Kendrick Lamar Breaks Down To Pimp A Butterfly’s Cover Art and Its Significance (Video)

Kendrick Lamar recently sat down with Mass Appeal for an interview, of which an excerpt was released on video of him explaining the album cover of his highly lauded To Pimp A Butterfly. He explains that all the people on the album cover with him are friends and family from where he grew up in Compton, and that the cover represents him sharing his experiences with them. Kendrick also revealed that many of them were part of his stories on good kid, m.A.A.d. city.

He also breaks down the significance of having a judge laid out on the ground in the cover art, saying that the people standing over the judge are good people who are products of their environment, and that a judge would have them represented negatively. Kendrick goes on to explain the ideology of feeling “rich in spirit,” and how it evolves as you progress through the album.
Check out the 2-minute clip below:

Kendrick Lamar is also on the cover of issue 56 of Mass Appeal, where a much more extensive interview can be read here.

Related: Kendrick Lamar and Glasses Malone Search for Harmony Over a Bone Thugs Inspired Track (Audio)