborhood wars, and stolen Mazdas
I tell you motherfuckers that life is full of hydraulics
Up and down, get a six-four, better know how to drive it
I'm drivin' on E with no license or registration
Heart racin', racing past Johnny because he's racist
1987, the children of Ronald Reagan
Rake the leaves off your front porch with a machine blow torch (I'm really out here, my nigga)
He blowin' on stress, hopin' to ease the stress (like, really out here though)
He coppin' some blow hopin' that it can stretch
New born massacre, hoppin' out the passenger
With calendars 'cause your date comin'
Run 'em down and then he gun 'em down
I'm hopin' that you fast enough
Even the legs of Michael Johnson don't mean nothin' because
That Compton Crip niggas ain't nothin' to fuck with
Bompton Piru's ain't nothing to fuck with
Compton eses ain't nothin' to fuck with
But they fuck with me, and bitch, I love it
Whoopty-whoop, woopty-woop-woop
Whoopty-whoop, woopty-woop-woopty-woop-woop
(California Dungeons)
Whoopty-whoop, woopty-woop-woop
Whoopty-whoop, woopty-woop-woopty-woop-woop
(California Dungeons)
Can't detour when you at war with your city, why run for?
Just ride with me, just die with me, that gun store right there
When you fight, don't fight fair, 'cause you'll never win
(Right, I had the yopper, and I tore they ass up)
Can't detour when you at war with your city, why run for?
Just ride with me, just die with me, that gun store right there
When you fight, don't fight fair, 'cause you'll never win, yeah, yeah, yeah
Whoa, whoa, whoa-whoa-whoa-whoa
Whoa, whoa, whoa-whoa-whoa-whoa
Whoa, whoa, whoa-whoa-whoa-whoa
Whoa, whoa, whoa-whoa-whoa-whoa
We really out here, my nigga
You niggas don't understand, my nigga
I'm off a pill and RΓ©my Red, my nigga
Trippin', my nigga
The song Ronald Reagan Era by Kendrick Lamar paints a vivid picture of life in Compton, California, during the height of the crack epidemic of the 1980s. In the first verse, Lamar describes the reckless behavior of the youth in the neighborhood, driving at breakneck speeds down Compton Boulevard while drinking and smoking marijuana in open defiance of authority. He notes that despite the outward bravado, the young people of Compton are struggling, a notion he continually returns to throughout the song with the repeated refrain of "cause the kids just ain't alright." The second verse describes the violence and chaos of the drug trade, with Lamar using vivid imagery to describe the police presence, gang warfare, and rampant drug use that characterized Compton at the time.
The chorus, with its repetition of "Them Compton Crip niggas ain't nothing to fuck with, Bompton Piru's ain't nothing to fuck with, Compton ES's ain't nothin' to fuck with, But they fuck with me, and bitch I love it," underscores the dangerous nature of life on the streets in the mid-1980s. Lamar is acutely aware of the risks of calling out Compton's notorious gangs, but he's also acutely aware of the power in doing so. Throughout the song, he balances this danger with a deep sense of empathy for his fellow Compton residents, painting a complex and nuanced picture of what life was like in this rough-and-tumble neighborhood during one of the most tumultuous periods in American history.
Line by Line Meaning
We're far from good
Things are not good for us right now
Not good from far
Even if it may look good from afar, our situation isn't good
90 miles per hour down Compton Boulevard
We're driving really fast down this street in Compton
With the top down, screaming we don't give a fuck
We're driving with the convertible roof open and yelling about how little we care
Drink my 40 ounce of freedom while I roll my blunt
I'm sipping on a 40 ounce beer and rolling a marijuana cigarette
Cause the kids just aint alright
The young people in our community are struggling and things aren't good for them
Oh shit nigga
Uh oh, something is about to happen!
Somethin' bout to happen
I have a feeling that something is about to go down
Nigga this shit, nigga this sound like 30 keys under the compton court building
This situation seems like there are a lot of drugs (30 keys refers to kilos of drugs) stashed under the Compton court building
Hope the dogs don't smell it
We hope that the police dogs won't be able to smell the drugs
Welcome to vigilante
We're taking matters into our own hands and becoming vigilantes
802s so don't you ask me
I can't tell you what's going on because I'm not supposed to say anything about it
I'm hungry my body's antsy
I'm feeling restless and hungry
I'll rip through your fucking pantry
I'll eat all of your food in your pantry
Peeling off like a? examine my orchestra
I'm leaving quickly like I'm trying to escape from something, but first take a look at everyone who's with me
Granny said when I'm old enough I'll be sure to be all I can be
My grandmother told me that when I'm old enough, I should strive to be the best version of myself
You niggas Marcus Camby, washed up
You guys are like Marcus Camby, a retired basketball player whose prime is over
Pussy fix ya panties
Man up (used for both men and women), don't be a coward
I'm Mr. Marcus, you gettin' fucked, ugh
I'm in charge, and you're in trouble
You ain't heard nothing harder since Daddy Kane
You haven't heard anything as intense since the time of Daddy Kane, a prominent rapper from the 80s
Take it vain, Vicodins couldn't ease the pain
I'm experiencing a lot of pain and even Vicodin (a painkiller) won't help
Lightening bolts hit ya body, you thought it rained
You feel like you've been struck by lightning, and it's shocking you
Not a cloud in sight, just the shit that I write strong enough to stand in front of a traveling freight train
There's no visible danger, but my words are powerful enough to be as dangerous as standing in front of a freight train
Are you trained, to go against Dracula
Do you have the skills to go against someone as scary and dangerous as Dracula?
Dragging the record industry by my fangs
I'm pulling the music industry along with my own strength
AK clips, money clips and gold chains
I have powerful weapons, wealth, and symbols of status
You walk around with a P90 like it's the 90's
You carry a gun that's outdated (from the 1990s) as if it's still useful
Bullet to your temple your homocide'll remind me
If I shoot you in the head, your death will be a reminder of the homicides I've already committed
Them Compton crip niggas aint nothing to fuck with
The gang members from Compton (Crip faction) are dangerous and shouldn't be messed with
Bompton Piru's aint nothing to fuck with
The gang members from Bompton (Piru faction) are also to be feared
Compton es?'s aint nothin' to fuck with
The gang members from Compton ese's (Mexican factions) shouldn't be messed with either
But they fuck with me and bitch I love it
Even though these gangs are dangerous, they associate with me and I like it
Lets hit the county building gotta catch my check
I need to go to the government building to pick up my paycheck
Spend it all to a 40 ounce to the neck
I'm going to spend all of my paycheck on a 40 ounce beer
And in retrospect I remember December being the hottest
Looking back, I remember December being extremely violent and tense
Squad cars, neighborhood wars and stolen monsters
There were a lot of police and people fighting in the streets, and cars were frequently stolen
When you fight, don't fight fair
During a battle, it's better not to be fair and follow rules, because you'll never win
Cause you'll never win
If you fight fair, you'll never win the battle
Lyrics Β© Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: Kendrick Lamar, Dante Perkins, Donte Perkins
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
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