"Watch the Party Die" or "Die for the Party"

“Watch the Party Die” was the first track that Kendrick released after Kendrick’s battle with Aubrey Graham, who is better known by his middle name, Drake. It is thus notable that on the fourth verse of the battle track “meet the grahams,” Kendrick refers to Drake’s party seemingly as a larger metaphor for Drake’s current way of life.
 

• Dear Aubrey
  I know you probably thinkin’ I wanted to crash your party

The first line of “Watch the Party Die” thus seems to be subtly alluding to Kendrick’s battle with Drake.
 

Among the battle tracks that Kendrick released, “meet the grahams” is notable for being the track where Kendrick dropped bombshell allegations of Drake being a pedophile.

• Sandra, sit down, what I’m about to say is heavy, now listen
  Mm-mm, your son’s a sick man with sick thoughts, I think niggas like him should die
  Him and Weinstein should get fucked up in a cell for the rest their life
  He hates Black women, hypersexualizes ’em with kinks of a nympho fetish
  Grew facial hair because he understood bein’ a beard just fit him better
  He got sex offenders on ho-VO that he keep on a monthly allowance
  A child should never be compromised and he keepin’ his child around them
  And we gotta raise our daughters knowin’ there’s predators like him lurkin’
  …
  They be streamlinin’ victims all inside of they home and callin’ ’em tender
  Then leak videos of themselves to further push their agendas
  …
  Katt Williams said, “Get you the truth,” so I’ma get mines
  The Embassy ‘bout to get raided too, it’s only a matter of time
  Ayy, LeBron, keep the family away, hey, Curry, keep the family away
  To anybody that embody the love for their kids, keep the family away
  They lookin’ at you too if you standin’ by him, keep the family away
  I’m lookin’ to shoot through any pervert that lives, keep the family safe

In these lyrics from “meet the grahams,” Kendrick asserts that sexual predators like Drake or Harvey Weinstein should die, much like the party in “Watch the Party Die.”
 

Kendrick also recounts a message from Black comedian Katt Williams that encouraged listeners to seek out “the truth.” Here, Kendrick is alluding to Katt Williams’ viral interview, which was released by the Club Shay Shay podcast on January 3, 2024, just a few days into the new year. Throughout that interview, Katt Williams assumed the role of a truth-teller and repeatedly exposed the economic and moral corruption of the entertainment industry. In particular, Katt Williams revealed a deeply entrenched pattern of sexual misconduct, abuse, and coercion by which powerful men in the entertainment industry routinely take advantage of less powerful people in the entertainment industry. Katt Williams specifically named Harvey Weinstein, R. Kelly, and Diddy as men engaged in these predatory practices.
 

Years before the interview, R. Kelly and Harvey Weinstein had already been convicted of several severe sexual offenses and given lengthy prison sentences. It was thus notable that Katt Williams included Diddy along with these two men since, at the time, Diddy was facing numerous civil lawsuits that accused him of sexual assault but had yet to be charged with any criminal offense. Nonetheless, in the interview (15:40 - 16:32), Katt Williams predicted that 2024 would be a year when the truth about men who behaved like Harvey Weinstein and R. Kelly would come to light.

• I came in this business saying I was going to expose. When I talked about Michael Jackson, when I talked about R. Kelly they canceled me for these things because “why would you talk about another black dude?” Race is not where the line is drawn. It’s God’s side and the other side and we don’t care nothing about the other side - period. Period. All of these big dick deviants is all catching hell in 2024. It’s up for all of them. It don’t matter if you Diddy or whoever you is. TD Jakes - any of them the every…All lies will be exposed. That’s all and anyone who takes that the wrong way - know why they take it the wrong way. The truth is the light.
  …
  All people that love the truth got to be happy if the truth coming out and lies is getting exposed. That’s just what time it is - 2024, folks.
   

In the interview (1:40:33 - 1:44:00), Katt Williams also specifically highlighted how he had been invited to Diddy’s parties, and even though attending these parties might lead to financially lucrative opportunities, he consistently refused to attend because he was convinced that he would be exploited and coerced into performing sexual acts for Diddy or other powerful men at one of Diddy’s “Freak Off” sex parties.

• My goal was to get this far in Hollywood and still have a virgin asshole and never had sucked the penis. That was my only goal.
  …
  I’ve had to turn down $50 million four times - four times - just to protect my integrity and that virgin hole I was telling you about, right. Cause P Diddy be wanting to party and you got to tell him, “No.” You’ve got to tell him, “No.” I did.
   

Hence, by saying “I think it’s time to watch the party die” in September of 2024, Kendrick seems to be agreeing with—or maybe fulfilling—Katt Williams’ prediction that “All of these big dick deviants is all catching hell in 2024” and “It’s up for all of them.”
 

Again, the idea that it is almost “time” for the criminal offenses of Drake and his crew to be exposed is exactly what Kendrick first said on “meet the grahams” when he predicted a police raid on Drake’s mansion, which is nicknamed “The Embassy.”

• Katt Williams said, “Get you the truth,” so I’ma get mines
  The Embassy ‘bout to get raided too, it’s only a matter of time

A few months after releasing “Watch the Party Die,” Kendrick would go on to release the album GNX, featuring the opening track “wacced out murals,” where Kendrick again mentions Katt Williams and warns those on the “other side” that the truth is about to be exposed.

• Ayy, fuck anybody empathetic to the other side, I vow
  A bitch nigga love bitch niggas, they exist with ’em in style
  Exterminate ’em right now
  Make Katt Williams and them proud, the truth ‘bout to get loud

It should also be noted that Kendrick was not the first person to specifically accuse Drake of unreported sexual misconduct and pedophilia. Numerous people within the entertainment industry and on social media had made similar, though less widely publicized, allegations.
 

For instance, social media users became suspicious after the video release of a 2018 red carpet interview where a then 14-year-old actress named Millie Bobby Brown told a reporter that she had a very emotionally affectionate relationship with a then 31-year-old Drake. Her account of the relationship included revelations that they text frequently, including Drake sending a message that said, “I miss you so much,” to which she replied, “I miss you more.” She also mentioned that Drake helps her with advice about boys and talked about how excited she was about her plans to see him during a trip he had planned to Atlanta.
 

A year later, in 2019, roughly five years before the battle with Kendrick, on a podcast episode that was discussing R. Kelly, a White comedian named Shane Gillis directly alleged that Drake “likes ’em young” and predicted that Drake was going to get exposed and arrested in the next five years.

• “Dude R. Kelly got away”
   
  “That reminds me I do want to say this. I want to be on the record. Drake… Drake’s gonna be …he’s on that R. Kelly tip.”
   
  “You think so?”
   
  “Drizzy Drake likes ’em young. He does. It’s somewhat known already but this is one of those things where I want to you know you got to say something. Like remember Louie that whole thing, yeah, and like, we knew about that yeah and we were just like, ‘I don’t know.’ Drake, Drizzy Drake is into the young ones. He’s going to get got in the next 5 years, unfortunately. Love me some Drizzy Drake.”
   

Kendrick seems to have directly referenced this Shane Gillis podcast episode and the quote “Drake likes ’em young” during the first verse of the battle track “Not Like Us.” In that verse, Kendrick also refers to “the party,” where a member of Drake’s OVO record label crew named PARTYNEXTDOOR allegedly goes to snort cocaine.

• Say, Drake, I hear you like ’em young
  You better not ever go to cell block one
  To any bitch that talk to him and they in love
  Just make sure you hide your lil’ sister from him
  They tell me Chubbs the only one that get your hand-me-downs
  And Party at the party playin’ with his nose now
  And Baka got a weird case, why is he around?
  Certified Lover Boy? Certified pedophiles
  Wop, wop, wop, wop, wop, Dot, fuck ’em up
  Wop, wop, wop, wop, wop, I’ma do my stuff
  Why you trollin’ like a bitch? Ain’t you tired?
  Tryna strike a chord and it’s probably A minor
  …
  And your homeboy need subpoena, that predator move in flocks
  That name gotta be registered and placed on neighborhood watch

The pedophilia allegations on “Not Like Us” culminate with Kendrick repeatedly calling Drake a “69 god” in reference to the act of simultaneous oral sex, due to the fact that a 6 looks like a 9 that has been rotated 180 degrees.

• Devil is a lie, he a 69 God, ayy
  …
  The family matter and the truth of the matter
  It was God’s plan to show y’all the liar
  He a fan, he a fan, he a fan
  He a fan, he a fan, he a
  Freaky-ass nigga, he a 69 god
  Freaky-ass nigga, he a 69 god
  Hey, hey, hey, hey, run for your life
  Hey, hey, hey, hey, run for your life
   

Aside from the number 69 being an obvious reference to simultaneous oral sex, it is notable that in the New Testament, the “devil” (meaning “diabolical one,” “false accuser,” or “liar”)—also known as the “satan” (meaning “adversary”)—is often depicted as a figure who, unlike God, cannot actually create anything. Instead, the “devil” / “satan” will take things that have been created by the one true God and use lies to twist or turn them upside down.

In his viral Club Shay Shay interview (20:51 - 21:35), Katt Williams also made the point that the “devil” / “satan” cannot create anything but can only use lies to twist the things that God has created.

• These people are not powerful. Satan can’t create anything that includes blessings for his people. That’s why you know what the number one job of somebody that sold their soul in Hollywood is? Is to act like it didn’t happen. They all do the same job.
   

In English, the verb “pervert” is often used to refer to the way that the “devil” / “satan” or someone who behaves like the “devil” / “satan” uses lies to twist the truth and turn a good thing toward an evil purpose. The word “pervert” is derived from the Latin word “perverto,” which means “to turn thoroughly.” Someone who habitually “perverts” good things can themselves be referred to with the noun “pervert.” Notably, Kendrick referred to Drake as a “pervert” on “meet the grahams.”

• I’m lookin’ to shoot through any pervert that lives, keep the family safe  

Hence, the inversion between the numbers 6 and 9 can be seen as a symbol for the “satanic” way that Drake—the self-proclaimed “6 god”—has allegedly perverted “God’s Plan,” in reference to Drake’s hit single.
 

Ultimately, the goal of the “devil” / “satan” is to twist and pervert the truth enough to convince humans to empower themselves to enjoy illicit pleasure and “become like God.” This pattern of lying is first depicted when the “devil” / “satan” takes on the form of a snake, which deceives the prototypical man and woman into eating the fruit from a forbidden tree so that they can become like God.

• Now the snake was more shrewd than any animal of the field which the LORD God had made. And he said to the woman, “Has God really said, ‘You shall not eat from any tree of the garden’?”
   
  The woman said to the snake, “From the fruit of the trees of the garden we may eat; but from the fruit of the tree which is in the middle of the garden, God has said, ‘You shall not eat from it or touch it, or you will die.’”
   
  The snake said to the woman, “You certainly will not die! For God knows that on the day you eat from it your eyes will be opened, and you will become like God, knowing good and evil.”
   
  When the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was a delight to the eyes, and that the tree was desirable to make one wise, she took some of its fruit and ate; and she also gave some to her husband with her, and he ate.
   

In the case of Kendrick’s allegations against Drake, the forbidden fruit would seem to represent illicit sexual behavior with underage girls.

After the release of “meet the grahams” and “Not Like Us,” Drake released “The Heart Part 6,” where Drake publicly denied the pedophilia allegations and tried to shift the focus to Kendrick’s own family trauma through a misreading of Kendrick’s track “mother i sober” from Mr. Morale and the Big Steppers. The release of “The Heart Part 6” effectively ended the battle between Kendrick and Drake.

• Speakin’ of anything with a child, let’s get to that now
  This Epstein angle was the shit I expected
  TikTok videos you collected and dissected
  Instead of bein’ on some diss-direct shit
  You rather fucking grab your pen and misdirect shit
  My mom came over today, and I was like, “Mother, I—
  Mother, I—, mother—,” ahh, wait a second
  That’s that one record where you say you got molested
  Aw, fuck me, I just made the whole connection
  This about to get so depressin’
  This is trauma from your own confessions
  This when your father leave you home alone with no protection, so neglected
  That’s why these pedophile raps and shit you so obsessed with, it’s so excessive
  They actin’ like it’s so aggressive, but you just never known affection
  I don’t wanna diss you anymore, this really got me second-guessin’
  “Touch My Body” by Mariah Carey play, you probably start reflectin’
  I never been with no one underage,
  but now I understand why this the angle that you really mess with
  Just for clarity, I feel disgusted, I’m too respected
  If I was fucking young girls, I promise I’d have been arrested
  I’m way too famous for this shit you just suggested
  But that’s not the lesson, clearly, there’s a deeper message
  …
  Drake is not a name that you gon’ see on no sex offender list, Eazy-Duz-It You mentionin’ A minor, but niggas gotta B sharp and tell the fans, “Who was it?” You thought you left D flat, D major …
  Only fuckin’ with Whitneys, not Millie Bobby Browns, I’d never look twice at no teenager
  …
  If you still bumpin’ R. Kelly, you could thank the Savior

Kendrick seems to be asserting that “the party” has become so wicked that even if the people who are hosting or attending “the party” have a change of heart and decide to apologize, society should not accept their apology.
 

Kendrick’s accusations of wickedness could be directed at the pedophile parties which Kendrick alleges that Drake has been hosting. The accusations could also be directed at Diddy’s “Freak Off” sex parties, which came to light earlier in the year when Diddy was charged with sex trafficking, racketeering, and transportation to engage in prostitution. Still, Kendrick could be making his accusations more broadly at countless exploitative entertainment parties hosted by powerful men in the entertainment industry, as exposed by Katt Williams.
 

It is notable that the concept of “wickedness” was a major theme of Kendrick’s album DAMN.. The album’s opening track, “BLOOD.,” begins with an ominous voice that says:

• Is it wickedness or is it weakness?
  You decide. Are we going to live or die?”
   

Throughout DAMN., Kendrick seems to present a dichotomous choice between the “wickedness” that is routinely perpetrated by powerful, violent men in this world and the “weakness” that was exhibited by Jesus, who refused to use violence against his enemies and then laid down his life to be crucified in the place of violent men.

• Love’s gonna get you killed
  But pride’s gonna be the death of you, and you and me
  -“PRIDE.”
   
• Damn, love or lust
  Damn, all of us
  -“LOVE”
   
• Hail Mary, Jesus, and Joseph
  The great American flag is wrapped and dragged with explosives
  Compulsive disorder, sons and daughters
  Barricaded blocks and borders, look what you taught us
  It’s murder on my street, your street, back streets, Wall Street
  Corporate offices, banks, employees, and bosses with
  Homicidal thoughts, Donald Trump’s in office
  We lost Barack and promised to never doubt him again
  But is America honest or do we bask in sin?
  -“XXX.”
   
• I’m talkin’ fear, fear of losin’ creativity
  I’m talkin’ fear, fear of missin’ out on you and me
  I’m talkin’ fear, fear of losin’ loyalty from pride
  ‘Cause my DNA won’t let me involve in the light of God
  I’m talkin’ fear, fear that my humbleness is gone
  I’m talkin’ fear, fear that love ain’t livin’ here no more
  I’m talkin’ fear, fear that it’s wickedness or weakness
  Fear, whatever it is, both is distinctive
  Fear, what happens on Earth stays on Earth
  And I can’t take these feelings with me, so hopefully, they disperse
  Within fourteen tracks, carried out over wax
  Searchin’ for resolutions until somebody get back
  Fear, what happens on Earth stays on Earth
  And I can’t take these feelings with me, so hopefully they disperse
  Within fourteen tracks, carried out over wax
  Wonderin’ if I’m livin’ through fear or livin’ through rap
  Damn
  -“FEAR.”

Given that throughout DAMN., Kendrick expressed a strong conviction that turning away from the way of wickedness would require him to turn towards Jesus’s way of weakness, it is ironic that throughout “Watch the Party Die,” Kendrick seems to be condemning wickedness in others while simultaneously building himself up as someone who is strong enough to use violence against the wicked.

Given that Drake is Jewish and Kendrick has identified himself as Christian on most of his albums and prays to God during the chorus of “Watch the Party Die,” it seems appropriate to point out that the Jewish Bible / Christian Old Testament does have some very intense stories about humans (most often men) who perpetrate some remarkably intense, unjust, abusive, and perverted sexual behavior. These stories and the consequences of the perverted sexual behavior can offer some perspective on whether Kendrick is being logically consistent with his assertion that the men at “the party” are “too wicked to apologize.”
 

In a story recounted in Genesis 19, two non-Israelite cities named Sodom and Gomorrah are home to men who are so perverted that they try to gang rape new visitors to the city, including two men who are actually angels who have come to assess the city’s wickedness. At some point, one character who refuses to participate in the gang rapes nonetheless offers two of his own daughters to be gang raped instead to prevent the angels from getting gang raped. The perverted men never get a chance to rape anyone, and the city soon gets destroyed by fire and sulfur raining down from the skies to burn up the city in an event that is akin to a volcanic explosion or a meteor strike.
 

In a story recounted in Judges 19-21, the men in an Israelite city have become so perverted that they try to gang rape a fellow Israelite who is visiting the city. To avoid getting gang raped, the visitor leaves one of his wives outside the house where he is staying and locks the door behind her. The men of the city then proceed to gang rape her to death and leave her body lying in front of the door to the house where the visitor is staying. The gang rape of the visitor’s wife leads to a civil war where thousands of men are killed. The war only resolves when the surviving men from the perverted city are allowed to capture teenage girls from a festival celebration and force them into marriage.
 

In a story recounted in 2 Samuel 11, David, the king of Israel, goes up to the roof of his palace one night, looks down at one of the neighboring houses, and sees a beautiful woman naked while she is bathing. King David is immediately overwhelmed by a strong desire to have sex with her. King David learns that the woman’s name is Bathsheba and that she is married to a man named Uriah, who is one of his most loyal soldiers and is away at the battlefront with King David’s army. Despite knowing that Bathsheba is married to Uriah, and despite the fact that King David already has several wives, King David orders his servants to bring Bathsheba to his palace, where he forces her to have sex with him. When King David finds out that Bathsheba is pregnant, he tries to hide the child. When he can’t successfully hide the child, he orchestrates for her husband, Uriah, to be killed during a battle. King David is then free to marry Bathsheba and add her to his collection of wives.
 

• Lecrae references this story of King David’s sexual misconduct with Bathsheba and the murder of Uriah on “Die for the Party” when he raps:

  • But when I take a look in the mirror
    The blood of Uriah’s on my hands ‘cause I’m that killer
    Who had Bathsheba in his quarters
     

God soon sends a prophet to confront King David and tell him that he has committed a great act of wickedness. David immediately repents and apologizes to God. He even writes a famous song called Psalm 51, in which King David acknowledges his acts of wickedness along with his need for repentance and forgiveness from God. Because of David’s repentance, God’s prophet told David that he would not die as a penalty for his wickedness.
 

That being said, despite King David’s repentance, the son that was born from King David’s adulterous relationship got sick and died in infancy. Moreover, later in David’s life, his oldest son exhibited similar tendencies of sexual misbehavior when this son raped one of his half-sisters. In response, King David’s second son—who was the full brother of the daughter that was raped—executed a plot to murder the oldest son. King David’s second son then rebelled against King David, started a civil war, made himself king, then went up on top of the palace roof where all the inhabitants of the city could see him and proceeded to rape all of King David’s lower-status wives. The rebellious son did eventually lose the civil war and was killed, which allowed David to be restored as king but also led David into a state of depression.
 

One of the major lessons of King David’s story is that even though God forgave King David, his wickedness still resulted in real-world consequences for David, his family, and the whole society around King David.
 

Kendrick has clearly read the story of King David. Most notably, two days before the release of Kendrick’s album good kid, m.A.A.d city, Kendrick released the track “The Heart Pt. 3 (Will You Let It Die?)” where Kendrick revealed how the pressure of his rising status as the artistic reincarnation of 2Pac made him want to open the Bible, re-read the Book of David, and reflect on how the lessons from that story could be applied to his own life.

• With a Bible and rifle: I play the game as I “blam-blaow!”
  Holler back at me, nigga
  And if they said that I’m the one, why you asking me, nigga?
  ‘Cause when the whole world see you as ‘Pac reincarnated
  Enough pressure to make you just open the Book of David
  And pray to God that you make it or live your life in The Matrix
  ‘Cause falling off is a sickness—I heard that it’s quite contagious
   

Given that Kendrick knows the story of King David’s wicked behavior and subsequent apology, it is ironic that Kendrick seems to be denying the possibility that people like Drake, Diddy, or any of the men who have participated in “the party” can ever truly apologize or be forgiven by God or by society. From a Christian perspective, Kendrick seems to be selectively reading the Bible in a way that justifies his hatred against others whom he himself judges to be beyond the possibility of redemption and forgiveness.
 

From a Christian perspective, Kendrick seems to be selectively reading the Bible in a way that would allow him to justify the use of violence to eliminate his enemies or those whom he considers to be an enemy of society, which is exactly what he does throughout the rest of “Watch the Party Die.”

By saying “It’s different,” Kendrick seems to be suggesting that the wickedness of the hosts and attendees of “the party” is on a totally different level than other negative behavior or even criminal offenses that could be considered forgivable. From Kendrick’s perspective, this different level of wickedness seems to justify getting these partygoers “wacced” and “disqualified.”
 

“Wacced” is slang for destroyed, defaced, or disrespected.
 

The use of the word “wacced” would go on to become more notable a few months after the release of “Watch the Party Die” when Kendrick released the album GNX, which opens with the track “wacced out murals.” On “wacced out murals,” Kendrick expresses anger after an unknown graffiti vandalizer “wacced out” a mural on the side of a Compton restaurant that a visual artist had created to honor Kendrick. The vandalism included Kendrick’s face covered with the letters “OVO,” in reference to Drake’s OVO crew and record label, which is an acronym for “October’s Very Own.”

• Yesterday, somebody wacced out my mural
  That energy’ll make you niggas move to Europe
  But it’s regular for me, yeah, that’s for sure
  The love and hate is definite without a cure
   

A video of the vandalizer spraying graffiti on Kendrick’s mural was first posted to social media on September 8, 2024, just three days before the release of “Watch the Party Die.” One could reasonably suppose that the release of “Watch the Party Die” on September 11 was partially a response to Kendrick’s mural getting vandalized.
 

One can also reasonably argue that “wacced out murals” is essentially a simplified spiritual successor to “Watch the Party Die.” “wacced out murals” seems crafted to allow listeners to “feel” the vitriol of “Watch the Party Die” without having to closely analyze the lyrics and discover the double entendres. This connection can be seen in the verses of “wacced out murals,” where Kendrick threatens to “eliminate” anyone who is on “the other side” (i.e., not on God’s side). The third verse, in particular, also contains a direct reference to “Watch the Party Die” and to Katt Williams calling for the truth to be exposed.

• It used to be fuck that nigga, but now it’s plural
  Fuck everybody, that’s on my body
  My blick first, then God got me
  …
  This is not for lyricists, I swear it’s not the sentiments
  Fuck a double entendre, I want y’all to feel this shit
  …
  Okay, nigga, let’s settle it, these niggas been fake loyal
  Since y’all pandering to choose a side, let me do it for you
  Okay, fuck your hip-hop, I watched the party just die
  Niggas cackling about— while all of y’all is on trial
  …
  Ayy, fuck anybody empathetic to the other side, I vow
  A bitch nigga love bitch niggas, they exist with ’em in style
  Exterminate ’em right now
  Make Katt Williams and them proud, the truth ‘bout to get loud
  …
  I know propaganda work for them, and fuck whoever that’s close to them
  The niggas that coon, the niggas that bein’ groomed, slide on both of them  

Someone is typically “disqualified” from an activity or competition when they are exposed for lying, cheating, or behaving in a way that is illegal or unethical. Within the context of “Watch the Party Die,” Kendrick could be saying that rappers like Drake should be disqualified from the “rap game” or, more specifically, from the competition of being considered the greatest rapper.
 

At the same time, based on the violent language throughout “Watch the Party Die,” Kendrick might also be claiming that the hosts and attendees of “the party” should be disqualified from the most basic activity of living life.

Kendrick has explored the idea of killing the killers at length in his previous work, most notably on the track “XXX.” from DAMN. On the first verse of “XXX.,” Kendrick (or Kung Fu Kenny) tells a story about a distressed friend who asked for advice on how to respond after gang members killed his son. Kendrick (or Kung Fu Kenny) acknowledged that as an anointed (i.e., Christian) individual, he theoretically knew better but felt strongly that the friend should kill his son’s killer.

• Yesterday, I got a call, like, from my dog, like 101
  Said they killed his only son because of insufficient funds
  He was sobbin’, he was mobbin’, way belligerent and drunk
  Talkin’ out his head, philosophin’ on what the Lord had done
  He said, “K-Dot, can you pray for me? It been a fucked up day for me
  I know that you anointed, show me how to overcome”
  He was lookin’ for some closure, hopin’ I could bring him closer
  To the spiritual, my spirit do know better, but I told him
  “I can’t sugarcoat the answer for you, this is how I feel
  If somebody kill my son, that mean somebody gettin’ killed
  Tell me what you do for love, loyalty, and passion of
  All the memories collected, moments you could never touch
  I wait in front a nigga’s spot and watch him hit his block
  I catch a nigga leavin’ service if that’s all I got
  I chip a nigga, then throw the blower in his lap
  Walk myself to the court like, “Bitch, I did that”
  Ain’t no Black Power when your baby killed by a coward
  I can’t even keep the peace, don’t you fuck with one of ours
  It be murder in the street, it be bodies in the hour
   

Meanwhile, the second verse of “XXX.” explored how the inclination toward violence and killing the killers is a common pattern of thought within the American psyche, in contrast to the mentality that was exemplified by Jesus.

• Hail Mary, Jesus, and Joseph
  The great American flag is wrapped and dragged with explosives
  Compulsive disorder, sons and daughters
  Barricaded blocks and borders, look what you taught us
  It’s murder on my street, your street, back streets, Wall Street
  Corporate offices, banks, employees, and bosses with
  Homicidal thoughts, Donald Trump’s in office
  We lost Barack and promised to never doubt him again
  But is America honest or do we bask in sin?
  Pass the gin, I mix it with American blood
  Then bash him in, you Crippin’ or you married to Blood?
  I’ll ask again, oops, accident
  It’s nasty when you set us up then roll the dice, then bet us up
  You overnight the big rifles, then tell Fox to be scared of us
  Gang members or terrorists, et cetera, et cetera
  America’s reflections of me, that’s what a mirror does  

It is also notable that on “Worldwide Steppers” from Mr. Morale and the Big Steppers, Kendrick asserted that we are all killers who intentionally or unintentionally, directly or indirectly, cause the deaths of innocent people.

