Beauty in completion: Rapper Kendrick Lamar announces final album with TDE

Rapper Kendrick Lamar announced on Friday that he is coming out with his final album for the music production company Top Dawg Entertainment.

“As I produce my final TDE album, I feel joy to have been a part of such a cultural imprint after 17 years. The Struggles. The Success. And most importantly, the Brotherhood,” the artist shared a statement from his social media accounts along with a photo that appeared to show him in the recording booth.

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Opening the note, Lamar said, “I spend most of my days with fleeting thoughts. Writing. Listening. And collecting old Beach cruisers. The morning rides keep me on a hill of silence. I go months without a phone.”

“Love, loss, and grief have disturbed my comfort zone, but the glimmers of God speak through my music and family. While the world around me evolves, I reflect on what matters the most. The life in which my words will land next,” he added.

Lamar’s unexpected announcement comes as a shock to many as the 34-year-old had been TDE’s flagship artist for over a decade. With the production house, Kendrick released a number of critically acclaimed bangers through the major label Interscope, including ‘Good Kid’, ‘M.A.A.D City’, ‘To Pimp a Butterfly’ and his most recent album, 2017’s ‘Damn’.

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The latter won him the Pulitzer Prize for Music, along with a Grammy Award for Best Rap Album in 2018.

However, in his statement, he wished: “May the Most High continue to use Top Dawg as a vessel for candid creators. As I continue to pursue my life’s calling.”

“There’s beauty in completion. And always faith in the unknown.”

Soon after the announcement, CEO Anthony “Top Dawg” Tiffith took to social media to confirm the news in a statement. “TDE and its artists have provided a way to end generational curses that we were all personally born into over the last 17 years in this business. With this being Dot’s last album on TDE, this is more of a VICTORY LAP, a celebration. I know he will be successful in whatever it is he decides to do and will have our FULL support,” he further wrote.

However, K.Dot hasn’t confirmed much more details about the upcoming album, but given it’s going to cap off an entire era, fans will be hoping for Kendrick to turn at his usual best.