LeBron James Loves Kendrick Lamar’s New Album. He Shares Snippets (Audio)

With just a few hours until Kendrick Lamar is scheduled to release his fourth LP, DAMN., there don’t appear to be any leaks of the much-anticipated content. He threw most for a loop when rapping in “The Heart Part 4” that “you have until April 7 to get your s**t together,” which led Hip-Hop to believe that he was dropping the album last week. However, the release date of April 14 was formally announced by TDE, and one can nearly feel the collective bated breath enveloping the music industry today (April 13). And that’s what makes the lack of leaks so impressive…but that doesn’t mean a sneak preview of DAMN. hasn’t made its way onto the web.

Kendrick Lamar Releases The Title, Artwork & Tracklist For His New Album

Apparently, NBA star LeBron James was gifted an early copy of Kendrick’s new album, and the superstar athlete took to his Instagram account to share snippets of the LP, presumably with Kendrick’s approval. In a video compiling James’ several IG posts, one can see the basketball icon nodding his head to the new material, with captions like “Uh oh! Appreciate the love KDot and Top Dog! [sic] Playoff vibe.” From what can be heard, there’s little doubt that Kendrick is holding anything back on the album that he once described as showcasing him “in a space now where I’m not addressing the problem anymore,” which he says he did on To Pimp a Butterfly. Raps like “all my grandmas dead so ain’t nobody praying for me” and “if I gotta stomp a pussy-ass n****, I’ma make it look sexy” show off an unbridled and aggressive Lamar.

DAMN. features Rihanna and U2 and is home to Kendrick’s highest-debuting single to date, “HUMBLE.”