• I’m a killer, he’s a killer, she’s a killer, bitch
  We some killers, walkin’ zombies, tryna scratch that itch
  ..
  Eight billion people on Earth, silent murderers
  Non-profits, preachers and church? Crooks and burglars (Woo)
  Hollywood corporate in school, teachin’ philosophies
  You either gon’ be dead or in jail, killer psychology
  Silent murderer, what’s your body count? Who your sponsorship?
  Objectified so many bitches, I killed their confidence (What the—)
  The media’s the new religion, you killed the consciousness (What the fuck?)
  Your jealousy is way too pretentious, you killed accomplishments (What the fuck?)
  Niggas killed freedom of speech, everyone sensitive (What the fuck?)
  ..
  I caught a couple of bodies myself, slid my community
  My last Christmas toy drive in Compton handed out eulogies
  Not because the rags in the park had red gradient
  But because the high blood pressure flooded the caterin’
  So what’s the difference ’tween your life when hiding motives?
  More fatalities and reality bring you closure
  The noble person that goes to work and pray like they ‘posed to?
  Slaughter people too, your murder’s just a bit slower
   

If we apply the logic of “Worldwide Steppers” to this current line on “Watch the Party Die,” the natural conclusion would suggest that beyond the powerful men who exploit, coerce, and sexually abuse victims at parties, there is a much wider set of people whom Kendrick could justifiably kill through his vigilante executions.
 

At the same time, we should note that on “Worldwide Steppers,” Kendrick first and foremost acknowledges that he himself is a killer, in part due to his catering choices, which might lead innocent children to long-term health complications and shortened lifespans. If we apply that logic from “Worldwide Steppers” to this line from “Watch the Party Die,” it would seem that Kendrick is being a hypocrite for justifying his desire to kill the people whom he despises while not acknowledging that he also deserves to be killed.
 

In contrast, on “Die for the Party,” Lecrae looks at the man in the mirror, sees that he himself is a killer and a hypocrite, which leads him to acknowledge that he deserves death along with all the other hypocrites.

• It’s killers sittin’ in they cell for takin’ somebody innocent
  And they don’t even feel no remorse, the worst ignorance
  But when I take a look in the mirror
  The blood of Uriah’s on my hands ‘cause I’m that killer
  Who had Bathsheba in his quarters
  I’m that- who let Eve taste the fruit of death, I’m that sinner
  I deserve death along with all these liars and hypocrites

• This split would be the beginning of an animosity between Samaria and Judah that would continue to escalate for centuries.
   
• In English, the name Judah was later shortened to the word “Jew,” which is the word that is now used to refer to the ethnic group that is originally from this geographic area and the religion that was originally practiced by this ethnic group.
   

Given the motif of fire raining down from the skies to destroy the wicked in the Old Testament, it is notable that one particular New Testament story in St. Luke’s account of the Gospel (aka “Good News”) seems to intentionally undermine the desire one might have for God to send fire to destroy one’s enemies. (See Luke 9:52-56)
 

In that story, Jesus and his disciples go to a village in Samaria, the same city where King Ahab and Queen Jezebel had long ago led the Israelites to worship the fertility and sex god Ba’al.
 

During the time of Jesus, the people of Samaria did worship Yahweh, the God of Israel, but the Samaritans and the Judeans considered each other to be enemies because:
 

• The Judeans considered the Samaritans to be “heretics” who did not worship Yahweh in the way that Yahweh was supposed to be worshiped.
   
• About 550 years earlier, the Samaritans had tried to prevent the Judeans from building a temple in Jerusalem.
   
• About 140 years earlier, there was a military campaign in which the Judeans from Jerusalem destroyed the Samaritan’s temple to Yahweh, killed lots of people, and destroyed their capital city.

As Jesus entered the Samaritan village, Jesus’s followers announced him as the rightful king of the Judeans, who was on his way to Jerusalem to be crowned and enthroned as king. However, due to the longstanding hatred between Judeans and Samaritans, the Samaritans did not accept Jesus and expressed visible hostility to Jesus’s arrival.
 

Two of Jesus’s disciples, St. James and St. John, seemed to have been greatly displeased by the cold reception that the Samaritans were giving to Jesus. Likely influenced by their own hatred of the Samaritans, Jesus’s two disciples asked Jesus:

• “Lord, do you want us to command fire to come down from the sky and destroy them, just as Elijah did?”

Jesus immediately became angry with those two disciples and strongly criticized them by saying:

• “You do not know what kind of spirit you belong to. For the Son of Man did not come to destroy human lives, but to [save / rescue / heal] them.”

  • Note: The term “Son of Man” is how Jesus typically referred to himself in the Gospel accounts (See the Bible Project Son of Man video).
     

By expressing his desire to “burn the whole village,” Kendrick seems to be exhibiting the same misguided way of thought as the disciples who wanted to destroy their enemies in the name of serving Jesus. In doing so, James, John, and Kendrick totally disregarded Jesus’s desire to have his enemies apologize, repent, and allow Jesus to save, rescue, and heal their lives.

The phrase “see the future first” could be a reference to Frank Ocean’s track, “Nikes.”

• We’ll let you guys prophesy
  We gon’ see the future first
  Living so the last night feels like a past life
  Speakin’ of the, don’t know what got into people
  Devil be possessin homies
  Demons try to body jump

In the context of “Nikes,” the people who “see the future first” seem to be the ones who truly have a prophetic vision. These true prophets stand in contrast to those who talk as if they can prophesy but are not actually able to see the future in advance.
 

Kendrick has repeatedly identified himself as a prophet, most prominently on the final track of To Pimp a Butterfly and on several tracks that were released in subsequent years.
 

• I freed you from being a slave in your mind, you’re very welcome
  You tell me my song is more than a song, it’s surely a blessing
  But a prophet ain’t a prophet ’til they ask you this question
  When shit hit the fan, is you still a fan?
  -“Mortal Man”
   
• The reason my power’s here on earth
  Salute the truth, when the prophet say
  I-I got loyalty, got royalty inside my DNA
  -“DNA.”
   
• I’m not a trending topic, I’m a prophet
  I answer to Metatron and Gabriel
  -“family ties”

In the third verse of “Watch the Party Die,” Kendrick also seems to compare himself and the wicked leaders of the entertainment industry to the biblical prophet Elijah and the wicked Queen Jezebel, who tried to imprison and kill all the true prophets of God who spoke truth while giving prominent positions to false prophets who told lies.

• It’s cynical to say I know these artists petrified
  The end result, in jail by Jezebel or drugged up full of lies

Hence, we could interpret the current line as Kendrick saying that it is futile to reason with rappers and members of the entertainment industry who profit from telling lies.

“Walking someone down” is a slang term that refers to premeditated murder, particularly in a shooting where the shooter calmly executes his target.
 

In “euphoria,” Kendrick confronts Drake while rapping:

• Have you ever walked your enemy down like with a poker face?
   

Here in “Watch the Party Die,” Kendrick seems to be inciting his supporters to kill the killers who like taking innocent lives. Kendrick justifies such murders by saying it will “do everyone a solid,” which is a colloquial way of saying that killing such people will do everyone a favor.
 

Similar to the earlier line where Kendrick said “We even kill the killers ‘cause they like taking innocent lives”, it seems appropriate to point out that a few months after the release of “Watch the Party Die,” this logic was used by significant numbers of people to justify Luigi Mangione’s decision to kill the CEO of UnitedHealthcare. For example, in one popular video, the host defends the shooter’s actions and fittingly refers to the shooter as “Run ’em down Jake” prior to the shooter’s name being discovered and publicized.

The term “tough love” is stereotypically used by parents (particularly dads) to refer to painful discipline that is meant to benefit a child in the long run.
 

Kendrick specifically mentions “tough love” to describe the parenting Kendrick received from his father on the Mr. Morale and the Big Steppers track “Father Time.”

• Daddy issues ball across my head, told me, “Fuck a foul”
  I’m teary-eyed, wanna throw my hands, I won’t think out loud …
  Daddy issues made me lеarn losses, I don’t take those well
  Momma said, “That boy is exhausted,” he said, “Go fuck yourself
  If he give up now, that’s gon’ cost him, life’s a bitch
  You could be a bitch or step out the margin,” I got up quick
  I’m chargin’ baskets and falling backwards, tryna keep balance
  Oh, this the part where mental stability meets talent
  Oh, this the part, he breaks my humility just for practice
  Tactics we learned together, sore losers forever, daddy issues
  …
  Early mornin’ wake-ups (Ah), practicin’ on day-offs (Ah)
  Tough love (Ah), bottled up, no chaser (Ah)
  …
  I got daddy issues, that’s on me
  Lookin’ for, “I love you”, rarely empathizin’ for my relief
  A child that grew accustomed, jumping up when I scraped my knee
  ‘Cause if I cried about it, he’d surely tell me not to be weak
  Daddy issues, hid my emotions, never expressed myself
  Men should never show feelings, being sensitive never helped

It is notable that “Father Time” is one of the few tracks where Kendrick mentioned Drake by name prior to the feud.

• Daddy issues kept me competitive, that’s a fact, nigga
  I don’t give a fuck what’s the narrative, I am that nigga
  When Kanye got back with Drake, I was slightly confused
  Guess I’m not mature as I think, got some healin’ to do

Given that on “Father Time” Kendrick highlighted how “tough love” can instill unhealthy patterns of thought and lead to immature competitiveness, it is ironic and inconsistent for Kendrick to justify the use of violence against his enemies by claiming it is a result of “tough love."
 

Kendrick also hinted at the idea of tough love leading to violence on “euphoria” when he alluded to rapper YNW Melly. YNW Melly, whose legal last name is ironically “Demons,” released a hit single called “Murder on My Mind” in June 2018, just a few months before a shooting in which he was later accused of murdering two of his close friends, rappers YNW Sakchaser and YNW Juvy.

• It’s three GOATs left, and I seen two of them kissin’ and huggin’ on stage
  I love ’em to death and in eight bars, I’ll explain that phrase, huh
  …
  I pray they my real friends, if not, I’m YNW Melly

Kendrick now seems to be targeting rappers, social media influencers, and other members of the entertainment industry who glorify greed, instant gratification, and conspicuous, unhealthy consumption, particularly when such individuals never actually offer truth to innocent youth whose lives may be shortened if they imitate the examples that are given to them by the entertainment industry.
 

Kendrick has discussed the theme of unhealthy consumption throughout his career.
 

The track “Vanity Slaves” from the Kendrick Lamar EP explores the ways in which Black people in America have become enslaved to White-owned businesses and corporations that lead Black people into financial mismanagement and ruin. From this perspective, Kendrick could make a compelling case that parading gluttony leads to generational racial injustice that dehumanizes Black people much like slavery.

• I care about my pride too much
  If my clothes is new, if my ride is plush
  If my hair is cut, if my diamonds is crushed
  I look in the mirror, I’m trendy enough? Wrong
  Insecurity roams the black community
  Homes where kids must have jewelry
  The high school female need earrings and details
  So she can be cool to be amongst popularity
  The various name brands that reached the price scan
  It’s not about the right price but more like the right scam
  To rule us all, confuse us all
  Hit the bank within five minutes and then withdraw
  Now let’s draw
  The picture of a rapper with a chain and Range that is not paid for
  My cousin from the South said he just bought him a house
  That lives around his neck like a white collar
  So why fast forward? Then I’ll rewind, a time machine can help me double back to slavery times
  Pickin’ cotton from a field that a white man own
  The blacker you are farther you from the white man’s home
  Negro spiritual songs, gave us some type of sanity
  Before your vanity, they parted our families
  They put us in hundred degree shade and outside we bathed
  The more we were afraid, the more they made rules
  And trapped our minds in a cage, our freedom was so vague
  …
  Remember whips on our back and if we would run they would shoot
  Called us niggers and figured that we’d never live in pursuit
  Of happiness, we capture these feelings in things that we do
  Thought of abstinence of slavery but we made it come to
  About a perspective, my shoe selection gotta be Louie
  Her hand bag gotta be Gucci, it’s fake then she fool me
  She still bad though and her fake Gucci ain’t that bad though
  We fillin’ up the gas for Rollies
  Upgrade to twenty-sixes after ridin’ Kobes
  My cousin from the South, slavery start in the South and I bet ya
  He overcompensate for the life of his ancestors
  So blame it on the four-hundred years we never saw
  The reason why the next four-hundred we gotta floss
  Slaves
  …
  I said the four-hundred years we never had nothin’
  Barely had clothes on our back
  Is the reason why when we get a little bit of change
  We over exaggerate on our livin’ expenses
  So if you get your first big check and you cop a chain before you buy a house
  You’re a vanity slave
  If you’re a female and you got four, five, six rings on your finger
  Four holes in your left ear and a nose piercin’
  You’re a vanity slave
  If you got an ‘02 Monte Carlo with twenty-fours on it
  And on the back of the window it says, “Get on my level, ho”
  You’re a vanity slave
  We all vanity slaves

On the track “Alright,” followed by “For Sale? (Interlude)” on To Pimp a Butterfly, parading gluttony to tempt young Black people is a satanic plot that is utilized by Lucy (aka Lucifer / the satan / the devil / the false accuser / the adversary / the diabolical one).

• What you want you, a house⁠? You, a car?
  Forty acres and a mule? A piano, a guitar?
  Anything, see my name is Lucy, I’m your dog
  Motherfucker, you can live at the mall
  I can see the evil, I can tell it, I know it’s illegal
  I don’t think about it, I deposit every other zero
  Thinkin’ of my partner, put the candy paintin’ on the Regal
  Diggin’ in my pocket, ain’t a profit big enough to feed you
  Every day, my logic get another dollar just to keep you
  In the presence of your chico, ah
  -“Alright”  
  My name is Lucy, Kendrick, you introduced me, Kendrick
  Usually I don’t do this but I see you and me, Kendrick
  Lucy give you no worries, Lucy got million stories
  About these rappers that I came after when they was boring
  Lucy gon’ fill your pockets
  Lucy gon’ move your mama out of Compton
  Inside the gi-gantic mansion like I promised
  Lucy just want your trust and loyalty, avoiding me?
  It’s not so easy, I’m at these functions accordingly
  -“For Sale (Interlude)”

On “LUST.,” Kendrick raps from the perspective of a man and a woman who are being controlled by demonic forces and driven toward an endless routine of conspicuous, unhealthy consumption. Within the logic of “LUST.,” demonic forces seem to be at work under the surface in ways that we normally don’t notice, and thus don’t realize how Black people are being enslaved in a way that is arguably too wicked to apologize for.

• Wake up in the mornin’, thinkin’ ‘bout money, kick your feet up
  Watch you a comedy, take a shit, then roll some weed up
  Go hit you a lick, go fuck on a bitch, don’t go to work today
  Cop you a fit or maybe some kicks and make it work today
  Hang with the homies, stunt on your baby mama
  Sip some lean, go get a pistol, shoot out the window
  Bet your favorite team, play you some Madden
  Go to the club or your mama house
  Whatever you doing, just make it count (I need some water)  
  Wake up in the morning, thinking ‘bout money, kick your feet up
  Hop in the shower, put on your makeup, lace your weave up
  Touch on yourself, call up your nigga, tell him he ain’t shit
  Credit card scam, get you a Visa, make it pay your rent
  Hop on the ‘Gram, flex on the bitches that be hatin’ on you
  Pop you a pill, call up your bitches, have ’em waitin’ on you
  Go to the club, have you some fun, make that ass bounce
  It’s whatever, just make it count

At the end of “LUST.,” Kendrick references a New Testament Bible passage that speaks directly to the dangers of being controlled by gluttony and lust.

• Lately, in James 4:4 says
  “Friend of the world is enemy of the Lord”
  Brace yourself: Lust is all yours

James 4:4 refers to a section of teaching that St. James, the stepbrother of Jesus, gave to Christians who were getting into conflicts because of their lust, gluttony, and desire for all the material possessions that can be obtained in this world. St. James warns these Christians that living in this way leads to pride (i.e., exalting themselves above others to get what they want). Moreover, St. James warns that those who become proud become enemies of God, who opposes those who are proud and gives grace to those who are humble.

• Where do wars and fighting among you come from? Don’t they come from your desires that war in your body parts? You lust, and do not have. You murder and want what someone else has, and can’t obtain it. You fight and make war. You don’t have, because you don’t ask. You ask, and don’t receive, because you ask with wrong motives, so that you may spend it on your desires.  
  You adulterers and adulteresses, don’t you know that friendship with the world is hostility toward God? Whoever therefore wants to be a friend of the world makes himself an enemy of God. Or do you think that the Scripture says in vain, “The Spirit who lives in us yearns jealously”? But he gives more grace. Therefore it says, “God resists the proud, but gives grace to the humble.  
  Therefore submit yourself to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. Draw near to God, and he will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners. Purify your hearts, you inconsistent people. Lament, mourn, and weep. Let your laughter be turned to mourning, and your joy to gloom. Humble yourselves in the sight of the Lord, and he will exalt you.

On a few tracks over the years, Kendrick has pointed out the destructive pattern of Black people using credit card scams to illegally get money to pay for their unhealthy consumption habits, addictions, or desire to be lazy.

• Baby wanna go back to school, but she need some help
  Because it’s hard trying to pay the bills when you’re by yourself
  She thought about credit card scams, ’til she heard a voice
  That said, “The Devil is a lie, make a better choice”
  -“Faith”
   
  The high school female need earrings and details
  So she can be cool to be amongst popularity
  The various name brands that reached the price scan
  It’s not about the right price but more like the right scam
  -"“Vanity Slaves”"
   
  Credit card scam, get you a Visa, make it pay your rent
  -“LUST.”

Getting “chipped” is a slang term for getting killed, particularly by gunshots that are fired to put an end to a conflict, as can be heard in several of Kendrick’s past tracks.

• I chip a nigga lil’ bit of nothin’
  …
  If somebody kill my son, that mean somebody gettin’ killed
  Tell me what you do for love, loyalty, and passion of
  All the memories collected, moments you could never touch
  I wait in front a nigga’s spot and watch him hit his block
  I catch a nigga leavin’ service if that’s all I got
  I chip a nigga, then throw the blower in his lap
  …
  Let somebody touch my mama, touch my sister, touch my woman
  Touch my daddy, touch my niece, touch my nephew, touch my brother
  You should chip a nigga, then throw the blower in his lap
  -“XXX.”
   
• I come from a generation of pain, where murder is minor
  Rebellious and Margielas’ll chip you for designer
  Belt buckles and clout, overzealous if prone to violence
  -“The Heart Part 5”
   
• Hellcat, made his homeboys and them type sell they soul, okay
  Everybody wanna be demon ’til they get chipped by a throwaway
  -“euphoria”

In the context of “Watch the Party Die,” Kendrick seems to be saying that rappers, influencers, and members of the entertainment industry who “glorify scamming” will soon get “chipped” by the people who are carrying out Kendrick’s execution orders.

In slang usage, the word “basic” is a pejorative that describes something that is mainstream, popular, and trending, or someone who is unrefined and boring because they only like things that are mainstream, popular, and trending.
 

For Kendrick, “basic shit” from the mainstream entertainment industry seems to be the exact opposite of the thoughtful, complex, and creative artistry that has defined Kendrick’s career—most notably with Kendrick’s album DAMN. winning a Pulitzer Prize.
 

On the track “Poetic Justice” (featuring Drake) from good kid, m.A.A.d city, Kendrick highlights how finding someone who is not “basic” is as rare as finding a flower that bloomed in a dark room.

• I recognize your fragrance, hol’ up, you ain’t never gotta say shit, uh
  And I know your taste is a little bit, mmm, high maintenance, uh
  Everybody else basic, you live life on an everyday basis
  With poetic justice, poetic justice
  If I told you that a flower bloomed in a dark room, would you trust it?

Within the entertainment industry, Kendrick sees himself as representing the kind of man who never “dickrides.” In slang usage, “dickriding” refers to the act of saying an excessive and unwarranted amount of good things about an important person in order to benefit by receiving favorable treatment from that important person.
 

While the term “dickriding” is most often used metaphorically to describe someone who says an excessive amount of good things to gain favor, the most literal usage of the term refers to a man or woman who willingly receives anal or vaginal sexual penetration from a powerful man in order to receive favorable treatment or economic opportunities.
 

It is notable that in the viral Club Shay Shay interview (1:40:33 - 1:44:00), Katt Williams highlighted how from the start of his career in the entertainment industry, his entire goal was to become successful without ever literally or metaphorically riding anyone’s dick.

• My goal was to get this far in Hollywood and still have a virgin asshole and never had sucked a penis. That was my only goal.
  …
  I’ve had to turn down $50 million four times - four times - just to protect my integrity and that virgin hole I was telling you about, right. Cause P Diddy be wanting to party and you got to tell him, “No.” You’ve got to tell him, “No.” I did.

In contrast to men who “dickride” and are “with the basic shit,” Kendrick seems to be highlighting the kinds of rare character traits and behaviors that he wants his people to nurture, particularly self-improvement, education, hard work, financial stability, and a desire or thirst for things that will lead to life.
 

These are traits and behaviors that are often best developed during childhood and adolescence and thus would be at risk if rappers, influencers, or members of the entertainment industry are allowed to “parade in gluttony without givin’ truth to the youth.”
 

More specifically, Kendrick is looking for the rare men who have the mentality of soldiers who lost everything in battle but found a way to learn invaluable life lessons from those losses.
 

Within the context of “Watch the Party Die,” Kendrick could be looking to recruit these soldiers to be his executioners.
 

On “Father Time” and “Purple Hearts” from Mr. Morale and the Big Steppers, Kendrick mentioned that the ability to learn from a loss is something that he did not receive from how his own father parented him, but it is a blessing that Kendrick wants his loved ones to receive.

• Daddy issues made me lеarn losses, I don’t take those well
  -“Father Time”
   
  I bless it that you have an open heart, I bless that you forgive
  I bless it that you can learn from a loss, I bless it that you heal
  I bless one day that you attract somebody with your mind exact
  A patient life, flaws, bless ’em twice, and they’ll bless you back
  -“Purple Hearts”

Thirst is a concept that Kendrick mentioned on the latter half of the pivotal track “Sing About Me, I’m Dying of Thirst” from good kid, m.A.A.d city. On that track, Kendrick described how a life of gluttony led him and others to be overcome by a deep spiritual thirst.

• How many sins, oh? I’m runnin’ out, oh
  How many sins, oh? I lost count
  Dreams of ballin’ like Spalding
  But only shotty bounce, oh
  The reaper callin’, oh, I’m cottonmouth, oh
  Money is power (Money is power)
  Yours is ours (Yours is ours)
  Lay with a snitch, oh, die with a coward, oh
  Hope we get rich, oh, hope we can tower
  Over the city with vanity with the music louder, oh
  …
  Too many sins, oh, I’m runnin’ out, oh
  Somebody send me a well for the drought, oh
  See all I know, oh, is takin’ notes
  On takin’ this life for granted, granted, if he provoke, oh
  My best days, oh, I stress days
  (Lord, forgive me for all my sins, for I not know—)
  My best days, oh, I stress days, oh
  Say “fuck the world”, oh, my sex slave, oh
  Money, pussy, and greed—what’s my next crave?
  Whatever it is, know it’s my next grave, oh
  Tired of runnin’, tired of runnin’, tired of tumblin’
  Tired of runnin’, oh, tired of tumblin’, backwards
  My momma say “See, a pastor give me a promise
  What if today was the rapture and you completely tarnished?
  The truth will set you free, so to me be completely honest
  You dyin’ of thirst, you dyin’ of thirst
  So hop in that water, and pray that it works.
   

  • On the track “LUST.” from DAMN., Kendrick seems to allude to the experience of “dying of thirst” as he reveals the demonic influence that is driving people toward greed, conspicuous consumption, and the need for “holy water.”

    • I need some water
      Something came over me
      Way too hot to simmer down, might as well overheat

During a skit at the end of “Sing About Me, I’m Dying of Thirst,” an older Christian woman sees that Kendrick and his friends were “dying of thirst” because their sadness and anger were driving them toward killing their enemies and putting their own lives at risk. She tells them that their thirst for blood and violence was really a spiritual thirst that could only be satisfied by “holy water,” being baptized by the Spirit of the Lord, and receiving a new kind of life from Jesus.

• Young man, come talk to me! Is that what I think that is?
  I know that’s not what I think that is
  Why are you so angry?
  See, you young men are dying of thirst
  Do you know what that means?
  That means you need water, holy water
  You need to be baptized, with the spirit of the Lord
  Do you want to receive God as your personal savior?
  Okay, repeat after me:
  “Lord God, I come to You a sinner”
  “And I humbly repent for my sins”
  “I believe that Jesus is Lord”
  “I believe You raised Him from the dead”
  “I would ask that Jesus come into my life”
  “And be my Lord and Savior”
  “I receive Jesus to take control of my life”
  “And that I may live for Him from this day forward”
  “Thank you, Lord Jesus
  For saving me with Your precious blood”
  “In Jesus’ name, amen”
  Alright now, remember this day
  The start of a new life, your REAL life.

The older Christian woman’s conclusion that Kendrick and his friends are dying of thirst and need holy water seems to come from a scene in St. John’s account of the Gospel. In that scene, Jesus stops to rest in a village inhabited by people from an ethnic group called the Samaritans, who were enemies of the Judean ethnic group to which Jesus belonged. Instead of calling down fire from heaven to burn up the Samaritan village, Jesus starts a conversation with a Samaritan woman who is drawing water from a well. Jesus tells the woman that he could give her “living water,” which would satisfy her so completely that she would never thirst again.

• Jesus came to a city of Samaria called Sychar. A Samaritan woman came to draw water. Jesus said to her, “Give Me a drink.” For His disciples had gone away to the city to buy food.
   
  So the Samaritan woman said to Him, “How is it that You, though You are a Judean, are asking me for a drink, though I am a Samaritan woman?” (For Judeans do not associate with Samaritans).
   
  Jesus replied to her, “If you knew the gift of God, and who it is who is saying to you, ‘Give Me a drink,’ you would have asked Him, and He would have given you living water.”
   
  She said to Him, “Sir, You have no bucket and the well is deep; where then do You get this living water? You are not greater than our father Jacob, are You, who gave us the well and drank of it himself, and his sons and his cattle?” Jesus answered and said to her, “Everyone who drinks of this water will be thirsty again; but whoever drinks of the water that I will give him shall never be thirsty; but the water that I will give him will become in him a fountain of water springing up to eternal life.”
   
  -John 4:5,7-14

Later in St. John’s account of the Gospel, as Jesus repeats his offer of “living water” to a crowd of people at a holiday feast, St. John explains that the “living water” which Jesus speaks about is actually the “Holy Spirit.” Jesus would give the “Holy Spirit” to his disciples so that his disciples would be filled with new patterns of thoughts and emotions that would empower them to live a new kind of life.

