"Never forget where you came from..."
As a Black American male born during Reagan's presidency and raised in the "inner-city" with a good head on his shoulders, I've heard this a lot. One night in particular, I needed a counter for the phrase as it was tossed out in my direction left and right from prominent and well to do Blacks in the City of Angels. Summer 2002. College a mere month or so away. An awards banquet for a monetary scholarship I had obtained. Congratulations and good times all around. And the "never forget where you came from(s)." A coded message. Weighted. A quick way of saying "you've made it/are making it. But don't get too far off. Remember where you came from, who you are, and who and what birthed you..."
I'm drawn to Good Kid, M.A.A.D City for a number of reasons (beats, rhymes, and life, yes), but mostly because of its attempt to not discard completely the land that raised him, no matter how gritty or inconsistent, as he moves further away from its tentacles. Co-labeled "A Short Film By Kendrick Lamar", Good Kid M.A.A.D City is his Stand By Me or, Boyz in tha Hood on wax, updated for the present. A love letter to the city of Compton, the West Coast, Hip-Hop, lost youth, and hopes for a better path forward. Carried in full by Kendrick. Thought for thought, bar for bar. A good kid from a mad city now latched onto the American Dream and riding it straight to the top.
Good Kid, M.A.A.D City ain't just about Kendrick or Compton, California, it's about us. It's about growth. The lives we've lead and the mistakes we've made to get us where we've gotten, and push us ahead. A love letter to Compton, the West Coast, Hip-Hop, lost youth, and hopes for a better path forward. Strengthened by that ever lingering thought:
"Never forget where you came from..."
KEY TRACKS: Bitch Don't Kill My Vibe/Good Kid/Sing About Me, I'm Dying of Thirst
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