Kendrick Lamar – Untitled Unmastered. (VG+/VG+) – LP, US 2016

Untitled Unmastered. is an LP by Kendrick Lamar from 2016 released on the Aftermath Entertainment, Interscope Records, Top Dawg Entertainment label.

About this album

Untitled Unmastered. is a striking companion to Kendrick Lamar’s To Pimp a Butterfly, turning studio fragments into a coherent and vital statement. Issued in 2016, the release gathers eight untitled pieces recorded between 2013 and 2016, drawing on jazz, funk and experimental hip hop while preserving their raw, in-progress feel. Rather than sounding like outtakes, the album deepens Lamar’s interest in political pressure, restless rhythm and improvisation, with contributions from a close-knit cast of collaborators that includes Thundercat and Terrace Martin. Its immediate acclaim confirmed Lamar’s ability to make uncertainty itself feel purposeful and fully realised.