• Now on the last day, the great day of the feast, Jesus stood and cried out, saying, “If anyone is thirsty, let him come to Me and drink. The one who believes in Me, as the Scripture said, ‘From his innermost being will flow rivers of living water.’”
   
  This He said in reference to the Spirit, whom those who believed in Him were to receive.
   
  -John 7:37-39
   

In St. John’s account of the Gospel, Jesus tells the sister of his dead friend that “I am the resurrection and the life.” Jesus then goes on to resurrect his friend from death to life (See John 11:1-45).
 

In that same Gospel account, Jesus also tells his disciples, “I am the way, the truth, and the life” (See John 14:2-6).
 

When applied to this line on “Watch the Party Die,” the belief that Jesus is “the life” and the giver of “living water” implies that a “thirst for life” is truly a “thirst for Jesus.” Moreover, those who “thirst for life” discover that Jesus can satisfy their deepest thirst when they read the stories about Jesus in the “Good Book,” aka the Holy Bible.

• Nipsey started a community co-working space named Vector 90, which provided opportunities for Black youth in Crenshaw to take science, technology, engineering, and math courses and develop as entrepreneurs.
   

• Nipsey was closely involved in the planning and advisory stages of an open-air museum called Destination Crenshaw, which was designed to showcase the history and culture of Black people in his neighborhood.
   

• Nipsey arranged meetings with the Los Angeles Police Department to discuss ways to stop gang violence.
   

• After Nipsey’s death, former President Barack Obama wrote a tribute that said:

  • While most folks look at the Crenshaw neighborhood where he grew up and see only gangs, bullets, and despair, Nipsey saw potential. He saw hope. He saw a community that, even through its flaws, taught him to always keep going. His choice to invest in that community rather than ignore it – to build a skills training center and a coworking space in Crenshaw; to lift up the Eritrean-American community; to set an example for young people to follow – is a legacy worthy of celebration. I hope his memory inspires more good work in Crenshaw and communities like it.

In contrast to the verses of “Watch the Party Die,” which seem to be persuasive rhetoric addressed to those who will support Kendrick’s campaign of vigilante executions, the chorus seems to be a prayer that is addressed to God.
 

The idea of praying to God is a recurring motif in Kendrick’s work, going all the way back to the track “Faith” on Kendrick’s first project under the name Kendrick Lamar, the 2009 Kendrick Lamar EP.

• I found myself losing focus at a Sunday service
  Embarrassed so I start questioning God, “What is my purpose?”
  He said to live the way he did, that’s all he want from me
  Spread the word and witness, he rose on the first Sunday
  I said alright, enthused that my Lord gave a listen
  I opened my Bible in search to be a better Christian
  And this from a person that never believed in religion
  But shit, my life is so fucked up, man, I can’t help but give in

In 2012, Kendrick used his major label debut album, good kid, m.A.A.d city, to tell the backstory of how he first became a Christian. The album’s first track, “Sherane a.k.a Master Splinter’s Daughter,” begins with Kendrick and his homies saying a version of the “Sinner’s Prayer” to receive Jesus as their “personal savior.” This prayer is later heard within the narrative context during the pivotal moment in “Sing About Me, I’m Dying of Thirst” when an older Christian woman approaches Kendrick and his homies and implores them to start a new way of life after Kendrick’s friend Dave was killed in a gang shootout.

• Young man, come talk to me! Is that what I think that is?
  I know that’s not what I think that is
  Why are you so angry?
  See, you young men are dying of thirst
  Do you know what that means?
  That means you need water, holy water
  You need to be baptized, with the spirit of the Lord
  Do you want to receive God as your personal savior?
  Okay, repeat after me:
  “Lord God, I come to You a sinner”
  “And I humbly repent for my sins”
  “I believe that Jesus is Lord”
  “I believe You raised Him from the dead”
  “I would ask that Jesus come into my life”
  “And be my Lord and Savior”
  “I receive Jesus to take control of my life”
  “And that I may live for Him from this day forward”*
  “Thank you, Lord Jesus, for saving me with Your precious blood”
  “In Jesus’ name, amen”
  Alright now, remember this day
  The start of a new life, your REAL life*.

On Kendrick’s second major label album, To Pimp a Butterfly, Kendrick rapped from the perspective of Lucy (aka Lucifer / the devil / the satan / the false accuser / the diabolical one). Lucy acknowledges that she heard Kendrick saying the “Sinner’s Prayer” to God the Father on good kid, m.A.A.d city, but is nonetheless confident that Kendrick would abandon God and pursue Lucy.

• You said Sherane ain’t got nothing on Lucy
  …
  Kendrick, Lucy don’t slack a minute, Lucy work harder
  Lucy gon’ call you even when Lucy know you love your Father
  I’m Lucy, I loosely heard prayers on your first album, truly
  Lucy don’t mind, ‘cause at the end of the day you’ll pursue me

On Kendrick’s third major label album, DAMN., Kendrick (or Kung Fu Kenny) repeatedly expressed feelings of sadness and frustration because he felt that nobody was praying for him. Then, during the album’s pivotal track, “FEAR.,” Kendrick’s cousin, Carl Duckworth, left a voicemail explaining that Kendrick’s feelings of sadness and frustration were not due to a lack of people praying for him but were instead due to Kendrick’s own lack of faithfulness in following the Lord’s commandments.

• New Kung Fu Kenny
  Ain’t nobody prayin’ for me
  …
  Bitch, all my grandmas dead
  So ain’t nobody prayin’ for me, I’m on your head, ayy
  -“ELEMENT.”  
  Shit, I feel like—
  Ain’t nobody prayin’ for me
  Ain’t nobody prayin’ for me
  Ain’t nobody prayin’ for me
  Ain’t nobody prayin’
  …
  I feel like the whole world want me to pray for ’em
  But who the fuck prayin’ for me?*
  -“FEEL.”  
  Nobody pray for me
  It been that day for me
  -“HUMBLE.”  
  What’s up, family?
  Yeah, it’s your cousin Carl, man, just givin’ you a call, man
  I know you been havin’ a lot on yo’ mind lately
  And I know you feel like, you know
  People ain’t been prayin’ for you
  But you have to understand this, man, that we are a cursed people.
  Deuteronomy 28:28 says,
  “The Lord shall smite thee with madness
  And blindness, and astonishment of heart”
  See, family, that’s why you feel like you feel
  Like you got a chip on your shoulder
  Until you follow His commandments, you gonna feel that way…
  -“FEAR.”

On Kendrick’s fourth major label album, Mr. Morale and the Big Steppers, Kendrick seemed to depict himself as being—at least temporarily—distant from God and detached from his identity as a Christian while exploring alternative spiritual practices, including praying to flowers and trees.

• Yesterday, I prayed to the flowers and trees
  Gratification to the powers that be
  …
  The noble person that goes to work and pray like they ‘posed to
  Slaughter people too*, your murder’s just a bit slower*
  -“Worldwide Steppers”  
  Where’s my faith? Told you I was Christian, but just not today
  I transformed, prayin’ to the trees, God is taking shape
  …
  I pray our children don’t inherit me and feelings I attract

On Kendrick’s first battle track, “euphoria,” Kendrick implied that Drake was an absentee father while rapping about his own role as a father, including the responsibility of teaching one’s son to pray.

• Why would I call around tryna get dirt on niggas? Y’all think all my life is rap?
  That’s ho shit, I got a son to raise, but I can see you don’t know nothin’ ‘bout that
  Wakin’ him up, know nothin’ ‘bout that
  Then tell him to pray, know nothin’ ‘bout that
  Then givin’ him tools to walk through life like day by day, know nothin’ ‘bout that
  Teachin’ him morals, integrity, discipline, listen, man, you don’t know nothin’ ‘bout that
  Speakin’ the truth and consider what God’s considerin’, you don’t know nothin’ ‘bout that

On Kendrick’s second battle record, “6:16 in LA,” Kendrick spoke directly to God while seemingly confessing that he was engaging in the battle with Drake in part because his identity was wrapped up in being a soldier who needs to go to war in order to have a stable identity.

• Who could reach us? Only God could teleport this type of freedom
  God, ah, my confession is yours
  But, who am I if I don’t go to war?

The idea of a person praying for God to give them what they truly need is one of the central points of the most famous and universal Christian prayer, which is known as the “Lord’s Prayer.” Those who pray the Lord’s Prayer ask for God the Father to give them their “daily bread” in reference to the essential physical and spiritual needs on a daily basis in order to live.

• Our Father, who is in heaven,
  hallowed be Your name.
  Your Kingdom come.
  Your will be done on earth as it is in heaven.
  Give us today our daily bread,
  and forgive us our tresspasses,
  as we forgive those who trespass against us,
  and lead us not into temptation,
  but deliver us from the evil one.

The idea of “bread” being symbolic of the things that someone needs to live is further explored in a story where Jesus multiplies five loaves of bread in order to feed five thousand men and their families (See Matthew 14:13-21 or John 6:1-15).
 

Later, after a crowd of those who ate the multiplied bread began to focus exclusively on their desire for Jesus to fulfill their physical hunger for earthly bread, Jesus told the crowd that he himself is the spiritual “bread of life” and that anyone who eats Jesus as the “bread of life” will live forever.

• Jesus said to them, “I am the bread of life; the one who comes to Me will not be hungry, and the one who believes in Me will never be thirsty. For this is the will of My Father, that everyone who sees the Son and believes in Him will have eternal life, and I Myself will raise him up on the last day. I am the bread of life. Your fathers ate the manna in the wilderness, and they died. This is the bread that comes down out of heaven, so that anyone may eat from it and not die. I am the living bread that came down out of heaven; if anyone eats from this bread, he will live forever; and the bread which I will give for the life of the world also is My flesh. Truly, truly, I say to you, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink His blood, you have no life in yourselves. The one who eats My flesh and drinks My blood has eternal life, and I will raise him up on the last day. For My flesh is true food, and My blood is true drink. The one who eats My flesh and drinks My blood remains in Me, and I in him. Just as the living Father sent Me, and I live because of the Father, the one who eats Me, he also will live because of Me. This is the bread that came down out of heaven, not as the fathers ate and died; the one who eats this bread will live forever.
  -Matthew 6:35,40,48-58

Later, just before Jesus was arrested and executed on a cross, he shared a meal of bread and wine with his disciples and told them that the bread was his body and the wine was his blood. This particular meal of Jesus’s disciples eating bread as Jesus’s body and drinking wine as Jesus’s blood became the most central Christian spiritual practice, known as the “Communion,” the “Eucharist,” or the “Lord’s Supper.”

• *Jesus took some bread, and after a blessing, He broke it and **gave it to the disciples, and said, “Take, eat; this is My body.”*And when He had taken a cup and given thanks, He gave it to them, saying, “Drink from it, all of you; for this is My blood of the [covenant / agreement], which is being poured out for many for forgiveness of sins.

Hence, if we see Kendrick’s prayer during the chorus of “Watch the Party Die” as an echo of the Lord’s Prayer, we could conclude that what Kendrick truly needs to receive is Jesus himself and the new way of life that comes from living in close communion with Jesus. This is the same conclusion that was presented to Kendrick when the older Christian woman convinced Kendrick and his homies not to kill their enemies and instead led them to say the “Sinner’s Prayer” at the end of “Sing About Me, I’m Dying of Thirst.”

• ”I would ask that Jesus come into my life"
  “And be my Lord and Savior”
  “I receive Jesus to take control of my life”
  “And that I may live for Him from this day forward”
  “Thank you, Lord Jesus for saving me with Your precious blood”
  “In Jesus’ name, amen”
  Alright now, remember this day
  The start of a new life, your REAL life.

In addition to referring to himself as the “bread of life,” Jesus also describes himself as “the life” on a few other occasions in St. John’s account of the Gospel.

• After one of Jesus’s friends died, Jesus told the sister of the friend, “I am the resurrection and the life.” Jesus then went on to resurrect his friend from death to life (See John 11:1-45).
   
• In that same Gospel account, Jesus also told his disciples, “I am the way, the truth, and the life” (See John 14:2-6).

Throughout St. John’s account of the Gospel, Jesus repeatedly teaches that he came to earth not to kill or destroy humans but to give “eternal life” to all those who would listen to his teaching and believe in him.

• The Son of Man be lifted up, so that everyone who believes will have eternal life in Him. For God so loved the world, that He gave His only Son, so that everyone who believes in Him will not perish, but have eternal life. For God did not send the Son into the world to judge the world, but so that the world might be saved through Him.
  -John 3:14-17
   
  The one who believes in the Son has eternal life; but the one who does not obey the Son will not see life.
  -John 3:36
   
  Jesus answered and said to the Samaritan woman, “Everyone who drinks of this water will be thirsty again; but whoever drinks of the water that I will give him shall never be thirsty; but the water that I will give him will become in him a fountain of water springing up to eternal life.”
  -John 4:13-14
   
  The one who reaps is receiving wages and is gathering fruit for eternal life.*
  -John 4:36
   
  Truly, truly, I say to you, the one who hears My word, and believes Him who sent Me, has eternal life, and does not come into judgment, but has passed out of death into life.
  -John 5:24
   
  You examine the Scriptures because you think that in them you have eternal life; and it is those very Scriptures that testify about Me; and yet you are unwilling to come to Me so that you may have life.
  -John 5:39-40
   
  *Do not work for the food that perishes, but *work for the food that lasts for eternal life, which the Son of Man will give you.
  -John 6:27
   
  For this is the will of My Father, that everyone who sees the Son and believes in Him will have eternal life, and I Myself will raise him up on the last day.
  -John 6:40
   
  Truly, truly, I say to you, the one who believes has eternal life. I am the bread of life. Your fathers ate the manna in the wilderness, and they died. This is the bread that comes down out of heaven, so that anyone may eat from it and not die. I am the living bread that came down out of heaven; if anyone eats from this bread, he will live forever; and the bread which I will give for the life of the world also is My flesh.
  -John 6:47-51
   
  Truly, truly, I say to you, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink His blood, you have no life in yourselves. The one who eats My flesh and drinks My blood has eternal life, and I will raise him up on the last day.
  -John 6:53-54
   
  My sheep listen to My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me; and I give them eternal life, and they will never perish; and no one will snatch them out of My hand.
  -John 10:27-28
   
  The one who loves his life loses it, and the one who hates his life in this world will keep it to eternal life.
  -John 12:25
   
  The Father Himself who sent Me has given Me a commandment as to what to say and what to speak. And I know that His commandment is eternal life.
  -John 12:49-50

All of these teachings about “eternal life” lead up to a culminating prayer in which Jesus talks directly to God the Father and declares that “eternal life” is the experience of knowing God the Father and Jesus as the Son of God in a close relationship.

• Jesus spoke these things; and raising His eyes to heaven, He said, “Father, the hour has come; glorify Your Son, so that the Son may glorify You, just as You gave Him authority over all humanity, so that to all whom You have given Him, He may give eternal life. this is eternal life, that they may know You, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom You have sent.
  -John 17:1-3

Hence, when Kendrick prays, “God, give me life,” Kendrick is really praying for God to give him a close relationship with Jesus, who is life. This request is ironic because, throughout the verses, Kendrick seems to be ignoring Jesus’s teachings about love and forgiveness so that Kendrick can judge and execute the very same people whom Jesus came to offer eternal life.

Just before he was arrested and executed, Jesus gave one final teaching to his disciples. In that final teaching, Jesus said that he was giving “peace” to his disciples. Moreover, Jesus clarified that he himself is the peace that he was giving to his disciples. The disciples would receive this peace by listening to Jesus’ words and remaining in a close relationship with him.

• Peace I leave with you. My peace I give to you; not as the world gives, I give to you. Do not let your heart be troubled, neither let it be fearful. These things I have spoken to you so that in Me you may have peace. In the world you have oppression, but be of good courage for I have overcome the world.
  -John 14:27, 16:33

Also, in Jesus’s most famous collection of teachings, he declared that his disciples would be blessed with a close relationship with God the Father when they serve as peacemakers in the world.

• Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called children of God. -Matthew 5:9

Hence, when Kendrick prays, “Dear God, please give me peace,” Kendrick is really praying for God to give him a close relationship with Jesus, who is peace. This request is ironic because, throughout the verses, Kendrick seems to be ignoring Jesus’s teachings about being a peacemaker so that Kendrick can try to overcome the evils of the world through violence.

In slang, the word “lame” refers to anything that is not cool, refined, or worthy of honor.
 

Kendrick’s prayer to keep “these lame niggas away” seems to echo the end of the Lord’s Prayer, which asks God the Father to lead his people away from tempting situations and away from the “evil one,” in reference to the [“devil” / “satan” / “false accuser” / “diabolical one”].

• Lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one.

By praying to “keep these lame niggas away from me,” Kendrick seems to be asserting that these “lame niggas” are members of “the other side,” which is opposed to “God’s side.” If Kendrick were to follow the example of Jesus and the early Christians, he would be praying to transform these “lame niggas” so that they could repent, apologize, and come to “God’s side.”

In hip-hop terminology, “shining” refers to wearing gaudy amounts of expensive, shiny diamond jewelry or otherwise making public displays of one’s success, wealth, and power.
 

Given that Kendrick earlier expressed his desire to kill rappers, influencers, and members of the entertainment industry who “parade in gluttony without givin’ truth to the youth,” it is likely that Kendrick is not asking God to give him shiny jewelry.
 

Similar to the previous requests for life and peace, it seems more likely that Kendrick is making a request for spiritual well-being rather than material or financial well-being.
 

In biblical terminology, “shining” refers to the way in which people who follow God’s commandments serve as a bright example of how other humans should live.
 

In the introduction to St. John’s account of the Gospel, St. John introduces Jesus by saying that Jesus is the “true light” who has existed even before the universe was created. Moreover, St. John asserts that through Jesus’s birth as a human, the “light” has now come down from the skies to “shine” on humans and penetrate through the darkness of human wickedness.

• In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was with God in the beginning. All things were made through him. Without him, nothing was made that has been made. In him was life, and the life was the light of humanity. The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness hasn’t overcome it…the true light that enlightens everyone was coming into the world

Later in St. John’s account of the Gospel, Jesus tells a crowd of listeners that he is the “light of the world,” and that humans can follow him so that they may find the light of life and no longer walk in the darkness of death.

• Then Jesus again spoke to them, saying, “I am the Light of the world; the one who follows Me will not walk in the darkness, but will have the Light of life.”
  -John 8:12

In addition to identifying himself as the “light of the world,” in St. Matthew’s account of the Gospel, Jesus also taught his disciples that they are the “light of the world,” meant to “shine” the light of his way of life so that people in the world do not have to walk toward the darkness of death.

• You all are the light of the world. A city located on a hill can’t be hidden. Neither do you light a lamp and put it under a bucket, but on a lampstand; so it shines to all who are in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before humans, so that they may see your good actions and glorify your Father who is in heaven.
  -Matthew 6:14-16

By teaching that humans who are faithful to God will shine spiritual light to indicate how other humans should live, Jesus seems to be referring to an Old Testament prophecy from the Prophet Daniel.

• Many of those who sleep (i.e. are dead) in the dust of the earth will awake, some to eternal life, and some to shame and eternal contempt. Those who are wise will shine as the brightness of the sky. Those who turn many toward right relationship will shine as the stars forever and ever.
  -Daniel 12:2-3

Hence, by praying, “Dear God, keep me shinin’,” Kendrick is really praying for God to give him a close relationship with Jesus, who is light. This request is ironic because, throughout the verses, Kendrick seems to be ignoring Jesus’s teachings about being a “light to the world” by being an example to those who are living in darkness and giving them an opportunity to turn toward right relationships with other humans. Rather than turning wicked people toward the light of life, Kendrick continues to express his desire to bring the darkness of death upon the hosts and attendees of the party.

Kendrick’s prayer to God seems to be interrupted as he wonders what the “lame niggas" are thinking about him. Kendrick seems to conclude that the “lame niggas” are thinking that he is acting like a police officer who is “pocket-watching” them.
 

“Pocket-watching” refers to the act of closely monitoring what another person is doing—particularly regarding their use of money—so that the monitoring person can make some kind of judgment or assessment of the other person.
 

Within hip-hop culture, rappers, hustlers, and “street niggas” often describe an adversarial relationship with the police, most famously on the legendary rap group NWA’s hit single “Fuck tha Police.”
 

By saying that Kendrick “must be the police,” the “lame niggas” seem to be expressing some amount of nervousness that they might be caught, prosecuted, and judged for any illicit actions that they might have committed at “the party.”
 

The idea that Kendrick “must be the police” would also align with the battle track “meet the grahams,” where Kendrick claimed to be “policing” the “weird shit” going on in the entertainment industry after he dropped the bombshell allegation that Drake and his OVO crew have allegedly been sex trafficking underaged girls.

• Sandra, sit down, what I’m about to say is heavy, now listen
  Mm-mm, your son’s a sick man with sick thoughts, I think niggas like him should die
  Him and Weinstein should get fucked up in a cell for the rest their life
  He hates Black women, hypersexualizes ’em with kinks of a nympho fetish
  Grew facial hair because he understood bein’ a beard just fit him better
  He got sex offenders on ho-VO that he keep on a monthly allowance
  A child should never be compromised and he keepin’ his child around them
  And we gotta raise our daughters knowin’ there’s predators like him lurkin’
  Fuck a rap battle, he should die so all of these women can live with a purpose
  I been in this industry twelve years, I’ma tell y’all one lil’ secret
  It’s some weird shit goin’ on and some of these artists be here to police it*
  They be streamlinin’ victims all inside of they home and callin’ ’em tender
  Then leak videos of themselves to further push their agendas*

After wondering what the “lame niggas” are** thinking about him, Kendrick goes back to praying to God. He now asks God to “bless” the words that he is rapping and the words that he is thinking.
 

In biblical terminology, a “blessing” refers to God giving preferential favor to people, places, objects, or things so that they may bring about more life and goodness on the earth.
 

In the very first narrative of the Bible, God gave a blessing to animals and then humans so that they would reproduce new life to fill the earth.

• God created the great sea creatures and every living creature that moves, with which the waters swarmed, according to their kind, and every winged bird according to its kind; and God saw that it was good. God blessed them, saying, “Be fruitful and multiply, and fill the waters in the seas, and let birds multiply on the earth.”
   
  God created humanity in His own image, in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them. God blessed them; and God said to them, “Be fruitful and multiply, and fill the earth, and subdue it; and rule over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the sky and over every living thing that moves on the earth.” -Genesis 1:21-23,27-28

However, when humans are tempted by the devil in the form of a snake and disobey God’s commandment by trying to define good and evil for themselves, their actions result in *a curse that leads to death and evil on the earth.

• Then the LORD God said to the snake,
   
  “Because you have done this,
  Cursed are you more than all the livestock,
  And more than any animal of the field;
  On your belly you shall go,
  And you shall eat dust
  All the days of your life;
   
  Then the LORD God said to the human, “Because you have listened to the voice of your wife, and have eaten from the tree about which I commanded you, saying, ‘You shall not eat from it’:
   
  Cursed is the ground because of you;
  With hard labor you shall eat from it
  All the days of your life.
  It will grow both thorns and thistles for you;
  Yet you shall eat the plants of the field;
  By the sweat of your face
  You shall eat bread,
  Until you return to the ground,
  Because from it you were taken;
  For you are dust,
  And to dust you shall return.” -Genesis 3:14,17-19

The story of humanity receiving a blessing or a curse depending on whether they obey or disobey God’s commandments is a recurring biblical motif that gets further developed in the Book of Deuteronomy when the Prophet Moses gives a speech to the Israelites before they go into the “Promised Land” which God had prepared for them. Moses repeatedly told the Israelites that God was offering them a choice between life and death, between a blessing and a curse.

• If you diligently obey the Lord your God, being careful to do all His commandments which I am commanding you today, that the Lord your God will put you high above all the nations of the earth. And all these blessings will come to you and reach you if you obey the LORD your God:  
  Blessed will you be in the city, and blessed will you be in the country.
  Blessed will be the children of your womb, the produce of your ground, and the offspring of your animals: the newborn of your herd and the young of your flock.
  Blessed will be your basket and your kneading bowl.
  Blessed will you be when you come in, and blessed will you be when you go out.
   
  But it shall come about, if you do not obey the Lord your God, to be careful to follow all His commandments and His rules which I am commanding you today, that all these curses will come upon you and overtake you.
   
  Cursed will you be in the city, and cursed will you be in the country.
  Cursed will be your basket and your kneading bowl.
  Cursed will be the children of your womb, the produce of your ground, the newborn of your herd, and the offspring of your flock.
  Cursed will you be when you come in, and cursed will you be when you go out.
   
  The LORD shall smite you with madness and blindness and astonishment of heart.
   
  I have placed before you today life and good and also death and evil. For I command you today to love the LORD your God, to walk in his ways and to keep his commandments, his rules, and his justice, that you may live and multiply, and that the LORD your God may bless you. I have placed before you life and death, the blessing and the curse. Therefore choose life, that you may live, you and your seed, to love the LORD your God, to obey his voice, and to cling to him; for he is your life, and the length of your days.
   
  -Deuteronomy 28:1-6,15-19,28 30:15-16,19-20

In the New Testament, Jesus and his chosen disciples commanded followers of Jesus love and bless their enemies and not to hate and curse them.

• Jesus taught them saying, “You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’ But I say to you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, so that you may prove yourselves to be children of your Father who is in heaven; for He causes His sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous.
  -Matthew 5:43-45  
  Bless those who persecute you; bless and do not curse.
  -St. Paul’s Letter to the Romans 12:14

Given that throughout the verses of “Watch the Party Die” Kendrick has used his words to call for the execution of the hosts and attendees of “the party” and has been ignoring Jesus’s commandments to love his enemies and bless those who have persecuted him, it is ironic that Kendrick is now praying for God to “bless his words” and “bless how he think.”

It is notable that the title for Kendrick’s album, DAMN., is a shortening of the word “damnation,” which is a synonym for “curse” and the opposite of a “blessing.”
 

“BLOOD.,” the first track on DAMN., opens with a voice that presents a choice between life and death, similar to the choice that the Prophet Moses placed in front of the Israelites.

• Is it wickedness?
  Is it weakness?
  You decide.
  Are we gonna live or die?

On “YAH.,” the third track on DAMN., Kendrick identifies himself as an Israelite and refers to a conversation in which his cousin Carl Duckworth told him that he was “cursed” based on Moses’s speech from Deuteronomy about blessings and curses.

• I’m a Israelite, don’t call me black no mo’
  That word is only a color, it ain’t facts no mo’
  My cousin called, my cousin Carl Duckworth
  Said know my worth
  And Deuteronomy say that we all been cursed

On “FEAR.,” the pivotal track on DAMN., we hear a voicemail in which Kendrick’s cousin Carl Duckworth quotes from Deuteronomy chapter 28 and asserts that Kendrick is experiencing a cursed existence because he has not been following God’s commandments.

