Originally Released October 22, 2012
Reissued October 21, 2022
Aftermath Entertainment
2xLP (Black Vinyl, Translucent Black Ice, Alternate Cover / Black Ice Vinyl and Milky Clear Indie Exclusive)
good kid, m.a.a.d. city is among the most fully realized concept albums ever committed to wax. Over 70 minutes, you are warped into a harrowing, non-linear day in Compton, viewed through the lens of a young Kendrick Lamar's eyes as he grapples with family disfunction, gang life, religious salvation, teenage swagger, life and death. By the time the post-credits scene rolls around, you'll feel as if you've lived another life. It's not the album that netted Lamar a Pulitzer, but if a more intricately written album has been released in the last decade, we haven't heard it.