Kendrick Lamar – 2024 Hip Hop Artist of The Year

We’ve given flowers to Kendrick Lamar on our website plenty of times before. With a few months left here in 2024, I think it’s more than ok to officially crown Kendrick Lamar as the Hip Hop Artist of 2024. Dominating the entire summer with his beef vs. Drake, all the way to being chosen for next year’s Super Bowl, 2024 has been all about K-dot.  Then if all that wasn’t enough, he seemingly moved past that beef, and focused on hip hop and black culture, with Watch the Party Die.

Working on getting an official review of that track up soon – Watch The Party Die is currently featured on our home page.

Kendrick has owned this entire year. A year with a lot of real decent music dropping all around.

Overall it has been A great year for hip hop, coming off the year long 50th celebration we got in 2023.  Real hip hop ‘seems’ to be making a slight reemergence, as more of the fanbase is getting more vocal, about moving away from toxic, negative messaging.

Here on authorityhop, we have referred to ‘street music’ as, tales from the hood.  Most of the music inspired by those tales of yesteryear, are both a cry for help but also more. Evidence that the heavy focus on one form of hip hop, over others, is influencing negative cycles.  Cycles, which do seem to be worsening, when we examine all that has gone on, with these young rappers that are dying from drug overdoses, or worse, from gang related violence.

These cries for help get louder and the need to see change, more pressing.

Right on time, it would seem again this year, Kendrick Lamar suggests it’s definitely time to ‘watch the party die’. Releasing this track just days, before Sean “Diddy” Combs was arrested by the feds. While also, sparking off a real quick flurry of response tracks, that in my mind continue to put the ‘beef with Drake’ in the rear view.

Kendrick references Lecrae, asking ‘What would Lecrae do?”, and so he responded.

…. came out the gate with it ….

I was wrestlin’ like, should I write a verse?
The culture got enough clout-chasin’ vultures out here tryna prove they worth
They need attention They can’t imagine me not tryna make myself look bigger off of this Kendrick mention
I can’t imagine his position Before I got on my mission I was a party victim

Christian rap, continues to gain more popularity. Mostly due to MCs like Lecrae, finding new ways to express their beliefs, through hip hop as a vehicle. Again, truly, one of the most disappointing aspects of hip hop’s first 50 years is how it did become exploited to the point that it’s so imbalanced. This is also, an area we’ve discussed on our pages before –

So with that, came another response, from another MC who’s also challenging ‘the culture’ – Dee 1

“We flippin Tables” – Dee 1, Call it Like it is …

Shout outs to New Orleans. I mean, the culture is real upset that “Lil Wayne” isn’t out here performing at the super bowl, cause he’s from N.O. – but where are the calls, for Dee 1?

Man, I’m gon’ (Call it like it is), no, it ain’t no pressure on me
I’m applyin’ the pressure, I’m powered by G-O-D
And we gon’ be alright, that’s what Kendrick Lamar said
And in the words of Lil Wayne, the sky is the limit, yeah

So call it like it is, call it what it ain’t
Call it what you want, no, I ain’t on that train
I’m speakin’ from the soul, and I don’t care who feel’ it
Yeah, hip-hop is dead, and y ‘all the ones who killed it

See, regardless of what ‘the white man’ puts on the radio, we as a people, as the fans, do not have to tune into it. We don’t have to support it, just cause a black ‘face’ made it.  The unfortunate part of the game, is how so many of us, have been used against our own people. As usual, we speak from the black perspective on this website. This music, created by black Americans, was never meant to be used in the destructive ways, that it has been.

Tales from the hood, initially, were calls for help.

Over time and with the help/influence of white owned record companies & radio/tv stations, those ‘calls’ became, trap music, drill music, death culture on ecstasy.  Making it look ‘appealing’ and ‘inviting’.  Shout outs to K.Dot for ‘striking while the iron is hot’, with this one.

Watch the Party Die, may go down as a ‘moment’ in time, just as “Not Like Us” has solidified itself.

It will be known for the ‘single that followed’ the song that possibly, ended Drake’s hip hop career. I don’t know about you but I still have not heard any parts of that 100 gigs of content that was released ‘after’ and ‘on the low’.  All the signs of ‘defeat’ are there. Without being a ‘hater’ of course, cause Drake had a great run. Sometimes, rap beef changes how the fans view an artist however.  When we consider just how big of a star Drake ‘was’ and perhaps to some, still is, the way Kendrick handled the ‘beef’ will forever be legendary.

Even if you didn’t like his songs, thought Drake ‘won’, etc, ‘the Culture’ has spoken.

That, popular majority, has decided it already.  Placing this up there with “Hit em Up” from 2pac, and Cube’s “No Vaseline”.

Now that I have your attention: Let’s really talk about what we doing ….
– Kendrick Lamar, (paraphrasing, Watch the Party Die)

He came for everybody that’s bringing black culture down. The men who aren’t men, aren’t moving how Nipsey was moving, radio personalities that start actual wars in our streets … it all needs to stop.  Even when we consider how ‘fans’ responded to all that Drake vs. Kendrick beef. Fights breaking out at concerts, rappers not being able to perform in certain cities. We’re not ‘just listening’ to the music and appreciating the art form like we need to be.

We’re, allowing these people with podcasts, to tell us how we should also react to what we are hearing.  There is a lot of work to do, and hopefully more ‘leaders in hip hop’ will emerge to show the rest of us the way. As we get the ‘devils’ out of the culture, and rid ourselves of their influence. This art form can be used, once again, for what it was created to do: Inspire, Inform and Inner-tain.

Thank you to Kendrick Lamar, our 2024 hip hop artist of the year –

check out Kendrick Lamar previews track/video reviews from authorityhop.com –

• Got Royalty, Got Loyalty Inside My DNA
• Knock it Off Review: Where The Cash At?

We would be remised, if we did not also include this contribution from TDE artist, Ray Vaughn.  He really did his thing on this freestyle, also inspired by Watch The Party Die.

I love that so much of this has been so well received.  “The culture” just may be waking up …