• What’s up, family?
  Yeah, it’s your cousin Carl, man, just givin’ you a call, man
  I know you been havin’ a lot on yo’ mind lately
  And I know you feel like, you know
  People ain’t been prayin’ for you
  But you have to understand this, man, that we are a cursed people
  Deuteronomy 28:28 says,
  “The Lord shall smite thee with madness and blindness and astonishment of heart”
  See, family, that’s why you feel like you feel
  Like you got a chip on your shoulder
  Until you follow His commandments, you gonna feel that way…
  …
  Verse 2 says,
  “You only have I known of all the families of the Earth,
  therefore I will punish you for all your iniquities”
  So until we come back to these commandments
  Until you come back to these commandments
  We gonna feel this way, we gonna be under this curse
  Because He said He’s gonna punish us
  The so-called Blacks, Hispanics, and Native American Indians
  Are the true children of Israel
  We are the Israelites, according to the Bible
  The children of Israel
  He’s gonna punish us for our iniquities, for our disobedience
  Because we chose to follow other gods
  That man chastens his son, so the Lord, thy God, chasten thee
  So, just like you chasten your own son, He’s gonna chasten you
  Because He loves you, so that’s why we get chastised
  That’s why we’re in the position that we’re in
  Until we come back to these laws, statutes, and commandments
  And do what the Lord says, these curses is gonna be upon us
  We gonna be at a lower state in this life that we live
  Here, in today, in the United States of America
  I love you, family, and I pray for you
  God bless you
  Shalom

Kendrick seems to be asking God to make a distinction between himself and the “lame niggas" whom Kendrick wants God to keep away from him.
 

Kendrick seems to be requesting something similar to what God did when he rescued the Israelites from slavery.
 

Prior to being rescued, the Israelites were enslaved by the Egyptian Pharaoh, who forced the Israelites to live in slave houses in a region near the capital of Egypt. When Pharaoh worried that the Israelite population was becoming too large, he sent orders for soldiers to kill every baby boy born to an Israelite mother.
 

God saved one Israelite boy named Moses and later called Moses to be a prophet. God then sent Moses to confront Pharaoh by telling him to let the Israelites go free. When Pharaoh repeatedly refused, God used Moses to send ten different plagues, which brought death and destruction upon Egypt.
 

After the first nine plagues, God said that he was going to send a final tenth plague in which a spirit of death would pass through the capital of Egypt and the neighboring regions. This spirit of death would kill the firstborn sons and male animals of every household as a punishment for Pharaoh and the Egyptians for killing the Israelites’ newborn sons.
 

Since this plague of death was going to pass through the region of the Israelite slave houses, God told the Israelites that their sons and male animals would be spared if each Israelite household celebrated a Passover (aka Pesach / Pascha) ritual meal. During the Passover meal, each Israelite family would kill a lamb, smear the blood on the posts and crossbar of their exterior door, and eat the lamb meat with unleavened bread. When the spirit of death came across a door covered in lamb’s blood, it would “pass over” the house without killing the firstborn son or male animals.
 

God told Moses that by bringing death to the firstborn sons of Egypt while providing a way to preserve the lives of the sons of Israel, God was creating a line of separation between the Egyptians and the Israelites.

• There will be a great cry throughout all the land of Egypt, such as there has not been, nor will be any more. But against any of the children of Israel a dog won’t even bark or move its tongue, against man or animal, *that you may know that the LORD makes a line of separation between the Egyptians and Israel.
  -Exodus 11:6-7

Hence, by praying, “Dear God, draw the line” and prevent anyone from confusing Kendrick with the “lame niggas,” Kendrick seems to be asking God to kill the “lame niggas," similar to how God sent the spirit of death to kill the sons of the Egyptians who took the innocent lives of the Israelites in the Old Testament.

In the New Testament, there are several instances where Jesus speaks of a future day when he will separate the righteous from the wicked.
 

In St. Matthew’s account of the Gospel, Jesus tells a parable about a landowner who instructs his servants to plant wheat seeds in a field. However, after the servants plant the wheat seeds, a deceptive adversary—who represents the [“devil” / “satan” / “false accuser” / “diabolical one”]—comes at night to plant seeds that will grow into weeds that look like wheat but do not produce any grain (See Matthew 13:24-30,36-43).
 

• When the wheat and the weeds begin to sprout up, the servants discover that someone has planted weeds among the wheat. The servants initially want to pull out all the weeds from the field. However, the landowner stops them.
   
• The landowner tells the servants that because the wheat and the weeds look very similar at this stage of their development, if the servants try to pull up the weeds, they may accidentally pull up some of the wheat as well. Moreover, since the wheat and the weeds are planted so close together, even if they can accurately distinguish between them, pulling up the weeds may uproot the wheat.
   
• The landowner tells the servants that it is not yet time to pull up the weeds. Instead, the landowner tells the servants to wait until the time of the harvest when all of the wheat has had the chance to be fruitful and produce grain. At that point, the servants will be able to accurately distinguish between the wheat and the weeds. The servants will then gather the wheat together and burn up the weeds to dispose of them.
   
• Jesus explains that this parable is a metaphor for the “Last Judgment” at the end of the world as we know it, when those who have lived lives in right relationships will be gathered together in God’s new creation, while the wicked are excluded from God’s new creation.

Within the context of “Watch the Party Die,” Kendrick seems to be a kind of disobedient servant who refuses to listen to the landowner’s instructions and is convinced that now is the time to pull out the weeds. If he continues to disobey the landowner’s instructions, Kendrick may end up destroying the lives of those who will eventually produce good grain.
 

It is particularly ironic that in the first verse, Kendrick described himself as “the man that resides in patience,” but by saying, “I think it’s time to watch the party die,” Kendrick seems to be too impatient to wait for the time that the Lord has set to bring an end to wickedness.
 

Later in St. Matthew’s account of the Gospel, Jesus tells another parable about the “Last Judgment,” in which the Lord will be like a herder who takes a mixed herd of sheep and goats into the pastures. However, at the end of the day, the herder separates the sheep from the goats and places the sheep on his right side and the goats on his left side.
 

• Jesus explains that the sheep represent people who have maintained right relationships with others, especially those who are in need. In contrast, the goats represent people who have not maintained right relationships with others, especially those who are in need.
   
• In the parable, many of the people who turn out to be sheep are not aware that they did anything in their lives that would cause them to be included among the sheep. Similarly, many of the people who turn out to be goats are not aware that they failed to do things that would have allowed them to be included among the sheep.
   
• The fact that the identity of the sheep and the goats is a surprise that is not revealed until the end of time suggests that all humans should not be quick to assume that someone else is a goat or assume that they themselves are sheep.

Within the context of “Watch the Party Die,” Kendrick seems to be convinced that he is one of the sheep. However, by advocating for burning down entire villages and ignoring Jesus’s commandments to love his neighbor, Kendrick is acting more like a goat who has failed to maintain right relationships.

Kendrick’s final request is for God to grant him forgiveness. In case God might not be inclined to forgive him, Kendrick tries to justify himself by pointing out how hard he has tried to do what’s right.

The request for God’s forgiveness echoes the Lord’s Prayer, which includes the following request:

• Forgive us our transgressions (i.e. violations of trust)
  as we forgive those who transgress against us (i.e. violate our trust)

After teaching his disciples the Lord’s Prayer, Jesus specifically highlighted the request for forgiveness by making it clear that God would not forgive those who refuse to forgive others.

• If you forgive humans for their [transgressions / violations of trust], your heavenly Father will also forgive you. But if you do not forgive humans for their [transgressions / violations of trust], your Father will also not forgive your [transgressions / violations of trust].
  -Matthew 6:14-15

Later on in St. Matthew’s account of the Gospel, one of Jesus’s disciples asked how many times he should forgive a brother who has done something wrong to him. In response, Jesus told his disciples a parable that reflected on the necessity for God’s people to forgive other humans because God has already forgiven his people to a much greater degree (See Matthew 18:21-35).
 

• In this parable, there is a king—representing God the Father—who has many servants—representing different humans, particularly followers of Jesus.
   
• One of these servants has somehow borrowed large amounts of money from the king and now owes the king what in today’s currency would be equivalent to $8 billion.
   
• When the king realizes how much money the servant owes him, the king announces plans to sell the servant into slavery along with the servant’s wife and children in order to at least recoup some money.
   
• The servant then falls on the ground and begs the king not to sell him into slavery. He even tells the king that he will repay the equivalent of $8 billion that he owes.
   
• The king has compassion on the servant, releases him from his impending slavery, and forgives all of the servant’s debts.
   
• However, immediately after having his debts forgiven, the first servant walks out of the king’s court and sees a second servant who owes the first servant what would be the equivalent of $14,000.
   
• The first servant immediately grabs the second servant by the neck, begins choking him, and demands that the second servant pay him back.
   
• The second servant then falls on the ground and begs the first servant to be patient, and he will repay the equivalent of $14,000 that he owes.
   
• However, the first servant refuses to forgive the second servant. Instead, the first servant throws the second servant into a debtor’s prison, where the second servant will be forced to work for three or more months in order to pay the first servant back.
   
• Soon, the king finds out what the first servant did to the second servant and calls the first servant back to his court. The king becomes angry with the first servant and strongly condemns him for refusing to forgive a $14,000 debt after the king had forgiven him a much, much larger $8 billion debt.
   
• The king then once again holds the first servant responsible for the $8 billion debt. The king orders the first servant to be thrown into debtor’s prison until he has repaid the entire debt. This punishment is essentially a life sentence because it would take 164,000 years of labor for the first servant to pay the king back.

Based on Jesus’s teaching on the Lord’s Prayer and the parable of the unforgiving servant, it is deeply ironic that Kendrick is praying, “Dear God, please forgive me,” after he has refused to forgive Drake or anyone who has participated in “the party” and has even claimed, “this shit done got too wicked to apologize.”
 

Moreover, based on Jesus’s teaching, Kendrick’s self-justification that God knows “how hard I tried” seems destined to fall on deaf ears and be rejected by God. Jesus discussed how he would reject the pleas of individuals who claimed to do lots of things for God but refused to actually do what God the Father commands.

• Jesus taught his disciple saying, “Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but the one who does the will of My Father who is in heaven will enter. Many will say to Me on that day,
   
  ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in Your name, and in Your name cast out demons, and in Your name perform many miracles?’
   
  And then I will declare to them, ‘I never knew you; leave Me, you who act against the law.’”
   
  -Matthew 7:21-23

The need for forgiveness has been a central theme within both DAMN. and Mr. Morale and the Big Steppers.

On “DNA.”, the second track of DAMN., Kendrick rapped about the fact that his rough upbringing taught him so many things he needed to know to become successful in the world, but the one thing that he wished he had received was to be nurtured in a way that would allow him to forgive others.

• I know murder, conviction
  Burners, boosters, burglars, ballers, dead, redemption
  Scholars, fathers dead with kids and
  I wish I was fed forgiveness
  Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, soldier’s DNA

The theme of monetary debts in the parable of the unforgiving servant also reminds us of the track “XXX.” from DAMN., where Kendrick tells a story about his friend’s son who was killed because of “insufficient funds.” When the friend called Kendrick and asked for spiritual guidance from an anointed Christian, Kendrick ignored Jesus’s teachings by saying that he would never forgive someone who harmed any one of his family members and that the friend should not forgive either.

• Yesterday, I got a call, like, from my dog, like 101
  Said they killed his only son because of insufficient funds
  …
  He said, “K-Dot, can you pray for me? It been a fucked up day for me
  I know that you anointed, show me how to overcome”
  He was lookin’ for some closure, hopin’ I could bring him closer
  To the spiritual, my spirit do know better, but I told him
  “I can’t sugarcoat the answer for you, this is how I feel
  If somebody kill my son, that mean somebody gettin’ killed
  Tell me what you do for love, loyalty, and passion of
  All the memories collected, moments you could never touch
  I wait in front a nigga’s spot and watch him hit his block
  I catch a nigga leavin’ service if that’s all I got
  I chip a nigga, then throw the blower in his lap
  Walk myself to the court like, “Bitch, I did that”
  …
  Let somebody touch my mama, touch my sister, touch my woman
  Touch my daddy, touch my niece, touch my nephew, touch my brother
  You should chip a nigga, then throw the blower in his lap

In the first verse of “Mother I Sober” from Mr. Morale and the Big Steppers, Kendrick acknowledged his battles with sex addiction, infidelity, and violations of trust in his relationships with Whitney, his fiancée, and the mother of his children. As he reckoned with the pain that he had caused to an innocent soul, Kendrick asked God whether he could be forgiven for what he had done.

• Intoxicated, there’s a lustful nature that I failed to mention
  Insecurities that I project, sleepin’ with other women
  Whitney’s hurt, the purest soul I know, I found her in the kitchen
  Askin’ God, “Where did I lose myself? And can it be forgiven?”
  Broke me down, she looked me in my eyes, “Is there an addiction?”
  I said “No,” but this time I lied, I knew that I can’t fix it
  Pure soul, even in her pain, know she cared for me
  Gave me a number, said she recommended some therapy

The theme of forgiveness has noticeably been absent from the diss tracks that Kendrick released during his battle with Drake. Here in “Watch the Party Die,” Kendrick seems to fully reject the idea of forgiving anyone even as he prays for God to forgive him.

I do think it is important to point out that within the context of the Bible, forgiveness does not mean that society, law enforcement, or victims should allow a crime to go unpunished or—even worse—allow a perpetrator to continue harming the victim or other future victims.

This point is actually illustrated quite clearly by the Old Testament story of King David using his power to traffic a woman to his palace, force her to have sex with him, and then kill her husband to cover up a pregnancy. In that case, God sent a prophet to directly confront David about his evil and unjust actions. David admitted to being guilty under God’s judgment, repented, was forgiven by God, and was spared from the death penalty. However, David’s actions had real-world consequences that led to the deaths of at least three of David’s sons as well as a significant amount of societal shame. Over time, this shame made countless men in David’s time—along with later readers of the Bible—think twice about allowing uncontrolled sexual desire to lead them to coercing women or murdering people to cover up earlier acts of wickedness.

One can also look at the New Testament story from St. John’s account of the Gospel, in which a woman was caught while she was having sex in an adulterous relationship. Unlike the case of the woman with King David, she had apparently chosen to engage in this sexual relationship. She was then brought before an all-male court of Judean religious leaders who appealed to Jesus to serve as a trial judge to sentence her to death under the rules laid out in the laws given to Moses (See John 8:1-11).
 

• Jesus sent all the accusers away by pointing out that they themselves had done things against the law of Moses that the Israelites were supposed to follow and thus should not feel that it was their right to condemn the woman to the death penalty.
   
• Jesus had not done any actions that broke the law of Moses, so he theoretically had the right to condemn the woman to the death penalty. However, he chose not to. Instead, Jesus told the woman, “I do not condemn you. Go on your way. From now on, do not sin anymore.”
   
• In this case, Jesus let the woman go free without any additional punishment beyond the societal shame that she had already experienced and would likely continue to experience. Jesus did not completely remove this consequence, though he did mitigate it to some degree by pointing out the lawless actions of her accusers.
   
• Moreover, Jesus warned her by saying, “Do not sin anymore.” This statement echoes a previous statement from Jesus after he healed a man and told him, “Now you have become well. Do not sin anymore, or something worse will happen to you.”
   
• Hence, Jesus’s ultimate goal was for the woman not to be immediately killed for her wickedness but for her to find healing and be transformed so that she would be able to stop herself from acting in a way that would ruin her relationships and result in a negative final judgment at the end of time.

Kendrick seems to be highlighting more people who should be executed for the benefit of society.
 

“Street niggas" refer to young Black men who are engaged in selling drugs, hustling, robberies, gang activity, or any other kind of illegal activity done to get money. These kinds of activities are statistically more common in densely populated, urbanized neighborhoods in major American cities where people are more likely to walk through the city on street sidewalks, in contrast to American suburbs where many people exclusively drive from one place to another.
 

The illegal activities in which “street niggas” often engage often lead to violence, murder, and other casualties, as Kendrick has detailed throughout much of his work, such as the track “Poe Man’s Dreams” from Section.80.

• My mama is stressin’, my daddy tired
  I need me a weapon, these niggas ride
  Every minute, hour, and second, ministers tried to save me
  How I’m gon’ listen when I don’t even hear God?
  Heaven or hell, base it all on my instincts
  My hands dirty, you worried ‘bout mud in your sink
  You like to mistake a street nigga for real nigga
  The same nigga that kill with you’ll squeal with you

Since “street niggas” typically depict themselves as people who like to kill others, they would likely be included among the people who Kendrick planned to execute when he said, “We even kill the killers ‘cause they like taking innocent lives.”

“Corporate guys” likely refers to the entertainment industry’s corporate employees who are paid to find ways of making money from music, films, and other forms of entertainment. In many cases, their approach to making money is not in the best interest of the artist who makes the work, the audience who consumes the work, or the society in which the work is distributed.
 

In the case that “corporate guys” are trying to make money from the stories of “street niggas,” the resulting work may actually lead the audience to imitate behavior that leads some individuals to kill other individuals.
 

Within both DAMN. and Mr. Morale & the Big Steppers, Kendrick has pointed out that corporate employees often hide their tendency to be killers and murderers while teaching their own deceptive philosophies to the youth.

• It’s murder on my street, your street, back streets, Wall Street
  Corporate offices, banks, employees, and bosses with
  Homicidal thoughts
  -“XXX.”
   
  The world in a panic, the women is stranded, the men on a run
  The prophets abandoned, the law take advantage,
  the market is crashin’, the industry wants
  Niggas and bitches to sleep in a box
  while they makin’ a mockery followin’ us
  This ain’t Monopoly, watchin’ for love.
  This ain’t monogamy. Y’all gettin’ fucked*
  -“N95”
   
  *I’m a killer, he’s a killer, she’s a killer, bitch
  We some killers, walkin’ zombies, tryna scratch that itch
  …
  Eight billion people on Earth, silent murderers
  Non-profits, preachers and church? Crooks and burglars (Woo)
  Hollywood corporate in school, teachin’ philosophies
  You either gon’ be dead or in jail, killer psychology
  Silent murderer, what’s your body count? Who your sponsorship?
  -“Worldwide Steppers”

“Corporate guys” may thus be complicit with those who “parade in gluttony without givin’ truth to the youth” and for whom “the graveyard is company.”

Rather than “givin’ truth to the youth,” “corporate guys” often appropriate the stories from “street niggas” and package them in music made by “rappers that report the lies.”
 

On “N95.” from Mr. Morale & the Big Steppers, Kendrick seemed to expose liars in the rap game and demand that they take off their lies like an actor taking off a mask.

• You’re back outside, but they still lied
  …
  Take off the foo-foo, take off the clout chase, take off the Wi-Fi
  Take off the money phone, take off the car loan, take off the flex and the white lies
  Take off the weird-ass jewelry, I’ma take ten steps, then I’m taking off top five
  Take off them fabricated streams and them microwave memes, it’s a real world outside
  (Take that shit off)

It’s also notable that in the battle tracks, Kendrick repeatedly called Drake a liar, actor, and manipulator who has tried to borrow stories and credibility from “street niggas.”

• The famous actor we once knew is lookin’ paranoid and now is spiralin’
  You’re movin’ just like a degenerate, every antic is feelin’ distasteful
  I calculate you’re not as calculated, I can even predict your angle
  Fabricatin’ stories on the family front ‘cause you heard Mr. Morale
  A pathetic master manipulator, I can smell the tales on you now
  You’re not a rap artist, you a scam artist with the hopes of being accepted
  …
  Know you a master manipulator and habitual liar too
  But don’t tell no lie about me and I won’t tell truths ‘bout you
  …
  How many more fairytale stories ‘bout your life ’til we had enough?
  How many more Black features ’til you finally feel that you’re Black enough?
  I like Drake with the melodies, I don’t like Drake when he act tough
  …
  I’m allergic to the lame shit, only you like bein’ famous
  Yachty can’t give you no swag neither,
  I don’t give a fuck ‘bout who you hang with
  -“euphoria”
   
  I think somebody lying
  Smell somebody lying
  I don’t see no fire
  …
  Yeah, somebody’s lyin’, I can see the vibes on Ak’
  Even he lookin’ compromised, let’s peel the layers back
  -“6:16 in LA”
   
  You a body shamer, you gon’ hide them baby mamas, ain’t ya?
  You embarrassed of ’em, that’s not right, that ain’t how mama raised us
  Take that mask off, I wanna see what’s under them achievements
  Why believe you? You never gave us nothin’ to believe in
  ‘Cause you lied about religious views, you lied about your surgery
  You lied about your accent and your past tense, all is perjury
  You lied about your ghostwriters, you lied about your crew members
  They all pussy, you lied on ’em, I know they all got you in ’em
  You lied about your son, you lied about your daughter, huh
  You lied about them other kids that’s out there hopin’ that you come
  You lied about the only artist that can offer you some help
  Fuck a rap battle, this a long life battle with yourself
  -“meet the grahams”
   
  Devil is a lie, he a 69 god, ayy
  …
  You run to Atlanta when you need a check balance
  Let me break it down for you, this the real nigga challenge
  You called Future when you didn’t see the club (Ayy, what?)
  Lil Baby helped you get your lingo up (What?)
  21 gave you false street cred
  Thug made you feel like you a slime in your head (Ayy, what?)
  Quavo said you can be from Northside (What?)
  2 Chainz say you good, but he lied
  You run to Atlanta when you need a few dollars
  No, you not a colleague, you a fuckin’ colonizer
  The family matter and the truth of the matter
  It was God’s plan to show y’all the liar
  -“Not Like Us”

Kendrick expressed his hatred for all “street niggas”, “corporate guys”, rappers, and members of the entertainment industry who have empowered, emboldened, and enabled Drake.

• Whoever that’s fuckin’ with him, fuck you niggas, and fuck the industry too

“Pillow-talking” refers to conversations that happen between couples while lying down in bed with their heads on pillows after having sex.
 

Certain hip-hop media figures, such as DJ Akademiks, have explained that arguments, hatred, and information leveraged within rap battles often spread because many rappers will often have sex with the same set of women. These women end up pillow-talking about the other rappers with whom they have had sex.
 

• DJ Akademiks—who is sometimes referred to as Ak’—is also known for being a loyal supporter of Drake. Kendrick previously suggested that DJ Akademiks is compromised on “6:16 in LA.”

  • Yeah, somebody’s lyin’, I can see the vibes on Ak’
    Even he lookin’ compromised, let’s peel the layers back

The pillow-talking dynamic also exists among violent street niggas, which explains how pillow-talking could lead to neighborhood wars.
 

By saying “no more pillow-talkin’,” Kendrick seems to be implying that he will be giving orders to execute the “dirty-macking bitches” who have attended “the party” or had sex with the street niggas, corporate guys, or rappers that report the lies.

In slang, “flashy” is an adjective that describes someone who shows off or flaunts their wealth and possessions. “Flashy niggas” might thus be included among those who “parade in gluttony without givin’ truth to the youth.”
 

The idea of “dirty” from the previous line gets escalated to “nasty,” which conveys a sense of repulsion or aversion. Both “dirty” and “nasty” are used as slang adjectives to describe someone who is overtly sexual, especially when expressing a desire for novelty and adventurous forms of sexual behavior.
 

The words “nasty” and “dirty” are both synonyms for the word “freaky,” which Kendrick used when he described Drake as a “freaky ass nigga” and a “69 god”—in reference to an adventurous form of simultaneous oral sex—on “Not Like Us.”

• Devil is a lie, he a 69 god, ayy
  Freaky-ass niggas need to stay they ass inside, ayy
  …
  He a fan, he a fan, he a fan (Mm)
  He a fan, he a fan, he a
  Freaky-ass nigga, he a 69 God
  Freaky-ass nigga, he a 69 God
  Hey, hey, hey, hey, run for your life
  Hey, hey, hey, hey, run for your life

In English, “having a backbone” is an idiom for having the courage, strength, and ability to stand up for oneself.
 

Kendrick’s criticism of “the flashy nigga” who is “usin’ money as a backbone” may also be applied to Drake. Within the battle, Kendrick accused Drake of acting like a tough “street nigga” even though he has no backbone and has to pass real street niggas to join his crew and be his “backbone.” However, as Kendrick pointed out, these “street niggas” who are paid to be Drake’s “backbone” are actually a liability because they are not truly loyal to Drake and are only around for the money.

• The famous actor we once knew is lookin’ paranoid and now is spiralin’
  …
  I like Drake with the melodies, I don’t like Drake when he act tough
  -“euphoria”.
   
  Have you ever thought that OVO is workin’ for me?
  Fake bully, I hate bullies, you must be a terrible person
  Everyone inside your team is whispering that you deserve it
  …
  It was fun until you started to put money in the streets
  Then lost money ‘cause they came back with no receipts
  …
  If you were street-smart, then you woulda caught
  that your entourage is only to hustle you
  A hundred niggas that you got on salary
  And twenty of ’em want you as a casualty
  And one of them is actually next to you
  And two of them is practically tired of your lifestyle
  Just don’t got the audacity to tell you
  -“6:16 in LA”  

Drake’s strategy of paying “street niggas” and other tough guys to be part of his crew is well documented online, most notably in this video by HipHopMadness.

Kendrick gives even more specific instructions on how he wants the hosts and attendees of “the party” to be executed. In this case, he orders his executioners to kill the condemned man by hitting him in the head with some kind of blunt weapon until the man’s skull is cracked open.
 

Kendrick orders for the execution to happen while the condemned man is out of his house and before the condemned man ever has a chance to come back home that day. The immediacy of these orders further highlights the idea that “it is time” to watch the party die.
 

The specificity of these execution orders resembles “XXX.” from DAMN., where Kendrick talked about how he would kill someone who had killed his son by waiting outside the building where the killer was located and then gunning the killer down at his first opportunity.

• I’d wait in front a nigga’s spot and watch him hit his block
  I’d catch a nigga leavin’ service if that’s all I got
  I’d chip a nigga, then throw the blower in his lap*
  Walk myself to the court like, “Bitch, I did that”*

A “radio personality” is a host of a radio program, podcast, or other form of audio-based content who publicly broadcasts his or her perspective on current events or popular culture.
 

Propaganda is the deliberate dissemination of information, ideas, or messages that are often biased or misleading and are designed to influence public opinion, manipulate emotions, or promote a specific agenda or ideology. Propaganda is typically disseminated by a powerful or influential political entity, government, industry, or group that wants to influence the public in order to control their actions or hold on to power.
 

Kendrick implies that many of these “radio personalities” are getting paid to use their platforms to disseminate propaganda on behalf of the entertainment industry or on behalf of the systems that mentally enslave Black people.
 

