Kendrick Lamar, “GNX.”

Kendrick Lamar became one of the world’s most acclaimed rappers for his conscious, intricate penmanship. In the last year, he’s found success in a somewhat different lane: diss tracks against Drake. The most popular from the now infamous rap battle is “Not Like Us,” a punchy banger with echoes left all over Lamar’s new album, GNX.

On some GNX songs, Lamar seems to be looking to remake what made “Not Like Us” so successful. His bouncy flow on Bay-Area-inspired “squabble up” and Mustard’s brass-filled production on “tv off” call back to the diss track, each with an addictive sense of aggression yet something to make them stand out as singular songs.

Lamar is an interesting rapper for so many reasons: his writing, his sonic influences, his conceptuality and, uniquely, his vocal choices. Almost like a theatrical pop singer, he sounds completely different throughout the album, whether it’s his confrontational yelling on “reincarnated,” his soft singing on “luther” or his threatening whisper on “hey now.” This makes the album consistently engaging and often satisfyingly addictive, with each song having its own few snappy lines that make you want to listen again and again.

The exception to that is title track “gnx,” which features multiple L.A. artists over a wacky, chaotic beat. It’s not the worst track because it’s so messy, necessarily, but moreso because nothing very memorable happens on top of the cluttered production. It’s the only song on the project that doesn’t stand out as a career-defining moment. For Kendrick Lamar, though, it’s hard to define exactly what gets that title when almost every song seems to deserve it.

“Fuck a double entendre/ I want y’all to feel this shit,” he raps on the opening track. At least on the exterior, it’s a thesis for GNX. Lamar is less focused on his detailed penmanship and more on the passion and the intense bliss that comes with hip-hop. The second half of that sentence is true—this album is meant to be felt, and it’s entirely impossible not to listen to it without building up some strong feelings—but the record’s lyrics are also some of the best of the year.

On “reincarnated,” for instance, he uses each verse to describe the trials and successes of artists before him that have brought him to where he is, paying yet another ode to the West Coast by rapping over a 2Pac sample. “So can you promise that you won’t take your gifts for granted?/ I promise that I’ll use my gifts to bring understanding,” he says.

A large ego is found throughout the project, but it’s hard to feel like Lamar doesn’t deserve to have one. He essentially sees himself as a protector of the culture he comes from, and he wears that with pride, especially on “reincarnated” and “man of the garden.” The latter finds him repeating “I deserve it all” about all of his successes and accolades over a track reminiscent of 2022’s Mr. Morale & The Big Steppers, yet with an entirely different ethos.

The album closes out with “Gloria,” a love letter that seems like it’s about a romantic partner but is revealed to be about his pen and his tumultuous relationship with writing. ”You want reality, not tragedy, for sure, I get you/ To tell the truth, I been pretty used to what open-minded people do,” he raps. It’s a sweet conclusion, especially with the addition of SZA’s ethereal vocals.

GNX is a victory lap after an immensely successful year, but it’s also far more than that. Just about each song has something new to offer in Lamar’s catalog, and as a whole, it’s a beautiful 44 minutes of how powerful hip-hop can be.