好孩子・疯狂城市 (2012)

Good Kid, M.A.A.D City (stylized as good kid, m.A.A.d city) is the second studio album by the American rapper Kendrick Lamar. It was released on October 22, 2012, by Interscope Records, Top Dawg Entertainment and Dr. Dre's Aftermath Entertainment. The album features guest appearances from Drake, Dr. Dre, Jay Rock, Anna Wise and MC Eiht. It is Lamar's first major label album, after his independently released debut album Section.80 in 2011 and his signing to Aftermath and Interscope the following year.

Good Kid, M.A.A.D City was recorded mostly at several studios in California, with producers such as Dr. Dre, Just Blaze, Pharrell Williams, Hit-Boy, Scoop DeVille, Jack Splash, and T-Minus, among others, contributing to the album. Billed as a "short film by Kendrick Lamar" on the album cover, the concept album tells a coming-of-age story about Lamar's adolescence surrounded by the drug-infested streets and gang lifestyle of his native Compton. Good Kid, M.A.A.D City received widespread acclaim from critics, who praised its thematic scope and Lamar's lyrics. The album debuted at number two on the US Billboard 200, selling 242,000 copies in its first week – earning the highest first-week hip-hop album sales of 2012 from a male artist. It also became Lamar's first album to enter the UK Albums Chart, peaking at number 16, and entering the UK R&B Albums Chart at number two.

The album was supported by five singles – "The Recipe", "Swimming Pools (Drank)", "Backseat Freestyle", "Poetic Justice", and "Bitch, Don't Kill My Vibe". All five singles achieved chart success of varying degrees. Lamar also went on a world tour between May and August 2013, featuring the other members of the hip-hop collective, Black Hippy. The album earned Lamar seven Grammy Award nominations at the 2014 Grammy Awards, including Album of the Year. The album was also named to many end-of-the-year lists, often topping them. It was later certified triple platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA). In 2020 and 2023, the album was ranked 115th on Rolling Stone's updated list of "The 500 Greatest Albums of All Time" and in 2022, the publication named it the greatest concept album of all time.

Background

After the release and success of his debut studio album Section.80 (2011), Kendrick Lamar signed a major label record deal with Interscope Records and Dr. Dre's Aftermath Entertainment. He told HipHopDX that he did not want to work with high-profile producers, but with those he had established himself with, mainly producers from Top Dawg's in-house production team, Digi+Phonics.

In an interview for XXL, Lamar said that the album would not sound like Section.80, but will return to his Compton roots: "I couldn't tell you what type of sound or where I [will] be in the next five years as far as music... Back to the neighborhood and [going] back in that same space where we used to be, got [me] inspired. So this album won't sound like Section.80." Lamar also said that the album will showcase the influence of his hometown: "The kid that's trying to escape that influence, trying his best to escape that influence, has always been pulled back in because of circumstances that be."

Recording and production

Recording sessions for the album took place at PatchWerk Recording Studios in Atlanta, Encore Studios in Burbank, TDE Red Room in Carson, and "At My Mama's Studio" in Los Angeles. The first song that Lamar recorded for the album was "Compton", which featured Dr. Dre. The track serves as the twelfth track on the album, and acts as the standard edition's closing track.

On August 15, 2012, Lady Gaga announced via Twitter, that she had collaborated with Lamar on a song called "Partynauseous", for the album, and would be released on September 6. However, on August 23, Gaga announced that the song was no longer being released on that date and apologized to fans for the delay. Eventually, it was confirmed that Lady Gaga would not be featured on the album due to timing issues and creative differences. The song was later revealed to be re-titled "Bitch, Don't Kill My Vibe". On November 8, Gaga released the version she was featured on, which had her singing the chorus and a verse. Lamar stated he was surprised and happy that Gaga released her version of the song, as it displayed confidence in their work together.