It is notable that on his 2016 track, “Hype,” Drake boasts about creating his own propaganda.

• I don’t take this shit for granted
  I do my own propaganda

On the battle track “6:16 in LA,” Kendrick accuses Drake of “playin’ dirty with propaganda”.

• But let me tell you some game ‘cause I can see you, my lil’ homie
  You playin’ dirty with propaganda, it blow up on ya
  You’re playin’ nerdy with Zack Bia and Twitter bots
  But your reality can’t hide behind Wi-Fi
  Your lil’ memes is losin’ steam, they figured you out
  The forced opinions is not convincin’, y’all need a new route

A few months after “Watch the Party Die” was released, Kendrick released the album GNX, whose opening track “wacced out murals” mentions “Watch the Party Die” and specifically criticizes a White comedy podcast host who controversially joked about Black women being emotionally dysregulated and violent.

• Don’t let no white comedian talk about no Black woman, that’s law
  I know propaganda work for them, and fuck whoever that’s close to them
  The niggas that coon, the niggas that bein’ groomed, slide on both of them

On the track “Worldwide Steppers” from Mr. Morale & the Big Steppers, Kendrick asserted that Hollywood’s corporate leaders and employees are “silent murderers” who teach their deadly and deceptive philosophies in schools.

• Eight billion people on Earth, silent murderers
  Non-profits, preachers and church? Crooks and burglars (Woo)
  Hollywood corporate in school, teachin’ philosophies
  You either gon’ be dead or in jail, killer psychology

The term “New Earth” originates from The Revelation, the final book in the New Testament and the Bible, in which St. John sees a prophetic vision revealed to him by Jesus.
 

In this vision, Jesus shows St. John how the oppression, persecution, violence, and killings that Christians faced under various Roman Emperors from 64 to 100 AD are part of a much larger pattern of the [“devil” / “satan” / “false accuser” / “diabolical one”] trying to bring death and destruction to those who follow Jesus as their Lord.
 

Jesus encourages various church communities to “overcome”—not by starting a revolution or killing their oppressors—but by forgiving and loving the humans who act like enemies, recognizing that they are truly just under the control of the true enemy—the [“devil” / “satan” / “false accuser” / “diabolical one”].
 

Jesus encourages these persecuted church communities to trust that one day Jesus will defeat the true enemy. Moreover, Jesus promises that one day, God will bring an end to the world as it currently exists and bring about a “New Heaven” which fully overlaps with a “New Earth.” In this overlapping “New Heaven” and “New Earth,” all humans will know God, have a loving relationship with God, and obey God’s commandments, leading to an eternal life of peace, justice, and right relationships.
 

This transformation from the current Earth to the “New Earth” is described in the second-to-last chapter of The Revelation, where St. John concludes his vision by saying:

• I saw a new heaven and a new earth: for the first heaven and the first earth have passed away, and the sea is no more. I saw the holy city, New Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared like a bride adorned for her husband. I heard a loud voice out of heaven saying, “Behold, God’s [tent / residence] is with humans, and he will reside with them, and they will be his people, and God himself will be with them as their God. He will wipe away every tear from their eyes. Death will be no more; There will be no mourning, no crying, no pain, any more. The first things have passed away.”
  -Revelation 21:1-4

While the influence of Christianity has already been well documented throughout this analysis, it should also be noted that Eckhart Tolle has clearly had a significant influence on Kendrick’s work, beginning at least as early as 2021, when Kendrick released a video introducing his new media production company, pgLang. This introductory video contains:

• Imagery of meditative practices
• A clock in which every hour is labeled as “NOW”
• A scene where a young woman chooses “NOW” instead of “PAST” or “FUTURE”
• A scene where Kendrick sits across from Eckhart Tolle and listens intently as Tolle gives spiritual/psychological guidance
   

On Mr. Morale & the Big Steppers, Eckhart Tolle is introduced as Kendrick’s psychotherapist and a major contributor to the album.

• Kodak Black, Oklama
  Eckhart Tolle
  And this here is the big stepper
  -“Worldwide Stepper”
   
  Whitney:  You really need some therapy.
  Kendrick: Real nigga need no therapy, fuck you talkin’ about?
  Whitney:  Nah, nah, you sound stupid as fuck.
  Kendrick: Shit, everybody stupid.
  Whitney:  Yeah, well, you need to talk to somebody. Reach out to Eckhart.
  -“Father Time”

Eckhart Tolle’s voice is heard on several occasions on the second half of Mr. Morale & the Big Steppers.
 

• Mr. Duckworth…
  -“Count Me Out”
   
  If you derive your sense of identity from being a victim. Let’s say, bad things were done to you when you were a child. And you develop a sense of self that is based on the bad things that happened to you…
  -“Savior (Interlude)”
   
  This is how we conceptualize human beings
  -“Auntie Diaries”
   
  People get taken over by this pain-body, because this energy field that almost has a life of its own—it needs to periodically feed on more unhappiness.
  -“Mr. Morale”

On “Rich Spirit”, the last verse ends with Kendrick specifically referencing the “New Earth” after making references to Christianity, Buddhism, Islam and other New Age concepts earlier in the track.

• Takin’ my baby to school, then I pray for her
  ‘Cause you bitches ain’t never been cool, writin’ testament
  Paintin’ pictures, put me in the Louvre, that’s a definite
  Universal shift, I’m in a groove
  …
  The aloof Buddha, I’m Christ with a shooter
  Praise to Muhammad, I might nigga noose ya
  …
  Spirit medium, I don’t rap, brother
  …
  I’m fasting four days out the week, brother
  …
  The New Earth in hot pursuit, two-hundred lives

Whether Kendrick is currently seeing a vision of the traditional Christian understanding of a “New Earth” or the New Age version, the reference to a peaceful “New Earth” is in sharp contrast to the increasingly violent rhetoric that Kendrick is using throughout the verse.
 

Kendrick seems to be implying that the end goal of a “New Earth” justifies the means of violent and inhumane vigilante executions. This “ends-justify-the-means” logic twists the prophetic vision of a “New Earth” into a dystopian, totalitarian vision of a bloody revolution and political purge.

Kendrick again seems to be highlighting the hope of a “New Earth” that can be created after all of the wicked hosts and attendees of “the party” are eliminated from society.
 

Kendrick seems to be implying that the “degenerates” among the media influencers are spreading cynical criticism of Kendrick’s message of hope. This assessment is consistent with the lines from the first verse where Kendrick said:

• Influencers talk down ‘cause I’m not with the basic shit
  But they don’t hate me, they hate the man that I represent

Because these influencers have been talking down at Kendrick and failing to talk positively about the hope that Kendrick and his supporters are trying to spread through Kendrick’s music, Kendrick has included these influencers among those who will be viciously executed.

Kendrick’s campaign of totalitarian executions seems to be taking place in a nominal democracy. Elections are still being held, and Kendrick could theoretically be voted out of power. However, if anyone tries to oppose him by running an effective opposition campaign or even casting a vote for the opposition, Kendrick wants such a person to be beheaded.
 

This kind of election, where voters are not free to cast their vote without suffering retribution for voting against the ruling party, is often referred to as a “sham election.”
 

Months before the release of “Watch the Party Die” in March of 2024, the United States and other Western European allies denounced Russia’s presidential election as a “sham election” after Vladimir Putin was re-elected as President of Russia with 88% of the vote, which happened to be the highest percentage vote in the history of Russian democracy.
 

Vladimir Putin’s re-election follows more than a decade in which political opposition leaders have been harassed, silenced, imprisoned, and assassinated. The most recent casualty was Alexei Navalny, who died in a Russian prison under suspicious circumstances in February of 2024, just a month before the election.
 

On the track “Savior” from Mr. Morale & the Big Steppers, Kendrick specifically highlighted Vladimir Putin as an example of oppressive leadership after he invaded Ukraine in February of 2022 after claiming that Ukraine was governed by a neo-Nazi regime.

• Vladimir making nightmares
  But that’s how we all think
  The collective conscious
  Calamities on repeat

While Kendrick did highlight Vladimir Putin’s destructive behavior on “Savior,” Kendrick’s overall point seemed to be that Vladimir Putin is not unique or even outside of the norm. Instead, Kendrick asserted that Vladimir Putin’s behavior simply reveals the way that all of us naturally think. Here on “Watch the Party Die,” Kendrick proudly expresses this collective way of thought as he seeks to eliminate anyone who does not support his vigilante campaign.

• John the Baptist was Jesus’s cousin and was a highly respected prophet who called the Israelites to “repent” (i.e., change their way of thinking) and be baptized. John also spoke out against the unjust actions of powerful figures, including Herod, the puppet king of a Roman-controlled Israelite region called Galilee.
   
• John the Baptist publicly criticized King Herod, telling him that it was not right or just for him to take his own brother’s wife, Herodias, so that he could marry her for himself.
   
• The new queen, Herodias, became very angry at St. John the Baptist and got King Herod to arrest John. Still, the queen was not satisfied with just arresting St. John. She wanted him to be killed, even though the king was very reluctant to do so. Queen Herodias then looked for a way to kill the prophet John, much like Queen Jezebel looked for a way to kill the prophet Elijah.
   
• Then, when King Herod threw a birthday party for himself, the queen sent her daughter to dance for Herod and his guests at the party. The queen’s daughter’s dancing was apparently so stimulating and pleasurable for King Herod that, without thinking, he made an oath in front of all his guests that he would give the queen’s daughter whatever she wanted.
   
• The daughter consulted with her mother, who immediately told her to ask the king to bring her the head of John the Baptist on a dinner platter. The king was sad and upset with himself because he really didn’t want to kill John, but because he had made the oath in front of his guests and was too proud to look dishonorable by going back on his word, he agreed. He immediately ordered soldiers to decapitate John the Baptist and bring the head on a platter to the daughter, who then presented it to the queen.
   

Here for the first time in “Watch the Party Die,” Kendrick seems to reconsider whether he is doing the right thing by executing the hosts and attendees of “the party.”
 

In particular, Kendrick wonders whether Lecrae, a famous Christian rapper, would pray for the hosts and attendees of the party or “fuck these niggas up” by violently assaulting them.
 

Lecrae happens to be the most famous and successful artist in the history of Christian hip hop (aka CHH). Christian hip hop is a subgenre of hip hop music that utilizes similar production, rapping, and singing styles as mainstream hip hop. However, unlike mainstream hip hop, Christian hip hop is committed to presenting lyrics that help people understand and identify with Christian values, beliefs, and behavior.
 

Because of the necessary commitment to Christian values, beliefs, and behavior, artists that are accepted as part of Christian hip hop will not make songs that glorify scamming, gluttony, sexual promiscuity, or criminal activity. In fact, it is very rare for Christian hip hop artists to release music with any words that would be considered explicit: including profanity, sexual terminology, or racial slurs.
 

Despite the high moral and behavioral expectations that come with being a Christian hip hop artist, Lecrae had a rough upbringing that was similar to many mainstream hip hop artists.
 

Lecrae never met his father and was raised by a single mother in a low-income, urban, Black neighborhood. He was not raised as a Christian but became a very committed Christian later in life. That background has allowed Lecrae to speak to the reality of “street life” while also being able to clearly articulate Jesus’s teaching in language that is accessible to urban, Black audiences.
 

Similar to Kendrick on To Pimp a Butterfly, DAMN., and Mr. Morale & the Big Steppers, Lecrae has also publicly wrestled with his faith in God, hypocrisy among Christian leaders—including himself—depression, personal struggles with addiction, and the weight of serving as a leader in a Black community facing various social issues.

• Last year I was feeling hopeless
  I just wanted it to end
  People stealing money from me, man
  I swear I thought that we was friends
  And I was so depressed, I was such a mess
  I couldn’t shake it off
  Another murder on the television
  Man, somebody go turn it off
  I spoke my mind, I got attacked for it
  Thought these people had my back boy
  Then they tellin’ me I asked for it
  I guess I’m just another black boy
  And then they killed Tamir Rice
  And they just go on with they life
  They tellin’ me shut up talking ‘bout it
  Like, I should just talk about Christ
  But the truth is I started to doubt God
  I started to question my purpose
  I started to act out
  I ain’t wanna sign another autograph or give a fake smile
  Doctors told me that my man died
  I almost had a breakdown So tell depression it can fly away
  Tell my doubts that they can die today
  I’ma catch me a wave, sail away
  Can’t stop me now
  -“Can’t Stop Me Now (Destination)”
   
  I would speak at churches, hang with leaders and such
  You know, Judah, Piper, and Keller, Tony Evans was clutch
  I was so involved, never thought that I could fall, y’all
  Right before the fall of 2015, I was all off
  It involved killing Michael Brown, had me feeling down
  Tweeted ‘bout it, Christians call me clown, I was losing ground
  And Voddie was a hero of mine, met with him plenty times
  This time, when he spoke, it cut me deeper than I realized
  Doubled-down, spoke about my pain, I was met with blame
  “Shame on you, ‘Crae, stop crying, get back to Jesus’ name”
  Cut me deep, I was losing sleep, “God, ain’t these Your sheep?”
  Why they hate me like they do? Maybe grace is really cheap
  Maybe this is all a lie, they don’t really love me
  They just love it when I say the things they wanna hear in public
  They’re like following they God mean turnin’ on Black people
  Is Black evil? Why do they hate and attack people?
  I’m vulnerable and cautious, I’m reading Baldwin
  Ta-Nehisi got me thinking, now I’m going all in
  I ain’t know if God was real no mo’
  Every day we gettin’ killed and I can’t deal no mo’
  I started slipping in the darkness, I’m feeling heartless
  Christians got me traumatized, I don’t know who God is
  Drinking liquor for my therapy, and smoking Mary tree
  Maybe I should get divorced, I don’t know why she married me
  What’s the purpose? What’s the point?
  Nothing matters, I’m just matter, I’m just atoms
  Ain’t no Eve and ain’t no Adam
  Where the Xannies? Let me at ’em
  I was floating in confusion until I dropped
  Woke up in a clinical depression, then it all stopped -“Deconstruction”

Given his background and spiritual perspective, Lecrae seems to be the perfect person to provide Kendrick with a perspective on whether Kendrick should rely on prayer or use violence to improve society.
 

It is also notable that prior to the release of “Watch the Party Die,” Lecrae released a podcast episode in which he discussed the battle between Kendrick and Drake.
 

• In the podcast episode, Lecrae accepted that rap battles are an established part of hip hop culture. Since Lecrae grew up with hip hop culture, he was reluctant to criticize rap battles in and of themselves.
   

• Lecrae also acknowledged that Kendrick was providing Drake with some feedback that he probably needed to hear.

  We all need friends like Kendrick who are willing to tell us about ourselves. I never want to have to run into somebody in a rap battle to tell me the truth about myself.
   

• However, Lecrae did express his concern that the way Kendrick and Drake approached the rap battle (and to some extent how most rappers approach rap battles) demonstrates an unhealthy attempt to build their own sense of value and self-worth based on their ability to beat down another person.

Prayer is a major motif within DAMN. Throughout that album, Kendrick repeatedly laments the fact that no one is praying for him. However, at a pivotal point of the album, Kendrick’s cousin, Carl Duckworth, leaves a voicemail telling Kendrick that the cursed existence he is experiencing is not due to a lack of people praying for him but due to his own lack of following God’s commandments.

• New Kung Fu Kenny
  Ain’t nobody prayin’ for me
  …
  Bitch, all my grandmas dead
  So ain’t nobody prayin’ for me, I’m on your head, ayy
  -“ELEMENT.”
   
  Shit I feel like
  Ain’t nobody prayin’ for me
  Ain’t nobody prayin’ for me
  Ain’t nobody prayin’ for me
  Ain’t nobody prayin’
  …
  I feel like the whole world want me to pray for ’em
  But who the fuck prayin’ for me? -“FEEL.”
   
  Nobody pray for me
  It been that day for me
  -“HUMBLE.”
   
  What’s up, family? Yeah, it’s your cousin Carl, man, just givin’ you a call, man. I know you been havin’ a lot on yo’ mind lately and I know you feel like, you know people ain’t been prayin’ for you but you have to understand this, man, that we are a cursed people. Deuteronomy 28:28 says, “The Lord shall smite thee with madness and blindness, and astonishment of heart.” See, family, that’s why you feel like you feel, like you got a chip on your shoulder. Until you follow His commandments, you gonna feel that way…
   
  Verse 2 says, “You only have I known of all the families of the Earth, therefore I will punish you for all your iniquities”. So until we come back to these commandments, until you come back to these commandments we gonna feel this way, we gonna be under this curse, because He said He’s gonna punish us. The so-called Blacks, Hispanics, and Native American Indians are the true children of Israel. We are the Israelites, according to the Bible. The children of Israel - He’s gonna punish us for our iniquities, for our disobedience, because we chose to follow other gods. “That man chastens his son, so the Lord, thy God, chasten thee.” So, just like you chasten your own son, He’s gonna chasten you, because He loves you. So that’s why we get chastised. That’s why we’re in the position that we’re in. Until we come back to these laws, statutes, and commandments and do what the Lord says, these curses is gonna be upon us. We gonna be at a lower state in this life that we live, here, in today, in the United States of America. I love you, family, and I pray for you. God bless you. Shalom.
  -“FEAR.”

DAMN. thus conveys the idea that prayer is insufficient if individuals do not change the way they live and begin to follow God’s commandments. This idea about the need to follow God’s commandments and help others to follow God’s commandments might thus present a third way, as opposed to exclusively praying or exclusively “fucking these niggas up.”

Dee-1 is another Christian hip hop artist whose career has run in parallel to Lecrae’s. Dee-1’s first mixtape was released in 2004, the same year that Lecrae released his first album. However, Dee-1 has not come close to achieving the level of success or influence that Lecrae has had throughout his career.
 

Part of this gap in success could be attributed to skill level and artistic choices. However, from Dee-1’s perspective, a big part of the gap in success is due to the fact that Dee-1 has been uncompromising in his commitment to delivering music with a clear Christian message and a willingness to call out issues in hip hop culture and the music industry that he sees as being misaligned with Jesus’s teaching.
 

With a timing and perspective that runs almost parallel to Katt Williams, Dee-1 gave an interview in January of 2024 where he discussed how he has been denied opportunities from entertainment industry “gatekeepers” because he wouldn’t compromise his own integrity. Most notably, Dee-1 talked about having to say “no” to powerful men in the entertainment industry who tried to coerce him into performing oral sex or receiving anal sex in order to receive a record deal.
 

• There’s gatekeepers. So if you’re trying to get signed to a major label, there’s gatekeepers. If you’re trying to get on certain media platforms to get interviewed, there’s gatekeepers. If you trying to get on the mainstream radio, urban radio, there’s gatekeepers. Yes. Yes. Yes.
   
  I will say one last thing about gatekeepers—the only true gatekeeper to what’s meant for you in this world is God and your level of integrity. That’s the only two gatekeepers, because what’s meant for you and what you want that’s two different things and a lot of times people end up wanting things that ain’t of God. Now if you want something that ain’t of God, you got to go through gatekeepers…, who really ain’t nobody in in the big scheme of things on the totem pole of people with integrity and people with morals values and principles. These gatekeepers ain’t nobody, but in this perverted sick twisted industry these gatekeepers do hold access to certain levels, you know.
   
  Bro, I’ve had gatekeepers in the music industry who have literally tried to hold a record deal behind their back and let me know like, “Look,if you a part of this homosexual act that I’m trying to take part in, this door open real quick fory you.” I got a song where I’ve talked about that before called “The Devil’s Playground.” This is real dog and the only way that that type of stuff can work on you is if you let them have all the leverage to where you want what’s behind that gate that bad. So that’s that’s a real thing.
   
  You also got people—this a different type of gatekeeper—the gatekeepers who will say, “Hey you making too much righteous noise right now. If you just tone that righteousness down a little bit then we’ll allow you into these doors, but you got to tone that down. You got to becomea little more vanilla, a little more lukewarm, a little more bland and you’ll fit in with us. That’s the slick gatekeeping. It ain’t telling you to all the way, you know, bend over or or open your mouth or something like that. It ain’t that, but it’s telling you like dim your light. And what ends up happening is you got so many people that’s like, “Well that’s not that bad. They not asking me to do nothing super crazy I just got to dim my light.” That’s the scariest kind right there ‘cause a lot of people will be like, “Wait I just got to turn it from level 10 to level 5? Man, bet. I could do that. Bro, all right, bet. Now I get accepted. Cool.” Next thing, you know you got a whole industry that’s lukewarm—whole industry lukewarm, so that when somebody that’s on fire come along they looking at it like, “Whoa, you crazy! Hold on. You shining too bright. Hold on. Hold on. Chill out, man. You doing the most. You messing up, man. Stop man.”

As mentioned in that interview, back in 2017, Dee-1 released a track called “The Devil’s Playground,” in which he mentioned having to say no to a powerful man in the music industry who offered to manage Dee-1 if Dee-1 would have sex with him. Dee-1 highlighted this experience as an example of how the entire music industry is under the control of Lucifer (aka the “devil” / “satan” / “false accuser” / “diabolical one”).

• Lucifer laughs when he listens to the radio
  Enjoyin’ all the hate blastin’ through the stereo
  His plan worked, our music gives him glory
  Sex, drugs, and murder now listen to this story…
   
  Down here with these devils in the playground
  Evil forces workin’ hard I can’t play around
  I can feel ’em tryin’ to drag me down
  Think I’m gonna lose this battle now
  I’m in the trenches here in Babylon
  This world of darkness that I travel on
  I know the games that the devil plays
  I feel him creepin’ I can’t get away
   
  Devils on devils on devils on devils on devils
  They all in this industry
  Not everybody real, and
  For the dollar bill friends turn into my enemies
  They knew I was broke
  So they asked me to sell my soul
  Three Million dollars plus make a blood sacrifice
  But I said, “Nooooooo”!
  This man said if I slept with him he’ll manage me
  Yeah, ya’ll know him
  I spit in his face and said, “boy don’t play with me!”
  I said, “Lord this just too much”
  So I’m just gonna work with church folk
  Then I found out some of these church folk
  Be some of the most crooked on Earth folk
  …
  It’s entertainment but it’s deeper, though
  Behind the scenes there’s some things you don’t even know
  Messin’ with this game, you could lose your soul
  ‘Cause there’s an evil creepin’ deep below
  …
  You think you the man, don’t ya?
  But the Devil got his hand on ya
  The Devil’s just usin’ you
  He makin’ a fool of you
  Yeah, I’m talkin’ to you, you right there
  The one with the fame, the one with the money
  The one with the platinum plaques, yeah, yeah
  You know your name!
  I came in the game with the flame and I aim to be sayin’
  Everything in the name of the Man who created
  The land, the sand, the sun, and the moon
  Holds life in the palm of his hand
  Do you hear what I’m sayin’?
  Man, I’m really tryin’ to wake you
  This ain’t no game so I can’t be playful
  Sellin’ these lies, music that’s hateful
  The devil say you great, but God say you ungrateful (echo)
  So what we gonna do now?
  This ain’t beef it’s more deep
  I don’t fight for me, I fight for the army of G-O-D
  But I luv you dawg, my brother for life
  Separated at birth, but I pray you come to the light

Dee-1’s claim that the music industry is under the control of Lucifer / the “devil” is a view that Kendrick has also expressed going back to 2015 with the tracks “Alright” and “For Sale? (Interlude)” from To Pimp a Butterfly. In those tracks, Kendrick rapped from the perspective of a music industry leader named “Lucy,” short for Lucifer, who approached Kendrick and offered him wealth, success, and material possessions if Kendrick would sell his soul to her.

• What you want you, a house? You, a car?
  Forty acres and a mule? A piano, a guitar?
  Anything, see my name is Lucy, I’m your dog
  Motherfucker, you can live at the mall
  I can see the evil, I can tell it, I know it’s illegal
  -“Alright”  
  Now, baby, when I get you, get you, get you, get you
  I’ma go hit the throttle with you
  Smoking, lokin’, poking that doja ’til I’m idle with you
  ‘Cause I (Want you)
  Now, baby, when I’m riding here, I’m riding dirty
  Registration is out of service
  Smoking, lokin’, drinking that potion, you can see me swerving
  ‘Cause I (Want you)
  (I want you more than you know)
  …
  I remember you took me to the mall last week, baby
  You looked me in my eyes about four, five times
  ‘Til I was hypnotized, then you clarified
  That I (Want you)
  You said Sherane ain’t got nothing on Lucy
  I said, “You crazy?”
  Roses are red, violets are blue
  But me and you both pushing up daisies if I (Want you)
  …
  You said to me, you said your name was Lucy
  I said, “Where’s Ricardo?”
  You said, “Oh, no, not the show”
  Then you spit a little rap to me like this
  When I turned twenty-six, I was like, “Oh, shit”
  You said to me, I remember what you said too, you said:
  “My name is Lucy, Kendrick, you introduced me, Kendrick
  Usually I don’t do this but I see you and me, Kendrick
  Lucy give you no worries, Lucy got million stories
  About these rappers that I came after when they was boring
  Lucy gon’ fill your pockets
  Lucy gon’ move your mama out of Compton
  Inside the gi-gantic mansion like I promised
  Lucy just want your trust and loyalty, avoiding me?
  It’s not so easy, I’m at these functions accordingly Kendrick, Lucy don’t slack a minute, Lucy work harder Lucy gon’ call you even when Lucy know you love your Father I’m Lucy, I loosely heard prayers on your first album, truly Lucy don’t mind, ‘cause at the end of the day you’ll pursue me Lucy go get it, Lucy not timid, Lucy up front Lucy got paperwork on top of paperwork I want you to know that Lucy got you All your life I watched you And now you all grown up to sign this contract, if that’s possible”
  -“For Sale (Interlude)”

Moreover, a few months after the release of “Watch the Party Die,” Kendrick released the album GNX, which centers around the track “reincarnated,” where Kendrick retells the biblical narrative pattern of “Lucifer.” In Kendrick’s retelling, Lucifer is a fallen angel who has been reincarnated numerous times in the form of various musicians whose gluttony led them to use their musical skills and influence to deceive the masses and mentally enslave them under Lucifer’s control.

