Too loud, too reckless, too ghetto. Too Black? That seems to be the million-dollar word of the century, leaving such a sour taste in the mouths of many Americans. We live in a world not only appalled by the audacity of blackness but rather the audacity of Black people. Our audacity to want more. Our audacity to bear the gift of resilience. Our audacity to love, especially those who see us as an enemy. Our audacity to believe we have a right to exist in this world. Our audacity to be Black. And while at times, it may feel challenging to wear this skin of deep melanin proudly, I brace myself for the world’s hate and coldly say: DAMN.
With the phenomenal laureled lyricist and performer Kendrick Lamar being announced to headline the “Super Bowl ⅬⅠⅩ”, my interest in viewing the game grew exponentially. His “GNX” album, released in late 2024, succeeded the widely spectacled beef between Kendrick and Drake, providing an entire set list of diss tracks to be queued at his big performance. Playing at this expectation, Kendrick enforced a system of delayed gratification to us fans. His performance threw viewers into a loophole with the recurring commentary of actor Samuel L. Jackson, who played the role of America’s beloved Uncle Sam. He and the backup dancers, consisting of an all-Black troupe, were draped in colors of red, white and blue, emphasizing Kendrick’s bold message to America. This segment was one of the most important pieces of his performance. Between the transitions of his songs, Samuel L. Jackson, who was debatably also playing a version of Black America’s ‘Uncle Tom,’ chastised Kendrick for being too exuberant with his blackness. His inability to show humbleness and grovel tainted him as the ringleader of hip-hop artists who have ‘done more damage to the African-American community than racism.’ Swiftly following Kendrick’s first song, “Squabble Up,” he ridiculed Kendrick, easing him into playing the fun, popular songs that American society deemed socially acceptable. At first, it seemed Kendrick misunderstood the rules of the game, a game he was unaware he was playing in. After Strike One, Kendrick gave the people what they wanted; he played all of the hits that upper-middle-class suburban white people love: “Humble.,” “DNA.” and “Euphoria,” and even brought out the sensational siren SZA for her famed features on “Luther” and “All the Stars.”
After giving the audience what they wanted and doing right by our star-spangled banner, Kendrick just couldn’t hold back anymore. Was the deduction of ‘one life’ (aka, a reference to the penalties many Black people face in the ‘American Game’ due to racial injustice and police brutality) not enough? That’s Strike Two! Kendrick tunneled toward the end-zone for a touchdown, playing the familiar horns of “Not Like Us,” featuring a powerful clip of yes, The Serena Williams, doing the infamous crip-walk. To many, this song, alongside most on his “GNX” album is just a compilation of diss tracks that have been widely misinterpreted to be casual, concentrated, call-outs of Drake. On the contrary, I believe Mr. Morale is dissing America and those participating in ‘The Great American Game.’ This reference to the game is both a metaphor and a literal reference to the hypocrisy of America’s constitution, democracy and government which prides itself on promising liberty, freedom and equality to all who are ‘brave enough’ (aka, White enough) to seek (have it placed in their hands) it in these lands, all the while simultaneously allowing a convicted felon to not only run for office but become the presidential elect and slowly strip the American people of the values once used as statements of pride and have our nation crumble mercilessly.
“Not Like Us,” specifically, is a call and response to the Black community. It speaks about the effects of allowing cultural appropriators, which can be non-Black people, but also Black people, hence the call-out to Mr. Aubrey Grahams, to reap the success of our loyalty, love and lineage, while concurrently shunning their back on our struggles as Black people in America. Being Black isn’t just about wearing trendy clothing (which is heavily based on African American culture), having a good melodic flow and using, or debating the use of the n-word, it comes with social, political and intrapersonal struggles to deal with the harsh reality of living in a world that disdains you for your skin color and what that represents in the face of their privilege.
Nonetheless, despite the foreseeable criticism and expected misunderstandings about the political messages wrapped in Kendrick’s performance, for those of Us, not “us” (if you know, you know) who were able to appreciate the art and be part of a revolution that will be televised, could think of no other artist to relay the unspoken turmoils of Black America in the face of the world than Kendrick Lamar. He was joined by DJ ‘MUSTAAAAAAAARRRRDDDD’ for his final song and third strike of the night, “tv off”, ominously advising the viewers to turn their television off and focus on the reality we are living in. The entertainment awards, grand sporting events and pop culture scandals that we all engage in are diluting our sense of the draconian laws our government is trying to sneak past us. And yet, as expected, we continued to watch the game until the end and rave about it online, drowning out the current events in our algorithm and numbing ourselves to Earth’s Ludacris lore.
But hey, at least we got a killer performance, ain’t that right, Drake?