Kendrick Lamar’s sophomore album To Pimp A Butterfly has had an immense impact on the game. Not only has it influenced a generation of aspiring lyricists, but it changed the lives of the producers who worked on the album as well. Revolt had the brilliant idea of bringing the entire team together to talk about the making of the remarkable album. If you thought you knew everything that went into making TPAB, you still have no clue until you watch this documentary. Find out what you didn’t know about the album after the jump!
Kendrick Lamar’s production team gave us a real inside look at what went into making To Pimp A Butterfly. Terrace Martin, Sounwave, MixedByAli, Tae Beast, Robert Glasper, Thundercat, Ambrose Akinmusire and Kamasi Washington were amongst the team of beat makers that helped make Kendrick’s successful sophomore album into the chart-topping body of work we’ve all come to praise.
In Revolt’s exclusive documentary about the album, Terrace Martin, Sounwave, Thundercat and the rest of the team did well to answer questions fans have had since the album’s surprise release last month. They explained that Kendrick’s trip to Africa helped him solidify his ideas for the album. They also revealed the status of the “Untitled” track Kendrick performed on the last episode of “The Colbert Report.” Here are a couple more of facts they clarified for us.
The Making Of “u” Was An Emotional In-Studio Moment
“When we recorded the song it was crazy,” said Ali about one of the most poignant moments on TPAB, which appears on the song… well more like teary-eyed reflective statement “u.” The song plays like the Cain to i’s Abel. “He just walked in [the studio], cut the lights off, he walked into the booth, locked the door, and didn’t come out for three hours. So when he did his verse, I’m sitting back recording and it’s pitch black everywhere. It was an experience for sure.” The moment struck a chord with everyone in the room.
“Everybody that walked in the session had tears in their eyes. I don’t know…,” Sounwave described before hesitating with emotion. “It just hits me every time I listen to it. He put his heart in that one.”
Brainstorming for To Pimp A Butterfly Started a Little Before good kid, m.A.A.d city Hit Stores
A title and theme wasn’t yet developed, but by the time his critical darling, good kid, m.A.A.d city arrived in stores, Kendrick was already plotting on the follow-up. “Literally, good kid, m.A.A.d city is not even printed yet and he’s brainstorming for the next album,” Sounwave revealed. The producer also hinted that the same scenario took place on this record.
“How Much A Dollar Cost?” Was Recorded First
The first song recorded for TPAB was the contemplative centerpiece “How Much A Dollar Cost.”
“That was early,” Martin noted. “It sat around for months. It [almost] wasn’t going to happen.” The multi-talented musician also teased that another record almost replaced “Dollar” that he described as “killer.”
“We had another record that was killer, I wanted to make it [on the LP] so bad. Me and Sounwave did the beat, it was killer,” he said. But there’s still a chance that fans will get to hear the unreleased track, because as Terrace puts it, “I might put that on my album (Velvet Portraits).”
Watch the documentary on Revolt’s website now.