• I did past life regression last year and it fucked me up
  Reincarnated on this earth for a hundred plus
  Body after body, lesson after lesson, let’s take it back to Michigan in 1947
  My father kicked me out the house ‘cause I wouldn’t listen to him
  I didn’t care about his influence, only loved what I was doing
  Gifted as a musician, I played guitar on a grand level
  The most talented where I’m from, but I had to rebel
  And so I’m off in the sunset, searchin’ for my place in the world
  With my guitar up on my hip as the story unfurled
  I found myself with a pocket full of money and a whole lot of respect
  While the record business loved me
  I was head of rhythm and blues
  The women that fell to they feet, so many to choose
  But I manipulated power as I lied to the masses
  Died with my money, gluttony was too attractive, reincarnated
  …
  Another life had placed me as a Black woman in the Chitlin’ Circuit
  Seductive vocalist as the promoter hit the curtains
  My voice was angelic, straight from heaven, the crowd sobbed
  A musical genius what the articles emphasized
  Had everything I wanted, but I couldn’t escape addiction
  Heroin needles had me in fetal position, restricted
  Turned on my family, I went wherever cameras be
  Cocaine, no private planes for my insanity
  Self-indulged, discipline never been my sentiments
  I needed drugs, to me, an 8-ball was like penicillin
  Fuck love, my happiness was in that brown sugar
  Sex and melodies gave me hope when nobody’s lookin’
  My first assistant was a small town scholar
  Never did a Quaalude ’til I got myself around her
  My daddy looked the other way, he saw sin in me
  I died with syringes pinched in me, reincarnated
  …
  My present life is Kendrick Lamar
  A rapper looking at the lyrics to keep you in awe
  The only factor I respected was raisin’ the bar
  My instincts sent material straight to the charts, huh
  My father kicked me out the house, I finally forgive him
  I’m old enough to understand the way I was livin’
  Ego and pride had me looking at him with resentment
  I close my eyes, hoping that I don’t come off contentious
  I’m yelling, “Father, did I finally get it right?” Everything I did was selfless
  I spoke freely, when the people needed me, I helped them
  I didn’t gloat, even told ’em, “No,” when the vultures came
  Took control of my fleshly body when the money changed
  Son, you do well, but your heart is closed
  I can tell residue that linger from your past creates itself
  Father, I’m not perfect, I got urges, but I hold them down
  “But your pride has to die,” okay, Father, show me how
  Tell me every deed that you done and what you do it for
  I kept one hundred institutions paid
  Okay, tell me more
  I put one hundred hoods on one stage
  Okay, tell me more
  I’m tryna push peace in L.A.
  But you love war
  No, I don’t
  Oh, yes, you do
  Okay, then tell me the truth
  Every individual is only a version of you
  How can they forgive when there’s no forgiveness in your heart?
  I could tell you where I’m going
  I could tell you who you are
  You fell out of Heaven ‘cause you was anxious
  Didn’t like authority, only searched to be heinous
  Isaiah fourteen was the only thing that was prevalent
  My greatest music director was you
  It was colors, it was pinks, it was reds, it was blues
  It was harmony and motion
  I sent you down to earth ‘cause you was broken
  Rehabilitation, not psychosis
  But now we here now
  Centuries you manipulated man with music
  Embodied you as superstars to see how you moving
  You came a long way from garnishing evilish views
  And all I ever wanted from you was love and approval
  I learned a lot, no more putting these people in fear
  The more that word is diminished, the more it’s not real
  The more light that I can capture, the more I can feel
  I’m using words for inspiration as an idea
  So can you promise that you won’t take your gifts for granted?
  I promise that I’ll use my gifts to bring understanding
  For every man, woman and child, how much can you vow?
  I vow my life just to live one in harmony now
  You crushed a lot of people keeping their thoughts in captivity
  And I’m ashamed that I ever created that enemy
  Then let’s rejoice where we at
  I rewrote the devil’s story just to take our power back, ‘carnated
  -“reincarnated”

Prior to the release of “Watch the Party Die,” Dee-1 released a podcast episode discussing the battle between Kendrick and Drake. In comparison to Lecrae’s podcast, Dee-1 was much more willing to directly criticize Drake, Kendrick, and the culture of rap battles as a whole.
 

From Dee-1’s uncompromising perspective, the entire battle between Kendrick and Drake has glorified negative examples of hatred and unrighteous relationships that are a detriment to the Black community and misaligned with Jesus’s teaching.
 

Dee-1 also released an uncompromising response to “Watch the Party Die” in the form of a track titled “Call It Like It Is.”

• *I want to be empathetic, my heart like Dee-1
  But I will—
  Yeah, I don’t care what these people think, I’m trying to make these people think
  What’s up, Kendrick? We flippin’ tables, man, (Call it like it is), alright
  …
  Y’all done turned this culture trash, these so-called legends ain’t no legends
  I don’t care if they sold millions, are you hearin’ their message?
  Poisonin’ our whole community, everybody hypnotized
  Why you think nobody respect black people? No big surprise
  (Call it like it is) and I love New Orleans, my city
  But I love God way more, I don’t care if none of y’all with me
  We celebrate bein’ stupid and everybody so gangster
  But when you clockin’ for that white man, you be on your best behavior, hold up
  (Call it like it is) Yeah, most of the media people laugh
  Y’all was never really, really cool before you got inside this here game
  Instigating, y’all bein’ messy, you ain’t helping nobody grow
  Tell Joe Budden I’m on a mission, so don’t butt in, Joe
  Man, I’m gon’ (Call it like it is), no, it ain’t no pressure on me
  I’m applyin’ the pressure, I’m powered by G-O-D
  And we gon’ be alright, that’s what Kendrick Lamar said
  And in the words of Lil Wayne, the sky is the limit, yeah
  …
  So call it like it is, call it what it ain’t
  Call it what you want, no, I ain’t on that train
  I’m speakin’ from the soul, and I don’t care who feel’ it
  Yeah, hip-hop is dead, and y ‘all the ones who killed it
  No, I am not impressed nah, and I say that with my chest (Uh-huh)
  Don’t try to call me preaching, refer to me as blessed
  So call it like it is and call it what it ain’t (ain’t)
  So call it what you want (want), no, I ain’t on that train
  …
  Y’all boys claim to be some soldiers
  But you soldiers ain’t no soldiers, man, I told you and I showed you
  I’m a soldier for life, stop playin’ dumb, it’s good versus evil, it’s only two sides
  Class in session, y’all need to attend, just like my shoe size
  Murder music hit different when somebody in my crew died
  The biggest gangsters in rap got blonde hair ’n’ blue eyes
  We gettin’ pimped, what y’all wanna do, guys?
  Your new single just dropped? (Yeah) Time to entertain us with new lies
  Whoever said I’m canceled, man, I’m laughing in these people’s face
  I work for God, dummy, my impact could never be erased
  Tell America, I’m the same brother I used to be
  Before y’all was introduced to me, consistency ain’t new to me
  (So call it like it is) Y’all just sold us all with your foolery
  And that dollar bill got y ‘all whipped, that’s dead, man, it’s the eulogy
  And whoever said what they gon’ do to me?
  Man, I hit your whole block up with prayers, man, y’all ain’t used to me *

It is notable that Kendrick does not ask what Dee-1 would do. Given Dee-1’s consistent, uncompromising commitment to Jesus’s teaching above Black identity, hip hop culture, personal grievances, or revolutionary philosophies, Kendrick probably knows that Dee-1 would “show ’em just what prayer do” without a second thought.

Kendrick sees within Dee-1 an empathetic, Christ-centered heart that Kendrick has deep inside of himself even while his hardened exterior has led him to advocate for killing the killers, burning the whole village, mortifying family members, cracking skulls, imposing agony, and decapitating those who oppose him.
 

This contradiction between Kendrick’s Christian-leaning heart and his tendencies towards violence (or at least existing in an environment of violence) is a major theme of Kendrick’s work throughout his discography.

• Smokin’ on the finest dope, ayy-ayy-ayy-ah
  Drank until I can’t no mo’, ayy-ayy-ayy-ah
  Really I’m a sober soul
  But I’m with the homies right now
  And we ain’t askin’ for no favors
  Rush a nigga quick, then laugh about it later, ayy-ayy-ayy-ah
  Really, I’m a peacemaker
  But I’m with the homies right now
  -“The Art of Peer Pressure”
   
  No better picture to paint than me walkin’ from Bible study
  And called his homies because he had said he noticed my face
  From a function that tooken place, they was wonderin’ if I bang
  Step on my neck and get blood on your Nike checks
  I don’t mind ‘cause one day you’ll respect
  The good kid, m.A.A.d city
  -“good kid”
   
  If Pirus and Crips all got along
  They’d probably gun me down by the end of this song
  Seem like the whole city go against me
  …
  If I told you I killed a nigga at sixteen, would you believe me?
  Perceive me to be innocent Kendrick you seen in the street
  With a basketball and some Now and Laters to eat?
  If I mentioned all of my skeletons, would you jump in the seat?
  Would you say my intelligence now is great relief?
  And it’s safe to say that our next generation maybe can sleep
  With dreams of bein’ a lawyer or doctor
  Instead of boy with a chopper that hold the cul-de-sac hostage
  Kill ’em all if they gossip
  -“m.A.A.d city”
   
  You ran outside when you heard my brother cry for help
  Held him like a newborn baby and made him feel
  Like everything was alright in a fight he tried to put up
  But the type of bullet that stuck
  Had went against his will, as blood spilled on your hands**
  -“Sing About Me, I’m Dying of Thirst”
   
  So why did I weep when Trayvon Martin was in the street
  When gang-banging make me kill a nigga blacker than me?
  Hypocrite!
  -“Blacker the Berry”
   
  The caterpillar is a prisoner to the streets that conceived it
  Its only job is to eat or consume everything around it
  In order to protect itself from this mad city
  While consuming its environment
  The caterpillar begins to notice ways to survive
  One thing it noticed is how much the world shuns him
  But praises the butterfly
  The butterfly represents the talent, the thoughtfulness
  And the beauty within the caterpillar
  But having a harsh outlook on life
  The caterpillar sees the butterfly as weak
  And figures out a way to pimp it to his own benefits
  Already surrounded by this mad city
  The caterpillar goes to work on the cocoon
  Which institutionalizes him
  He can no longer see past his own thoughts, he’s trapped
  When trapped inside these walls certain ideas take root, such as
  Going home, and bringing back new concepts to this mad city
  The result?
  Wings begin to emerge, breaking the cycle of feeling stagnant
  Finally free, the butterfly sheds light on situations
  That the caterpillar never considered
  Ending the internal struggle
  Although the butterfly and caterpillar are completely different
  They are one and the same
  -“Mortal Man”
   
  I’m talkin’ fear, fear of losin’ creativity
  I’m talkin’ fear, fear of missin’ out on you and me
  I’m talkin’ fear, fear of losin’ loyalty from pride
  ‘Cause my DNA won’t let me evolve in the light of God
  I’m talkin’ fear, fear that my humbleness is gone
  I’m talkin’ fear, fear that love ain’t livin’ here no more
  I’m talkin’ fear, fear that it’s wickedness or weakness
  Fear, whatever it is, both is distinctive
  -“FEAR.”
   
  I love my father for tellin’ me to take off the gloves
  ‘Cause everything he didn’t want was everything I was
  -“Father Time”
   
  I’m sensitive, I feel everything, I feel everybody
  One man standin’ on two words, heal everybody
  …
  Where’s my faith? Told you I was Christian, but just not today
  -“Mother I Sober”

It is worth noting that according to Jesus’s teaching, it is not possible for someone to have a truly empathetic heart if that person’s words and actions are not consistently empathetic.
 

In the same speech from St. Matthew’s account of the Gospel where Jesus taught his disciples the Lord’s Prayer, Jesus used a metaphor of trees and fruit to teach his disciples that people who have good in their heart will produce good words and actions, and anyone who has evil in their heart will produce evil words and actions. By contrast, anyone who produces evil words and actions does not truly have good in their hearts.

• Beware of false prophets, who come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly are greedy wolves. By their fruits you will know them. Can you gather grapes from thorns or figs from thistles? Even so, every good tree produces good fruit, but the corrupt tree produces evil fruit. A good tree cannot produce evil fruit, neither can a corrupt tree produce good fruit. Every tree that doesn’t grow good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. Therefore by their fruits you will know them.
  -Matthew 7:15-20

In a parallel speech in St. Luke’s account of the Gospel, Jesus gives the same teaching while specifically using the word “heart.”

• The good person out of the good treasure of his heart brings forth what is good; and the evil person out of the evil treasure brings forth what is evil; for his mouth speaks from the abundance that fills a person’s heart.
  -Luke 6:43-45

Jesus’s warning against false, corrupt prophets is particularly notable given that on “Mortal Man,” throughout DAMN., and on “Worldwide Steppers,” Kendrick has spoken about how he is a prophet to the Black community in America.
 

Hence, from the perspective of Jesus’s teaching, Kendrick’s inconsistent actions and words—particularly within “Watch the Party Die”—would seem to indicate that there is a deep inconsistency within Kendrick’s heart, as Kendrick’s heart seems to contain both empathy and a pathological desire for ruthless vigilante retribution.

Unexpectedly, Kendrick never finishes this line. He seems to be censoring himself. We are thus left to guess what Kendrick intended to say (“Dee-1” could be rhymed with “gun”).
 

That being said, the specifics of what the uncensored line might have been are not that important. Thus far, all the lines in the verses have been advocating for the use of violence to execute people whom Kendrick judges to be detrimental to society. Almost surely, the uncensored line would have continued the same trend. The more interesting question is why, among all the lines that contained profanity and violence, Kendrick picked this line to censor.
 

The censorship here could convey the idea that the uncensored line would have been so extremely violent and direct that it would make the song “X-rated.”
 

The previous time that Kendrick got so specific about the way that he would kill a killer was on the track “XXX.,” where Kendrick rapped:

• I chip a nigga lil’ bit of nothin’
  I chip a nigga lil’ bit of nothin’
  I chip a nigga lil’ bit of nothin’
  I chip a nigga, then throw the blower in his lap
  Walk myself to the court like, “Bitch, I did that”
  X-rated

Given that Dee-1 does not use profanity or advocate for people to commit acts of violence, Kendrick’s tendency toward X-rated content again positions Kendrick as someone who is in many ways the exact opposite of Dee-1.

After previously referring to his execution targets as “degenerates,” Kendrick continues to escalate his rhetoric by seemingly referring to them as “devils.” Labeling his execution targets as “devils” again seems to be an attempt to justify eliminating certain groups of people with a sword, potentially involving more decapitations.
 

“Heavy metal” is a subgenre of rock music that tends to feature violent and spiritually dark imagery in song lyrics and band names.
 

The original meaning of “heavy metals” refers to a category of chemical elements from the periodic table. Kendrick thus seems to be making a subtle reference to his song “ELEMENT.,” where he justified and glorified using violence to take revenge and fight against his enemies.

• I’m willin’ to die for this shit
  I done cried for this shit, might take a life for this shit
  Put the Bible down and go eye for an eye for this shit
  D-O-T my enemy, won’t catch a vibe for this shit, ayy
  I been stomped out in front of my mama
  My daddy commissary made it to commas
  Bitch, all my grandmas dead
  So ain’t nobody prayin’ for me, I’m on your head, ayy
  …
  I’m willin’ to die for this shit, nigga
  I’ll take your fuckin’ life for this shit, nigga
  We ain’t goin’ back to broke, family sellin’ dope
  That’s why you maney-ass rap niggas better know
   
  If I gotta slap a pussy-ass nigga, I’ma make it look sexy
  If I gotta go hard on a bitch, I’ma make it look sexy
  I pull up, hop out, air out, made it look sexy
  They won’t take me out my element
  Nah, take me out my element
  …
  I’m allergic to a bitch nigga, ayy
  An imaginary rich nigga, ayy
  Seven figures ho, that’s slimmer than my bitch figure, ayy
  Goin’ digital and physical on all y’all, ayy
  …
  Most of y’all just envy, but jealousy get you killed
  Most of y’all throw rocks and try to hide your hand
  Just say his name and I promise that you’ll see Candyman

It is notable that in St. Paul’s letter to the Church in Ephesus, St. Paul uses the imagery of armor, swords, and warfare as a metaphor to describe how Christians should fight against spiritual forces, including the “devil” (aka “satan” / “false accuser” / “diabolical one”) and the “element” forces of the world.

• Finally, be strong in the Lord, and in the strength of his might. Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the methodology of the [“devil” / “satan” / “false accuser” / “diabolical one”]. For our wrestling is not against flesh and blood, but against the element, against the powers, against the world’s rulers of the darkness of this age, and against the spiritual forces of wickedness in the heavenly places.
   
  Therefore put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand Stand therefore, having the utility belt of truth buckled around your waist, and having put on the breastplate of right relationships, and having fitted your feet with the preparation of the Good News (aka Gospel) of peace, above all, taking up the shield of faith, with which you will be able to quench all the fiery darts of the evil one. And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God; with all prayer and requests, praying at all times in the Spirit, and being watchful to this end in all perseverance and requests for all the saints.
   
  -Ephesians 6:10-18

In that passage, St. Paul makes it clear that Christians are not meant to be fighting or killing other humans (or as St. Paul says, “flesh and blood”), because other humans are never the real enemy. Instead, St. Paul instructs the members of the church to go to war against “spiritual forces of wickedness,” not the humans who are doing things that are “too wicked to apologize.”
 

In order to defend against “spiritual forces,” St. Paul tells Christians to put on “spiritual armor,” which refers to virtues such as truth, right relationships, and peace derived from Jesus’s Good News, faith, and salvation.
 

In order to fight offensively against “spiritual forces,” St. Paul tells Christians to wield “the sword of the Spirit,” which is a metaphor for the “word of God” that is conveyed through Jesus’s teachings as told in the texts of the Bible.
 

St. Paul also instructs Christians to fight the spiritual war “with all prayer and requests, praying at all times in the Spirit.”
 

Similarly, in St. Paul’s second letter to the Corinthians, St. Paul makes it clear that Christians are not meant to use physical weapons to fight against human enemies but spiritual weapons to fight against prideful patterns of thought and arguments that attempt to exalt themselves and make humans act according to those prideful patterns instead of obeying Jesus’s commandments.

• For though we walk in the [flesh / body], we do not wage battle according to the [flesh / bodily desires], for the weapons of our warfare are not of the [flesh / bodily desires], but are divinely powerful for the destruction of fortresses. We are destroying arguments and all pride that exalts itself against the knowledge of God, and we are taking every thought captive to make those thoughts obedient to Christ.
  -2 Corinthians 10:3-5

Hence, St. Paul clearly teaches Christians to “show ’em what prayer do.” Moreover, St. Paul also instructs Christians to be transformed by Jesus’s teaching so that they can develop the kinds of virtues that will allow them to fight against prideful thoughts and arguments that would justify wickedness, including any arguments that would justify brutally killing other humans.

“Hard” seems to be connected to the idea of “heavy metals” from the previous line. These “hard disputes” seem to be part of some unresolvable marital conflict that will eventually end in divorce. Based on the context of the song, it would seem that Kendrick plans to settle these “hard disputes” by killing the people with whom he has a dispute.
 

Additionally, the reference to a “ghetto Hollywood divorce” suggests that the dispute could be a “contract dispute” between Black artists and an entertainment industry company.
 

Here, Kendrick seems to be commenting on the relationship that “corporate guys” and “rappers who tell the lies” have forged to profit from distributing fabricated stories about being “street niggas,” just like Hollywood has profited from distributing fabricated stories.
 

Kendrick also seems to be alluding to the OutKast song “Hollywood Divorce,” in which OutKast, Lil Wayne, and Snoop Dogg used the image of a volatile Hollywood celebrity marriage as an extended metaphor for how entertainment industries appropriate Black culture only to later divorce themselves from the Black artists while holding on to the profits and intellectual property.

• Starts off like a small town marriage
  Lovely wife and life, baby carriage
  Now all the stars have cars, success of course
  But it ends in Hollywood divorce, Hollywood divorce
  …
  And I’m a star
  Yeah, and I don’t have to go to Hollywood
  ‘Cause Hollywood come through my neighborhood with cameras on
  I really think they’re stealing from us like a sample song
  I really wish one day we’d take it back like Hammer’s home
  The hurricane come and took my Louisiana home
  And all I got in return was a durn country song
  This whole country wrong
  Oh, but you right if you just put a little ice on
  And cut your mic on but you don’t even write songs
  But Hollywood make you spit like a python, I meant Cobra
  I’m so not sober, I’m high like a Hollywood
  Coffee or soda, you can call me a roller
  Hold up, your grill’s glistenin’
  Spent a hundred thousand on mine to feel different
  What’s the real sense of it?
  Bling bling, I know and did you know
  I’m the creator of the term, I just straightened the perm
  They let it sit too long, they just makin’ it burn
  Make a movie of our lifestyle, but they earn
  Like a dead body burned on the mantle piece
  That’s why I try not to lie on wax like this candle grease
  And I be’s the little nigga, cooler than anti-freeze
  Defrost on your window pane - Lil Wayne
  But in Hollywood it’s Litt-le Wayne, don’t make me none
  So that’s why I got a pre-nup
  I do
  …
  I do, love you but you hate me at the same time
  Lights, camera, action, it’s game time
  Do you take this here as your lovely wife?
  To love her and cherish her for all your life?
  I solemnly swear to dare share and take you there
  And me and you together, baby, we a lucky pair
  It’s been a long time, we walked a thin line
  Others say they got you, but you been mine
  As I sit back and watch all the catfights
  Domestic violence — is that right?
  But you love the Dogg, gave me the spotlight
  And now I’m growin’ up, showin’ up, blowin’ up
  I never ever thought that we would separate at all
  But you played me like a game of football
  Used to feed me, need me, dress me
  Now it’s so messy, straight cut out and left me
  …
  (Starts off like a small town marriage)
  Hollywood divorce
  All the fresh styles always start off as a good little hood thing
  (Lively wife and life, baby carriage)
  Look at blues, rock, jazz, rap
  (Now all the stars have cars, success of course)
  Not even talkin’ about music
  Everything else, too
  (But it ends in Hollywood divorce)
  By the time it reach Hollywood, it’s over
  (Hollywood divorce)
  But it’s cool
  We just keep it goin’ and make new shit
  Take our game, take our name
  Give us a little fame
  And then they kick us to the curb, that’s a cold thang

With the line, “the culture bred with carnivores,” Kendrick seems to be alluding to the famously influential lines from Jay-Z’s 2001 song “Izzo,” in which Jay-Z describes corporate leaders in the music industry as “vultures” who scavenge off Black culture.

• I do this for my culture, to let ’em know
  What a nigga look like when a nigga in a roadster
  Show ’em how to move in a room full of vultures
  Industry shady, it need to be taken over
  Label owners hate me, I’m raisin’ the status quo up
  I’m overcharging niggas for what they did to the Cold Crush
  Pay us like you owe us for all the years that you hoed us
  We can talk, but money talks, so talk more bucks

More recently, in Migos’s 2017 track “T-Shirt” from their album Culture, Migos member Quavo referenced those lines from “Izzo” while discussing how “vultures” will “bite,” which is slang for stealing.

• Do it for the culture (Culture)
  They gon’ bite like vultures (Vultures)

The carnivores that Kendrick mentions here thus seem to be culture vultures who will eat artists for a snack. Kendrick specifically mentions that the carnivores will “eat your face,” which conveys the idea that culture vultures seek to erase an artist’s identity along with any association or credit that the artist would have for their work.
 

In the phrase “bred with carnivores,” the word “bred” primarily refers to the reproduction of vultures from one generation to the next. However, “bred” is also a double entendre for the food item “bread,” which connects to the idea of vultures eating. This line then turns into a triple entendre when we realize that “bread” is also slang for “money,” indicating that the “corporate guys” from the entertainment industry are eating up all the money that rightfully belongs to the artist.
 

By saying “Say hello to your future fate,” Kendrick seems to be asserting that getting eaten and erased by culture vultures is guaranteed to be the fate of any artist who remains trapped in the grip of the entertainment industry for any substantial amount of time.

Kendrick seems to be warning other hip-hop artists about the hard disputes and metaphorical divorce that will happen to them in the future if they sign a contract with an exploitative entertainment company.
 

The word “forged” refers to a fake signature that is used to establish a fraudulent legal agreement but is also a double entendre referring to the process of shaping metal into a weapon, tool, or object. This connects back to the previous line about “heavy metals on my sword” that was used to “get these devils out the way.”
 

The idea that the signatures are being “forged” indicates that the “corporate guys” in the entertainment industry are actually committing acts of fraud to illegally profit from “rappers that report the lies” and use the leverage of paid lawyers and the legal system against Black artists.
 

The imagery of signatures from the entertainment industry also brings to mind the To Pimp a Butterfly track “For Sale? (Interlude),” in which Lucifer (aka the “devil” / “satan” / “false accuser” / “diabolical one”) comes to Kendrick in the form of a music industry executive named Lucy. Lucy tries to get Kendrick to sign a contract to sell his soul to her in exchange for wealth, possessions, and an agreement that Kendrick will stop praying and abandon his loving relationship with God the Father.

• My name is Lucy, Kendrick, you introduced me, Kendrick
  Usually I don’t do this but I see you and me, Kendrick
  Lucy give you no worries, Lucy got million stories
  About these rappers that I came after when they was boring
  Lucy gon’ fill your pockets
  Lucy gon’ move your mama out of Compton
  Inside the gi-gantic mansion like I promised
  Lucy just want your trust and loyalty, avoiding me?
  It’s not so easy, I’m at these functions accordingly
  Kendrick, Lucy don’t slack a minute, Lucy work harder
  Lucy gon’ call you even when Lucy know you love your Father
  I’m Lucy, I loosely heard prayers on your first album, truly
  Lucy don’t mind, ‘cause at the end of the day you’ll pursue me
  Lucy go get it, Lucy not timid, Lucy up front
  Lucy got paperwork on top of paperwork
  I want you to know that Lucy got you
  All your life I watched you
  And now you all grown up to sign this contract,
  if that’s possible

After focusing on the justification for committing acts of physical violence against his enemies, it is notable that this is the first time on either verse where Kendrick has really focused on how he is being tested and tried spiritually.
 

Kendrick seems to be expressing the idea that he and other true artists face increasingly difficult struggles and trials as they become increasingly famous and visible to the public.
 

This line expresses a similar idea and ethos to The Notorious B.I.G., Ma$e, and Diddy’s famous song “Mo’ Money, Mo’ Problems.”

• I don’t know what they want from me
  It’s like the more money we come across
  The more problems we see

The challenge of being tried spiritually seems to be one of the main reasons that Kendrick is “not enthused to drop” a new album since dropping a new album will only increase his visibility and his trials.
 

The idea of increased spiritual trials coming after increased visibility is also illustrated in Gospel accounts, which describe how Jesus was led into the desert wilderness to be tested and tried by the [“devil” / “satan” / “false accuser” / “diabolical one”] immediately after God the Father opened the skies, spoke audibly to declare that Jesus was his “beloved son,” and sent the Holy Spirit in the visible form of a dove to show that Jesus is the anointed king (aka the Christ) over God’s people.

• After Jesus was baptized, he came up immediately from the water; and behold, the skies were opened, and he saw the Spirit of God descending as a dove and settling on Him, and behold, a voice from the skies said, “This is My beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased.” Then Jesus was led up by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tested by the devil. When he had fasted forty days and forty nights, he was hungry afterward. The tester came and said to him, “If you are the Son of God, command that these stones become bread.”
  -Matthew 3:16-4:2

The New Testament story of Jesus being spiritually tried and tested in the desert wilderness for forty days after passing through the waters of baptism intentionally mirrors the Old Testament story of the Israelites, who were tried and tested in the desert wilderness for forty years after passing through the waters of the Red Sea during their escape from slavery.
 

In his farewell speech to the Israelites in Deuteronomy, Moses specifically reminds the Israelites that God was the one who defeated Pharaoh, freed the Israelites from slavery, and led them into the wilderness in order to test them so that they would remain humble and not become proud even when they became successful.
 

• You shall remember all the way which the LORD your God has led you in the wilderness these forty years, in order to humble you, putting you to the test, to know what was in your heart, whether you would keep His commandments or not. And He humbled you and let you go hungry, and fed you with the manna which you did not know, nor did your fathers know, in order to make you understand that man shall not live on bread alone, but man shall live on everything that comes out of the mouth of the Lord. Your clothing did not wear out on you, nor did your foot swell these forty years. So you are to know in your heart that the Lord your God was disciplining you just as a man disciplines his son. Therefore, you shall keep the commandments of the Lord your God, to walk in His ways and to fear Him. For the LORD your God is bringing you into a good land, a land of streams of water, of fountains and springs, flowing out in valleys and hills; a land of wheat and barley, of vines, fig trees, and pomegranates, a land of olive oil and honey; a land where you will eat food without shortage, in which you will not lack anything; a land whose stones are iron, and out of whose hills you can dig copper. When you have eaten and are satisfied, you shall bless the Lord your God for the good land which He has given you.
   
  Be careful that you do not forget the Lord your God by failing to keep His commandments, His ordinances, and His statutes which I am commanding you today; otherwise, when you eat and are satisfied, and you build good houses and live in them, and when your herds and your flocks increase, and your silver and gold increase, and everything that you have increases, then your heart will become proud and you will forget the LORD your God who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery; He who led you through the great and terrible wilderness, with its fiery serpents and scorpions, and its thirsty ground where there was no water; He who brought water for you out of the rock of flint. In the wilderness it was He who fed you manna which your fathers did not know, in order to humble you and in order to put you to the test, to do good for you in the end. Otherwise, you may say in your heart, ‘My power and the strength of my hand made me this wealth.’ But you are to remember the LORD your God, for it is He who is giving you power to make wealth, in order to confirm His covenant which He swore to your fathers, as it is this day.
   
  -Deuteronomy 8:2-18

In the case of both Jesus and the Israelites, the visibility of being uplifted by God led directly to spiritual trials that were meant to prepare them to have the right attitude and mindset about any future exaltation.

For the last few lines, Kendrick has shown himself to be very cynical about the entertainment industry, which gobbles up artists like vultures. Artists who recognize the dangers of the entertainment industry are understandably afraid and even “petrified.”
 

While the word “petrified” can be used as a synonym for “afraid,” the most concrete meaning of “petrified” refers to any kind of organic plant or animal material that is turned into stone. Organic material is petrified when water brings small minerals into the formerly living plant or animal and slowly replaces all of the organic flesh with rock-hard material.
 

Becoming “petrified” actually serves as a great metaphor for hip-hop as a living, flexible, organic culture being infiltrated by slick corporate guys and entertainment companies who kill hip-hop artists (or more specifically, kill hip-hop artists’ consciousness, as Kendrick mentioned in “Worldwide Steppers”) then seek to replace the flexible, organic culture of hip-hop with a rock-hard, inflexible, inorganic focus on making a profit. This process eventually turns Black artists into hard-hearted individuals who are deadened to the world and can no longer grow.
 

It is notable that within the Old Testament, the Prophet Ezekiel explained that God had allowed the Israelites to be defeated, dispersed, and enslaved because they had hearts of stone that did not desire God or the justice that comes from God. However, Ezekiel also prophesied about a day in the future when God would free them from slavery, bring them back to their own land, and transform their old hearts of stone into new hearts of flesh that would truly desire God and be able to act with justice.
 

• For I will take you from among the nations and gather you out of all the countries, and will bring you into your own land. I will sprinkle clean water on you, and you will be clean. I will cleanse you from all your filthiness, and from all your idols. I will also give you a new heart, and I will put a new spirit within you. I will take away the heart of stone out of your bodies, and I will give you a heart of flesh. I will put my Spirit within you, and cause you to walk in my prescriptions. You will obey my justice and do just acts. You will reside in the land that I gave to your fathers. You will be my people, and I will be your God.
  -Ezekiel 36:24-28

From a biblical perspective, becoming “petrified” is thus equivalent to being enslaved or imprisoned by an oppressor due to an idolatrous desire for material possessions.

As mentioned in the analysis of the line “Burn the whole village, we start over, it’s really that time”, Jezebel was a wicked woman who became queen of the Northern Kingdom of Israel after she married a wicked king named Ahab. After becoming queen, Jezebel replaced the worship of Yahweh, the God of Israel, with the worship of the fertility god named Ba’al. Queen Jezebel then either killed or imprisoned most of the true prophets of God, while a hundred of God’s prophets escaped to hide in caves.
 

• The prophet Elijah was the only prophet who was protected and empowered to openly confront Queen Jezebel and King Ahab. Elijah challenged the prophets of the fertility god Ba’al to a competition in which the prophets of Yahweh, the God of Israel, and Ba’al, the fertility god, would each ask the deity whom they worshiped to send down fire from the skies to burn up a sacrifice on an altar.
   
• After Yahweh, the God of Israel, proved to be the only deity capable of sending down fire from the skies, Elijah compelled the Israelites to round up the prophets of Ba’al and kill them.
   
• The death of Ba’al’s prophets enraged Queen Jezebel. She then swore that she would kill Elijah, which caused Elijah to run for his life.

Kendrick has repeatedly depicted himself as a prophet on “Mortal Man,” throughout DAMN., and at several moments on other tracks. Here in “Watch the Party Die,” Kendrick seems to see himself as the modern equivalent of the prophet Elijah, who is at risk of having his artistic output locked up by the wicked leaders of the entertainment industry.

The term “drugged up” is used to describe a person who is noticeably under the influence of drugs, whether prescription drugs or recreational drugs.
 

In many cases, someone who is “drugged up” may not be fully aware of their surroundings and thus is in a vulnerable state in which someone could take advantage of them.
 

The idea of being drugged up connects back to the earlier reference to the drug MDMA in the line “Let’s kill the followers that follow up on poppin’ mollies.”
 

In the current line, Kendrick seems to imply that artists who have succumbed to their desires for pleasure and the exploitation of the entertainment industry will be drugged up with “lies.”
 

The idea of artists being under the influence of lies also connects back to earlier lines where Kendrick ordered the execution of those who told lies or failed to provide truth to their young audience.

• If you parade in gluttony without givin’ truth to the youth
  The graveyard is company, just tell us what casket to choose
  …
  I think it’s time to watch the party die
  Street niggas and the corporate guys
  the rappers that report the lies

In the current line, Kendrick seems to suggest that the minds of “rappers that report the lies” eventually become altered and distorted as they become intoxicated by the lies that they have consumed and are now regurgitating to the masses.
 

Being “drugged up” may also lead a person to lose consciousness.
 

Fittingly, since the 1990s the word “conscious” has been used to describe hip-hop artists such as Common, Mos Def, Talib Kweli, and Lupe Fiasco, who do not glorify violence, drugs, sexual misbehavior, gluttony, jewelry, poor financial decisions, or any other form of ignorance that might be common in commercialized, mainstream hip-hop. Instead, these artists focus on positive messages that uplift the Black community. “Conscious” hip-hop artists are thus the exact opposite of the “rappers that report the lies” and become “drugged up full of lies.”
 

Throughout Mr. Morale & the Big Steppers, Kendrick also discussed the concept of “consciousness” as being free from ego, aware, present in “now,” and connected to the universal or “collective consciousness” as described in the New Age teachings of Eckhart Tolle.

• The media’s the new religion, you killed the consciousness -“Worldwide Steppers”
   
  (You really wanna know?) Do you want peace?
  (How I get so low?) Then watch us in the street
  (Only one way to go) One protest for you
  (Higher) Three-sixty-five for me (You really wanna know?)
  Vladimir making nightmares (How I get so low?)
  But that’s how we all think (Only one way to go)
  The collective conscious (Higher)
  Calamities on repeat, huh
  -“Savior”
   
  *Face your fears, always knew that I would make it here
  Where the energy is magnified and persevered
  *Consciousness is synchronized and crystal-clear
  Euphoria is glorified and made His
  -“The Heart Part 5”

In some cases, the term “drugged up” or just “drugged” may also be used to describe women (or sometimes men) who have unknowingly consumed a drug that was given to them by a sexual predator who intends to sexually assault or abuse the “drugged” person once they lose awareness or consciousness.

The idea of sexual assault could imply that rappers and artists are being “drugged up full of lies” because they are being “fucked over” by the predatory leaders of the entertainment industry. Kendrick previously asserted that artists are getting duped into unfaithful relationships, “fucked over,” and killed by the entertainment industry on the track “N95” from Mr. Morale & the Big Steppers.

• The industry wants
  Niggas and bitches to sleep in a box
  While they makin’ a mockery followin’ us
  This ain’t Monopoly
  Watchin’ for love
  This ain’t monogamy
  Y’all gettin’ fucked

The idea of sexual assault could also connect back to Kendrick’s allegations of Drake and his crew being sexual predators who traffic girls to sex parties at Drake’s mansion.

As can be seen in the examples presented in the analysis of “The more visible you get, the more your spiritual is tried”, spiritual trials often come along with physical tests. For instance, both Jesus and the Israelites endured the test of extreme physical hunger as they were being spiritually tried and tested in the desert wilderness.
 

Kendrick has explored the concept of God allowing a person’s faith to be tested on the track “Faith” from The Kendrick Lamar EP.

• This for my people that stressing whenever times is hard
  Your mind’s slipping, wondering, “Is there really a God?”
  Knowing you shouldn’t think that way and trying to freeze your brain
  But whenever there’s pain, that feeling forever remains
  We can’t believe what we can’t see and reality seems stronger than prayer
  ‘Cause you tried to change your life, and now you live in a wheelchair
  And your son was born with cancer and he live in urgent care
  At the tender age of twelve, and you feel that no one cares
  Searching for answers, that’s human nature, you ain’t in the wrong
  Just know when you feeling that way His Spirit’s in the room
  I watched people I know pray and catch the Holy Ghost
  And wonder why I ain’t ever caught that feeling before
  Maybe they know Him better, or I don’t know no better
  But what I do know, is that He’s real and He lives forever
  So the next time you feel like your world’s about to end
  I hope you studied because He’s testing your faith again

Here Kendrick talks about being pitiful and in the “Sunken Place,” which is a reference to the movie Get Out.
   

• In Get Out, a Black male protagonist named Chris goes to visit his white girlfriend’s wealthy family at a secluded estate. Although the family is very friendly—actually too friendly—he begins to notice strange behavior, particularly from the Black woman who serves as a housekeeper and the Black man who serves as a groundskeeper.
   
• One evening, the Black protagonist has a private conversation with his white girlfriend’s mother. The mother starts asking very probing questions about his personal trauma while using the sound of a spoon stirring around a teacup to hypnotize the Black protagonist.
   
• As he talks about his traumatic life experiences, the Black protagonist feels pitiful and soon becomes paralyzed and cannot move even though he is still awake. However, then the mother says, “Now sink into the floor. Sink!”
   
• At that point, the Black protagonist’s consciousness becomes totally disconnected or dissociated from his body and sent down to what the mother calls “the Sunken Place.” In the “Sunken Place,” he can faintly see what’s going on around him but is unable to move his body or do anything about it.
   
• Later on, the White mother keeps the Black protagonist in the hypnotized state long enough to strap him to a restraining chair in the basement. The Black protagonist then learns that the family uses the daughter to attract Black people and bring them to her family’s estate, where they are hypnotized, with their consciousness sent to the Sunken Place. The family then takes over the Black person’s body and transfers the consciousness of an older, “degenerate” White person into the Black person’s stolen body.
   
• The protagonist learns that the Black woman who is serving as the housekeeper and the Black man who is serving as the groundskeeper are Black people whose bodies were previously stolen so that their consciousness could be replaced by the consciousness of the girlfriend’s grandmother and grandfather, respectively.
   
• The Black protagonist refuses to be a victim of this plot. He manages to free himself from the restraining chair before his body is stolen and kills several members of the family before escaping from the estate with the help of his Black friend.

Kendrick seems to be referencing the plot of Get Out as a metaphor for what the White-owned entertainment industry is doing to Black artists and Black culture.
 

The White-owned entertainment industry is sending out corporate White folks to attract Black artists to join the White entertainment industry.
 

Once the Black artist is in the building, the White industry folks hypnotize and paralyze Black artists by getting them to keep talking about their traumatic life experiences until they feel pitiful.
 

• This is similar to the experiences that Kendrick alluded to on “Mother I Sober” when he rapped:

  • “Traded in my tears for a Range Rover.”

The White industry folk then force the Black artist into a state of unconsciousness (aka the “Sunken Place”) where they become disconnected and dissociated from what’s going on around them.
 

After forcing the Black artist into a state of unconsciousness, the White corporate industry folk can then steal the Black artist’s body of work (e.g., the master recordings of a music artist) and give it to a degenerate White person to own as their own body of work while the Black artist is still trapped in the “Sunken Place.”
 

• It is notable that the word “corporate” comes from the Latin word “corporātiō,” which literally means “the assumption or taking on of a body.”

Kendrick, like the protagonist of Get Out, is one of the few Black artists who has been able to regain consciousness, free himself from the restraints of his original contract, and now seems poised to kill the White industry folk before they try to send his consciousness back to the “Sunken Place.”

It is notable that Kendrick finds himself in the “Sunken Place” whenever he “questions his pride.” This might convey the idea that the entertainment industry wants Kendrick to remain under the influence of his own pride so that he will make bad decisions and be easier to control.
 

Kendrick has discussed his internal struggle between pride and humility throughout much of his work.

• The days I tried to cover up and conceal
  My pride, it only made it harder for me to deal
  When living in a world that come with plan B
  -“Real”
   
  Love’s gonna get you killed
  But pride’s gonna be the death of you and you and me
  …
  Sick venom in men and women overcome with pride
  A perfect world is never perfect, only filled with lies
  Promises are broken and more resentment come alive
  Race barriers make inferior of you and I
  See, in a perfect world, I’ll choose faith over riches
  I’ll choose work over bitches, I’ll make schools out of prison
  I’ll take all the religions and put ’em all in one service
  Just to tell ’em we ain’t shit, but He’s been perfect, world
  -“PRIDE.”
   
  Bitch, be humble (Hold up, bitch)
  Sit down (Hold up, lil’— hold up, lil’ bitch)
  Be humble (Hold up, bitch)
  Sit down (Hold up, sit down, lil’— sit down, lil’ bitch)
  Be humble (Hold up, hold up, hold up, hold up, lil’ bitch)
  Bitch, sit down (Hold up, lil’ bitch)
  Be humble (Hold up, bitch)
  -“HUMBLE.”
   
  I’m chargin’ baskets and falling backwards, tryna keep balance
  Oh, this the part where mental stability meets talent
  Oh, this the part, he breaks my humility just for practice
  Tactics we learned together, sore losers forever, daddy issues
  -“Father Time”
   
  Wipe my ego, dodge my pride
  (And I’m tripping and falling)
  Look myself in the mirror
  Amityville, ain’t seen nothin’ scarier
  -“Count Me Out”

Kendrick’s spiritual trials and physical tests seem to push him to the point where he is “seeing ghosts.”
 

On “Mother I Sober,” the pivotal track from Mr. Morale & the Big Steppers, Kendrick mentioned seeing the ghost of his maternal grandmother as he struggled to break a generational curse through therapy.

• My mother’s mother followed me for years in her afterlife
  Starin’ at me on back of some buses, I wake up at night
  Loved her dearly, traded in my tears for a Range Rover

A “relapse” is a setback or deterioration in someone’s health after previous improvement. The term is most often used to describe the experience in which someone who had previously broken free from an addiction to a drug or stimulating activity returns to their addiction.
 

Within the context of “Watch the Party Die,” a “relapsin’ one thought at a time” might imply that the spiritual and physical struggles with the entertainment industry are causing Kendrick to fall back into destructive ways of thought after previously being “drugged up full of lies.”
 

It is notable that throughout Mr. Morale & the Big Steppers, Kendrick reveals his struggle with sex addiction that was exacerbated by being a famous touring artist in the entertainment industry.

• I met her on the third night of Chicago
  North America tour, my eyes closed
  Fee-fi-fo-fum, she was a model
  Dedicated to the songs I wrote and the Bible
  Eyes light green, penetratin’ the moonlight
  Hair done in a bun, energy in the room like
  Big Bang for theory, God, hopin’ you hear me
  Phone off the ringer, tell the world I’m busy
  Fair enough, green eyes said her mother didn’t care enough
  Sympathize when her daddy in the chain gang
  Her first brother got killed, he was 21
  I was nine when they put Lamont in the grave
  Heartbroken when Estelle didn’t say goodbye
  Chad left his body after we FaceTimed
  Green eyes said you’d be okay, first tour, sex the pain away
  I grieve different
  -“United in Grief”
   
  Ask Whitney about my lust addiction
  Text messagin’ bitches got my thumbs hurt
  …
  Sciatica nerve pinch, I don’t know how to feel
  I don’t know how to feel
  Like the first time I fucked a white bitch
  The first time I fucked a white bitch
  I was sixteen at the Palisades
  Fumblin’ my grades, I traveled with the team
  The apache life, Centennial was like
  When Ms. Baker screamed at Doughboy
  Mixed that with Purple Rain
  They interchanged the seams
  Happy just to be out the hood
  With all the wealthy kids
  Credit cards and family plans
  She drove her daddy’s Benz
  I found out that he was a sheriff
  That was a win-win
  Because he had locked up Uncle Perry
  She paid her daddy’s sins
  Next time I fucked a white bitch
  Was out in Copenhagen
  good kid, m.A.A.d city tour
  I flourished on them stages
  Whitney asked did I have a problem
  I said, “I might be racist”
  Ancestors watchin’ me fuck was like retaliation
  -“Worldwide Steppers”
   
  I was never high, I was never drunk, never out my mind
  I need control, they handed me some smoke, but still I declined
  I did it sober sittin’ with myself, I went through all emotions
  No dependents, except for one, let me bring you closer
  Intoxicated, there’s a lustful nature that I failed to mention
  Insecurities that I project, sleepin’ with other women
  Whitney’s hurt, the purest soul I know, I found her in the kitchen
  Askin’ God, “Where did I lose myself? And can it be forgiven?”
  Broke me down, she looked me in my eyes, “Is there an addiction?”
  I said “No,” but this time I lied, I knew that I can’t fix it
  Pure soul, even in her pain, know she cared for me
  Gave me a number, said she recommended some therapy
  … I made it home, seven years of tour, chasin’ manhood
  But Whitney’s gone, by time you hear this song, she did all she could
  All those women gave me superpowers, what I thought I lacked
  I pray our children don’t inherit me and feelings I attract
  -“Mother I Sober”

Kendrick seems to realize that his susceptibility to addiction is fueled by his own pattern of thoughts. This echoes St. Paul’s second letter to the Corinthians, in which he told Christians that they are not fighting a physical battle against other humans but a spiritual battle against arrogant thoughts and arguments that lead to prideful exaltation and prevent humans from knowing God in a loving relationship.

• For though we walk in the [flesh / body], we do not wage battle according to the [flesh / bodily desires], for the weapons of our warfare are not of the [flesh / bodily desires], but are divinely powerful for the destruction of fortresses. We are destroying arguments and all arrogance that exalts itself against the knowledge of God, and we are taking every thought captive to make those thoughts obedient to Christ.
  -2 Corinthians 10:3-5

The phrase “spare no feelings” describes someone who is acting without any concern for how his or her actions could hurt someone else’s feelings.
 

Kendrick’s relapse seems to have put him into a mental state where he only cares about his own feelings and no longer cares about the feelings of others. Such a state of mind is the exact opposite of empathy and thus undermines the earlier line when he said, “I want to be empathetic, my heart like Dee-1.”
 

Kendrick previously expressed his paranoid, troubled, and unempathetic state of mind when he was overwhelmed by his feelings on the track “FEEL.” from DAMN.

• I feel like a chip on my shoulders
  I feel like I’m losin’ my focus
  I feel like I’m losin’ my patience
  I feel like my thoughts in the basement
  Feel like, I feel like you’re miseducated
  Feel like I don’t wanna be bothered
  I feel like you may be the problem
  I feel like it ain’t no tomorrow, fuck the world
  The world is endin’, I’m done pretendin’
  And fuck you if you get offended
  I feel like friends been overrated
  I feel like the family been fakin’
  I feel like the feelings are changin’
  Feel like my thought of compromise is jaded
  Feel like you wanna scrutinize how I made it
  Feel like I ain’t feelin’ you all
  Feel like removin’ myself, no feelings involved
  I feel for you, I’ve been in the field for you
  It’s real for you, right? Shit, I feel like—
  Ain’t nobody prayin’ for me
  …
  I feel niggas been out of pocket
  I feel niggas tappin’ they pockets
  I feel like debatin’ on who the greatest can stop it
  I am legend, I feel like all of y’all is peasants
  I feel like all of y’all is desperate
  I feel like all it take is a second to feel like
  Mike Jordan whenever holdin’ a real mic
  I ain’t feelin’ your presence
  Feel like I’ma learn you a lesson
  Feel like only me and the music though
  I feel like your feelin’ ain’t mutual
  I feel like the enemy you should know
  Feel like the feelin’ of no hope
  The feelin’ of bad dope
  …
  I feel like it’s just me
  Look, I feel like I can’t breathe
  Look, I feel like I can’t sleep
  Look, I feel heartless, often off this
  Feelin’ of fallin’, of fallin’ apart with
  Darkest hours, lost it
  ..
  I feel like this gotta be the feelin’ where ‘Pac was
  The feelin’ of an apocalypse happenin’
  But nothin’ is awkward, the feelin’ won’t prosper
  The feelin’ is toxic, I feel like I’m boxin’ demons
  Monsters, false prophets schemin’
  Sponsors, industry promises
  Niggas, bitches, honkies, crackers, Compton
  Church, religion, token blacks in bondage
  Lawsuit visits, subpoena served in concert
  Fuck your feelings, I mean this for imposters
  I can feel it, the phoenix sure to watch us
  I can feel it, the dream is more than process
  I can put a regime that forms a Loch Ness
  I can feel it, the scream that haunts all logic
  I feel like sayin’ somethin’, I feel like takin’ somethin’
  I feel like skatin’ off, I feel like waitin’ for ’em
  Maybe it’s too late for ’em
  I feel like the whole world want me to pray for ’em
  But who the fuck prayin’ for me?

To be “in one’s feelings” refers to a mental state in which someone is so emotionally dysregulated, overwhelmed, or affected that they can no longer think rationally, strategically, objectively, or empathetically.
 

It is notable that “In My Feelings” is also the title of Drake’s record-breaking number one single from his 2018 album, Scorpion. On the track, Drake sings and raps about many of his typical themes, including his feelings and sexual desire for numerous women.

• Trap, TrapMoneyBenny
  This shit got me in my feelings
  Gotta be real with it, yeah
   
  Kiki, do you love me? Are you riding?
  Say you’ll never ever leave from beside me
  ‘Cause I want ya, and I need ya
  And I’m down for you always
  KB, do you love me? Are you riding?
  Say you’ll never ever leave from beside me
  ‘Cause I want ya, and I need ya
  And I’m down for you always

“In My Feelings” also exemplifies how Drake has used social media, influencers, and corporate marketing tactics to significantly increase his commercial success. On the same day that Scorpion was released, a social media comedian named Shiggy posted a video of himself dancing to the chorus. This video soon went viral and was then turned into the social media #InMyFeelingsChallenge and #KikiChallenge, which later added riskier elements like dancing outside of moving cars. These viral trends helped to elevate the track to number one on the Billboard Hot 100 chart, giving Drake the record for most number-one hits by a rapper in the history of the Billboard Hot 100 chart.

Within the context of Kendrick’s lyrics, “slide” is usually slang for the act of killing someone.

• I said, tell me who you loyal to
  Is it anybody that you would lie for?
  Anybody you would slide for?
  Anybody you would die for?
  -“LOYALTY.”
   
  Eight billion people on Earth, silent murderers
  …
  I caught a couple of bodies myself, slid my community
  My last Christmas toy drive in Compton handed out eulogies
  Not because the rags in the park had red gradient
  But because the high blood pressure flooded the caterin’
  -“Worldwide Steppers”

By saying “I’m in my feelings when I slide,” Kendrick seems to be suggesting that whenever he tries to kill (aka slide) people, he is only doing so because he is emotionally dysregulated and unable to think rationally, strategically, objectively, or empathetically.
 

This line thus gives a whole new perspective and context to “Watch the Party Die.” The whole time that he has been advocating to kill the killers and commit acts of unspeakable violence may really just be evidence that Kendrick is emotionally dysregulated and unable to consider the ramifications or consequences of his words and actions. He seems to have been in a totally “unconscious” state throughout this track.
 

By the same logic, one could also conclude that throughout the battle tracks where Kendrick seemingly tried to kill Drake’s career, Kendrick was “in his feelings” and unable to be empathetic towards Drake.
 

A few months after the release of “Watch the Party Die,” when Kendrick released the track “reincarnated” as the centerpiece of the album GNX, Kendrick seemed to confirm that his actions during the battle with Drake were largely a result of Kendrick being “in his feelings.” On “reincarnated,” Kendrick rapped from the perspective of God the Father, who told Kendrick that he was a reincarnated version of Lucifer (aka the “devil” / “satan” / “false accuser” / “diabolical one”) who “loved war” and was kicked out of heaven because his feelings of anxiety led him to do evil. In response, Kendrick acknowledged that all he ever really wanted was to feel “love and approval.”

• "Son you do well but your heart is closed
  I can tell residue that linger from your past creates itself"
  Father I’m not perfect I got urges, but I hold them down
  “But your pride has to die, "
  Okay father show me how
  “Tell me every deed that you done and what you do it for”
  I kept one hundred institutions paid, “Okay, tell me more”
  I put one hundred hoods on one stage, “Okay, tell me more”
  I’m tryna push peace in LA, “But you love war”
  No, I don’t, “Oh, yes, you do, " okay then tell me the truth
  “Every individual is only a version of you
  How can they forgive when there’s no forgiveness in your heart?”
  I could tell You where I’m going, “I could tell you who you are
  You fell out of heaven ‘cause you was anxious
  Didn’t like authority, only searched to be heinous
  Isaiah fourteen was the only thing that was prevalent
  My greatest music director was you
  It was colors, it was pinks, it was reds, it was blues
  It was harmony and motion
  I sent you down to earth ‘cause you was broken
  Rehabilitation not psychosis
  But now we here now, centuries you manipulated man with music
  Embodied you as superstars to see how you moving
  You came a long way from garnishing evil-ish views”
  And all I ever wanted from You was love and approval
  I learned a lot, no more putting these people in fear
  The more that word is diminished, the more it’s not real
  The more light that I can capture, the more I can feel
  I’m using words for inspiration as an ideal
  “So can you promise that you won’t take your gifts for granted?”
  I promise that I’ll use my gifts to bring understanding
  “For every man, woman and child, how much can you vow?”
  I vow my life just to live one in harmony now
  “You crushed a lot of people keeping their thoughts in captivity”
  And I’m ashamed that I ever created that enemy

In addition to using the word “slide” to refer to killing, on the battle track “6:16 in LA,” Kendrick used the word “slide” in reference to “Toosie Slide,” Drake’s number one hit and accompanying viral dance trend from 2020.

• Fake bully, I hate bullies, you must be a terrible person
  Everyone inside your team is whispering that you deserve it
  Can’t Toosie Slide up outta this one, it’s just gon’ resurface
  Every dog gotta have its day, now live in your purpose

It is notable that Drake used influencers and viral social media trends to significantly increase the commercial success of “Toosie Slide” in a more enhanced version of his strategy for “In My Feelings” four years earlier.
 

“Toosie Slide” was released as a single in April 2020, during the height of the COVID-19 lockdowns, and named after a then 23-year-old named Toosie.
 

Toosie is a Black social media dancer and influencer from Atlanta who had a big break into the music industry when he linked up with fellow Atlanta-native rapper Future, eventually joining Future on the Summer Sixteen Tour with Future, a tour that also featured Drake.
 

When Drake needed another social media dance trend to popularize a new song, he direct messaged Toosie on social media and asked Toosie to make up a dance based on the hook of an unfinished song. That request turned into a modern “Cha Cha Slide”-style dance and viral social media video featuring the song’s hook.
 

• The fact that Drake used his connection with Atlanta-native rapper Future and Future’s Atlanta-native dancer Toosie also highlights the criticism that Kendrick made on “Not Like Us.” Throughout the third verse of “Not Like Us,” Kendrick accused Drake of colonizing Black culture, particularly by using Atlanta-based artists to make commercialized hits that could make Drake rich.

  • Once upon a time, all of us was in chains
    Homie still doubled down callin’ us some slaves
    Atlanta was the Mecca, buildin’ railroads and trains
    Bear with me for a second, let me put y’all on game
    The settlers was usin’ townfolk to make ’em richer
    Fast-forward, 2024, you got the same agenda
    You run to Atlanta when you need a check balance
    Let me break it down for you, this the real nigga challenge
    You called Future when you didn’t see the club (Ayy, what?)
    Lil Baby helped you get your lingo up (What?)
    21 gave you false street cred
    Thug made you feel like you a slime in your head (Ayy, what?)
    Quavo said you can be from Northside (What?)
    2 Chainz say you good, but he lied
    You run to Atlanta when you need a few dollars
    No, you not a colleague, you a fuckin’ colonizer

After Toosie’s video had already gone viral, Drake released the official music video for the full song, now titled “Toosie Slide.” The video showed Drake wearing an all-black shirt, pants, shoes, jacket, gloves, and a black ski mask, doing Toosie’s dance while giving a tour of his mansion during the COVID lockdown.
 

On the surface, “Toosie Slide” seems like just a dance song with melodies.

• Baby, don’t you wanna dance with me? No?
  I could dance like Michael Jackson
  I could give you satisfaction
  And you know we out here every day with it
  I’ma show you how to get it
  …
  It go right foot up, left foot, slide
  Left foot up, right foot, slide
  Basically, I’m sayin’, either way, we ‘bout to slide, ayy
  Can’t let this one slide, ayy (Who’s bad?)

However, if one pays close attention to the lyrics, one can hear that Drake is actually trying to “act tough” and portray himself as a “street nigga” as he uses the word “slide” to simultaneously refer to the dance and the act of vengefully killing his enemies.

• Got so many opps, I be mistakin’ opps for other opps
  Got so many people that I love out of troubled spots
  Other than the family I got, it’s either you or me
  That’s just how I think, it’s either you or me
  This life got too deep for you, baby
  Two or three of us about to creep where they stayin’
  …
  Black leather glove, no sequins
  Buckles on the jacket, it’s Alyx shit
  Nike crossbody, got a piece in it
  Got a dance, but it’s really on some street shit
  I’ma show you how to get it*

It is notable that on the battle track “euphoria,” Kendrick says that he would like Drake to keep making songs with catchy melodies that make everyone dance instead of trying to “act tough.” Kendrick even implied that if Drake focused on making dance songs, Kendrick would have no reason to threaten Drake with diss songs.

• I like Drake with the melodies, I don’t like Drake when he act tough
  …
  Still love when you see success, everything with me is blessed
  Keep makin’ me dance, wavin’ my hand, and it won’t be no threat

At the end of the battle track “Not Like Us,” Kendrick also seems to mock Drake’s attempt to make viral dance hits like “Toosie Slide” by chanting the following dance instructions:

• Let me hear you say, “OV-ho” (OV-ho)
  Say, “OV-ho” (OV-ho)
  Then step this way, step that way
  Then step this way, step that way

Also, in the video for “Not Like Us,” there is a scene where Kendrick is standing on a dark street. Just behind Kendrick, a menacing man approaches wearing an all-black shirt, pants, shoes, jacket, gloves, and a black ski mask—just like Drake did in the “Toosie Slide” video. However, before the man has a chance to put a hand on Kendrick, he is suddenly thrown backward, almost as if there were some kind of supernatural force protecting Kendrick.
 

All of these references to “Toosie Slide,” along with the slang meaning of “slide,” seem to suggest that Drake’s actions over several years are the exact things that Kendrick has judged to be punishable by execution throughout “Watch the Party Die.”

Kendrick transitions away from discussion on his spiritual, physical, and emotional trials within the entertainment industry and once again wonders out loud what Lecrae would do as a Black man and a hip-hop artist who has faced many similar trials and challenges.
 

It is notable that instead of saying “I wonder what Lecrae would do," he now says “a nigga wonder what Lecrae would do," almost as if it is a question that any Black person should be wondering.
 

For context, Lecrae has had to deal with his fair share of public controversy and conflict with White Christians who began to take offense at Lecrae when after Lecrae started speaking about racial justice issues that were affecting the Black community.
 

Because White (Evangelical) Christians represent the largest consumer demographic for Christian hip-hop, speaking out about racial justice put Lecrae at odds with the White-owned entertainment industry, who wanted to co-opt his music and act like they owned him. Lecrae details these dynamics on several tracks from his 2017 album All Things Work Together for Good.

• Learned a lot over these last few years
  Industry people ain’t friends, just peers
  …
  Still killin’ over colors, now it’s black and blue
  We dyin’ every day, B, we just don’t make the news
  When you speak out for your race, just watch
  They gon’ twist and say you hate these cops
  I’ma take these shots
  How can he love Jesus, Kanye, and K-Dot?
  Martin, Malcolm, and Schaeffer, Mitsubishi, and Maybach?
  Contradictory, nah, it’s complimentary
  Understanding me ain’t for the simple and elementary, oh
  -“Always Knew”
   
  People wonder, “Is he woke or just a new slave?”
  Old religion, he just covered it with new chains
  Choppin’ out the church, he ain’t real, he fake
  He divisive, he don’t rep the King, he just want the fame
  Aw man, now they actin’ like I’m suddenly political
  Told me shut my mouth and get my checks from Evangelicals
  Boy, my momma raised me, on Angela and Eldridge
  Chuck Berry made it, but the credit went to Elvis
  Know you never knew that, know you think I’m too black
  I just think I’m too real, I grew up on 2Pac
  You grew up thinkin’ that the Panthers was some terrorists
  I grew up hearin’ how they fed my momma eggs and grits
  "‘Crae, they say you should follow in the steps of King"
  I say, “You’ve forgotten how they shot him in the streets”
  I ain’t really changed, it’s the same old rebel
  Still a radical, I’m passionate, it’s just another level (leggo!)
  AT told me I should fight back
  They don’t like that (they don’t)
  Just know if you rock the boat you better have a life raft (what?)
  …
  Now these people swear they own me, sendin’ out threats
  Told me keep my mouth shut, told me be a Stepin Fetchit
  I will not oblige to your colonized way of faith
  My Messiah died for the world, not just USA
  They say, “Jesus was Conservative”
  Tell ’em, “That’s a lie”
  No, He not a Liberal either if you think I’ll choose a side
  They say, “‘Crae, you so divisive, shouldn’t be a black church”
  I say, “Do the math, segregation started that first!”
  Hey, you want unity? Then read a eulogy
  Kill the power that exists up under you and over me
  …
  I was waitin’ for the right time to tell y’all how I feel
  And, yeah, I know that it hurts, but look, it’s gon’ heal
  I waited ’til I was on prime time before I let y’all know
  And you prolly won’t wanna hear my music no mo’
  But it’s all good, man, I love y’all
  Hope you know that I’m black black
  Trade in my Smart Car for a Cadillac, can you handle that?
  And I love God
  I love Jesus, the one out of Nazareth
  Not the European with the ultra perm and them soft eyes and them thin lips
  And I’m still hood
  Been in the ‘burbs for quite some time
  But I still might hit the gas station for the Lemonheads and the pork rinds
  -“Facts”
   
  Twenty-four years old, my momma brought me to the globe
  Tried to tell me it was cold and taught me how to keep the coat
  Now, now, now she told me to go to school and get my education
  But remember there’s a bias to them books that they be makin’
  Gave me, Soul on Ice and taught me
  ‘Bout the Middle Passage, told me
  God ain’t white
  …
  Huh, once upon a time, God opened up my mind
  And He showed me I don’t have to be a product people buy
  With this God-given wisdom, I can climb out the holes
  Stay up out the system ‘cause the system never let you go
  Speak the Truth without no fear
  It’s gon’ ruin in my career
  I’ve been a mascot for too long
  I ain’t come here for no cheers
  First of all, let me be clear one time
  Let me be real one time
  If you want a religious puppet you gon’ have to hang this guy
  …
  Crooked cops done pulled me over, treated me like I ain’t made
  In the image of God and that’s so odd
  -“Come and Get Me”
   
  Last year I was feeling hopeless
  I just wanted it to end
  People stealing money from me, man
  I swear I thought that we was friends
  And I was so depressed, I was such a mess
  I couldn’t shake it off
  Another murder on the television
  Man, somebody go turn it off
  I spoke my mind, I got attacked for it
  Thought these people had my back boy
  Then they tellin’ me I asked for it
  I guess I’m just another black boy
  And then they killed Tamir Rice
  And they just go on with they life
  They tellin’ me shut up talking ‘bout it
  Like, I should just talk about Christ
  But the truth is I started to doubt God
  I started to question my purpose
  I started to act out
  I ain’t wanna sign another autograph or give a fake smile
  Doctors told me that my man died
  I almost had a breakdown
  …
  And recently I found a peace to be
  Everything that I was meant to be
  This my identity, this what He give to me
  This what I’m made to be
  My daddy still on that crack
  And he might never come back
  But I still love the man, I don’t judge the man
  I could be on that track
  I’m glad that Jesus ain’t American
  And that’s the reason why I care again
  People started praying for me
  And homies tellin’ me I was being arrogant
  I quit poppin’ them pills
  And even though we get killed
  I know that God got a greater plan
  For the death and blood that we spill
  -“Can’t Stop Me Now (Destination)”

Given all of the hostility and backlash that Lecrae has faced from White audiences and the White-owned entertainment industry, it makes sense that “a nigga" would want to know what Lecrae would do if he were in the same position as Kendrick.

Terrace Martin is a hip-hop producer who has worked with Kendrick to produce numerous tracks including “Ab-Soul’s Outro,” “m.A.A.d city,” “Real,” “For Free? (Interlude),” “King Kunta,” “These Walls,” “For Sale?,” “Complexion (A Zulu Love),” “untitled 05|09.21.2014,” and “Loyalty.”

Given how much he has witnessed Kendrick’s creative process up close over multiple years and projects, Terrace Martin would know more than most people that Kendrick’s mind is always thinking on multiple layers while trying to give truth to the youth.

The idea of a market where people pay for goods and services also connects to the idea of “paying dues.” “Paying dues” is a phrase that refers to working hard with a great deal of patience, endurance, and commitment to the little things in order to earn respect and an opportunity to take on a much larger or more visible role.
 

While rapping from Nipsey’s perspective on “The Heart Part 5,” Kendrick uses the phrase “paid dues” to describe the hard work that Nipsey Hussle put into the rap game by releasing 13 mixtapes in 12 years from 2005 to 2017 before releasing his only studio album in 2018.

• Reflectin’ on my life and what I done
  Paid dues, made rules, change outta love
  Them same views made schools change curriculums

By saying “I paid your dues,” Kendrick would seem to be talking to someone who did not work hard to earn respect. This could be a reference to Drake, whom Kendrick has repeatedly criticized for using ghostwriters to write his rap lyrics instead of putting in the work to write his own lyrics.

Similarly, on “euphoria” and “meet the grahams,” Kendrick criticized Drake for receiving Ozempic weight loss injections and having abdominal surgery to improve his appearance without needing to pay his dues by working out.

• Yeah, my first one like my last one, it’s a classic, you don’t have one
  Let your core audience stomach that, then tell ’em where you get your abs from
  -“euphoria”
   
  Even if it don’t benefit your goals, do some push-ups, get some discipline
  Don’t cut them corners like your daddy did, fuck what Ozempic did
  Don’t pay to play with them Brazilians, get a gym membership
  -“meet the grahams”

By saying “paid your dues,” Kendrick could also be saying that Drake never did the hard, therapeutic work of self-examination to understand how he needs to grow and mature. This lack of self-examination left Kendrick to do the examination work for Drake, which resulted in the astute criticisms that Kendrick made throughout all the battle tracks.

Kendrick’s hometown friend, Jay (or Jason) Estrada, is a Compton-native athletic fitness trainer who worked as a strength trainer for the 2016 U.S.A. Olympic basketball teams. Additionally, Jay Estrada has also trained other NBA players, including Compton-native DeMar DeRozan, who made a guest appearance in the “Not Like Us” video after Kendrick name-dropped him in the second verse of “Not Like Us.”
 

By working out with Jay Estrada, Kendrick is again showing himself to be someone who pays his own dues in contrast to Drake, who allegedly paid for the shortcut of Ozempic and abdominal surgery based on Kendrick’s words to Drake’s son on “meet the grahams.”

• Even if it don’t benefit your goals, do some push-ups, get some discipline
  Don’t cut them corners like your daddy did, fuck what Ozempic did
  Don’t pay to play with them Brazilians, get a gym membership

It is notable that Kendrick’s advice to Drake’s son to “do some push-ups” is a direct response to “Push Ups,” Drake’s initial diss track where Drake mocked Kendrick for a viral social media video that showed Kendrick doing push-ups in a park.
 

Drake used the image of Kendrick doing push-ups as a metaphor for Kendrick getting coerced into a disadvantageous financial situation by Top Dawg, the Black owner of Kendrick’s former label, Top Dawg Entertainment (TDE). Drake asserted that every time Top Dawg told Kendrick to “drop” (i.e., drop to the ground as a metaphor for dropping an album), Kendrick had to give Top Dawg “fifty” (i.e., fifty push-ups as a metaphor for 50% of the royalties from Kendrick’s music releases).

• Extortion baby, whole career, you been shook up
  ‘Cause Top told you, “Drop and give me fifty,” like some push-ups, huh
  …
  Pull your contract ‘cause we gotta see the split
  The way you doin’ splits, bitch, your pants might rip
  You better do that motherfuckin’ show inside the bity
  Maroon 5 need a verse, you better make it witty
  Then we need a verse for the Swifties
  Top say drop, you better drop and give ’em fifty
  …
  Ayy, better drop and give me fifty, ayy
  Drop and give me fifty, drop and give me fifty, ayy

From Kendrick’s perspective, by choosing to mock Kendrick for doing push-up exercises and working hard for Top Dawg, Drake is exposing himself as someone who would rather cheat and sell himself to the White-owned entertainment industry instead of working hard to pay his dues.
 

In Katt Williams’ viral Club Shay Shay interview that Kendrick alluded to on “meet the grahams,” Katt Williams made the exact same point against comics and entertainers who sold out to the White-owned entertainment industry, used ghostwriters, and did not pay their dues or otherwise gave up on working hard. Katt Williams compared these people to athletes or bodybuilders who use performance-enhancing drugs to avoid putting in the hard work of exercising but still want people to be impressed with their bodies.

• I’m a standup comedian. This is my nineteenth one-hundred city tour. I’m not going to have a conversation with these lazy bums that’ll take a shortcut at any point. Yes, it’s easier for you to juice than to get in the gym, but you don’t get to bring that body in here talking crazy talk about how good you look.

“You gotta burn it down to build it up” would seem to be a statement that Jay Estrada would make in the context of strength and fitness training.
 

In order to build stronger muscles, an athlete first has to break down the existing muscle by lifting, pressing, or pulling weights or some other kind of resistance. These kinds of exercises create tiny microtears in muscle fibers that are accompanied by a burning sensation in the muscles. This burning sensation is what is being referred to by the exercise term “feel the burn.”
 

The idea of “burn it down to build it up” could be applied to much of the violent language that Kendrick has used when acting like a totalitarian dictator who is trying to purge society and “burn the whole village” so “we can start over” with the hope of building a “new earth.”
 

At the same time, if we see Kendrick’s fierce criticism and exposure of Drake as a way to “burn it down to build it up,” the natural conclusion is that Kendrick actually wants Drake to be built up into a better person.
 

This act of “tough love” is consistent with Kendrick’s words on “meet the grahams,” where he explained his motives for engaging in a rap battle with Drake.

• Dear Aubrey
  I know you probably thinkin’ I wanted to crash your party
  But truthfully, I don’t have a hatin’ bone in my body
  …
  Thirty-seven, but you showin’ up as a seven-year-old
  You got gamblin’ problems, drinkin’ problems, pill-poppin’ and spendin’ problems
  Bad with money, whorehouse
  Solicitin’ women problems, therapy’s a lovely start
  But I suggest some ayahuasca, strip the ego from the bottom
  I try to empathize with you ‘cause I know that you ain’t been through nothin’
  Crave entitlement, but wanna be liked so bad that it’s puzzlin’
  No dominance, let’s recap moments when you didn’t fit in
  No secret handshakes with your friend
  No culture cachet to binge, just disrespectin’ your mother
  Identity’s on the fence, don’t know which family will love ya
  The skin that you livin’ in is compromised in personas
  Can’t channel your masculine even when standin’ next to a woman
  You a body shamer, you gon’ hide them baby mamas, ain’t ya?
  You embarrassed of ’em, that’s not right, that ain’t how mama raised us
  Take that mask off, I wanna see what’s under them achievements
  Why believe you? You never gave us nothin’ to believe in
  ‘Cause you lied about religious views, you lied about your surgery
  You lied about your accent and your past tense, all is perjury
  You lied about your ghostwriters, you lied about your crew members
  They all pussy, you lied on ’em, I know they all got you in ’em
  You lied about your son, you lied about your daughter, huh
  You lied about them other kids that’s out there hopin’ that you come
  You lied about the only artist that can offer you some help
  Fuck a rap battle, this a long life battle with yourself

The phrase “locked in” is most often used to describe someone who is focused on their goal, which connects to the themes of paying dues and working out in the previous lines. Here, Kendrick says he is focused on (i.e., locked into) “what he trusts.”
 

It is notable that Kendrick’s rap battle with Drake started when Kendrick was featured on the song “Like That” on Future and Metro Boomin’s album titled We Don’t Trust You. That album title seems to have been a statement about Drake, who the two Atlanta-native artists had previously worked with but no longer trusted.
 

Throughout the battle, Kendrick repeatedly accused Drake of being an actor, manipulator, and liar who cannot be trusted.

• The famous actor we once knew is lookin’ paranoid and now spiralin’
  You’re movin’ just like a degenerate, every antic is feelin’ distasteful
  I calculate you’re not as calculated, I can even predict your angle
  Fabricating stories on the family front ‘cause you heard Mr. Morale
  A pathetic master manipulator, I can smell the tales on you now
  You’re not a rap artist, you a scam artist with the hopes of being accepted
  Tommy Hilfiger stood out, but FUBU never had been your collection
  I make music that electrify ’em, you make music that pacify ’em
  I can double down on that line, but spare you this time, that’s random acts of kindness
  Know you a master manipulator and habitual liar too
  But don’t tell no lie about me and I won’t tell truths ‘bout you
  -“euphoria”
   
  I think somebody lyin’
  Smell somebody lyin’
  I don’t see no fire
  …
  Yeah, somebody’s lyin’, I could see the vibes on Ak’
  -“6:16 in LA”
   
  Take that mask off, I wanna see what’s under them achievements
  Why believe you? You never gave us nothin’ to believe in
  ‘Cause you lied about religious views, you lied about your surgery
  You lied about your accent and your past tense, all is perjury
  You lied about your ghostwriters, you lied about your crew members
  They all pussy, you lied on ’em, I know they all got you in ’em
  You lied about your son, you lied about your daughter, huh
  You lied about them other kids that’s out there hopin’ that you come
  You lied about the only artist that can offer you some help
  -“meet the grahams”
   
  Devil is a lie, he a 69 God, ayy
  …
  The settlers was usin’ townfolk to make ’em richer
  Fast-forward, 2024, you got the same agenda
  You run to Atlanta when you need a check balance
  Let me break it down for you, this the real nigga challenge
  You called Future when you didn’t see the club (Ayy, what?)
  Lil Baby helped you get your lingo up (What?)
  21 gave you false street cred
  Thug made you feel like you a slime in your head (Ayy, what?)
  Quavo said you can be from Northside (What?)
  2 Chainz say you good, but he lied
  You run to Atlanta when you need a few dollars
  No, you not a colleague, you a fuckin’ colonizer
  The family matter and the truth of the matter
  It was God’s plan to show y’all the liar
  -“Not Like Us”

Since Kendrick does not trust Drake, he looks “outside” to find what he does trust. Here, “outside” seems to refer to the world around Kendrick, or maybe more specifically the city around him—the city of Compton.
 

The association with the city of Compton being “outside” seems to be highlighted on “Not Like Us,” where in quick succession Kendrick mentions Drake—the liar and false god, who needs to be locked inside (a jail cell)—in contrast to the city that is free to be outside.

• Devil is a lie, he a 69 God, ayy
  Freaky-ass niggas need to stay they ass inside, ayy
  Roll they ass up like a fresh pack of ‘za, ayy
  City is back up, it’s a must, we outside, ayy

The music video of “Not Like Us” further emphasizes the contrast between the city of Compton being free outside, with numerous shots of large crowds filling the plaza of the Compton City Hall and Civic Center, while Drake’s OVO owl is locked up inside a birdcage. Notably, the owl in the birdcage is shown in the second-to-last shot, right before the video cuts back to a final shot of the large crowd dancing at the Compton City Hall and Civic Center under a sculpture dedicated to Martin Luther King, Jr.

Kendrick ends the song by declaring that at some point between the beginning and end of this song, he has watched the party die, likely as a result of Kendrick’s execution orders.
 

In contrast to the party—which will not go on tomorrow—Kendrick highlights the kids who are now able to live tomorrow.
 

The mention of kids is likely a reference to Kendrick’s allegations that Drake and his crew were trafficking underage girls for sex parties. At the same time, uncompromising artists such as Katt Williams have sought to expose that powerful men engaging in predatory sexual behavior is a widespread, endemic problem throughout the entertainment industry.
 

The future for kids has been a central focus for Kendrick since he became a father, as can be seen throughout Mr. Morale and the Big Steppers’s theme of breaking generational curses—particularly curses related to sexual abuse.

• Playin’ “Baby Shark” with my daughter
  Watchin’ for sharks outside at the same time
  Life as a protective father, I’d kill for her
  My son Enoch is the part two
  When I expire, my children’ll make higher valleys
  In this present moment, I saw that through
  -“Worldwide Steppers”
   
  Enoch, your father’s just detoxed, my callin’ is right on time
  …
  Uzi, your father’s in deep meditation
  My spirit’s awakened, my brain is asleep
  -“Mr. Morale”
   
  Family ties, they accused my cousin, “Did he touch you, Kendrick?”
  Never lied, but no one believed me when I said “He didn’t”
  …
  “Did he touch you?” I said “No” again, still they didn’t believe me
  …
  I asked my momma why she didn’t believe me when I told her “No”
  I never knew she was violated in Chicago, I’m sympathetic
  Told me that she feared it happened to me, for my protection
  Though it never happened, she wouldn’t agree
  Now I’m affected, twenty years later trauma has resurfaced
  Amplified as I write this song, I shiver ‘cause I’m nervous
  …
  I pray our children don’t inherit me and feelings I attract
  A conversation not bein’ addressed in Black families
  The devastation, hauntin’ generations and humanity
  They raped our mothers, then they raped our sisters
  Then they made us watch, then made us rape each other
  Psychotic torture between our lives, we ain’t recovered
  Still livin’ as victims in the public eyes who pledge allegiance
  Every other brother has been compromised
  I know the secrets, every other rapper sexually abused
  I see ’em daily buryin’ they pain in chains and tattoos
  So listen close before you start to pass judgment on how he move
  Learn how he cope, whenever his uncle had to walk him from school
  His anger grows deep in misogyny
  This is post-traumatic Black families and a sodomy, today is still active
  So I set free myself from all the guilt that I thought I made
  So I set free my mother all the hurt that she titled shame
  So I set free my cousin, chaotic for my mother’s pain
  I hope Hykeem made you proud ‘cause you ain’t die in vain
  So I set free the power of Whitney, may she heal us all
  So I set free our children, may good karma keep them with God
  So I set free the hearts filled with hatred, keep our bodies sacred
  As I set free all you abusers, this is transformation
  …
  [Whitney Alford]
  You did it, I’m proud of you
  You broke a generational curse
  Say “Thank you, dad”
  Thank you, daddy, thank you, mommy, thank you, brother
  -“Mother I Sober”

Throughout “Die for the Party,” Lecrae raps over a modified version of the beat used in Kendrick Lamar’s “Watch the Party Die.” As Lecrae mentions here, “Die for the Party” is meant to serve as an additional verse for “Watch the Party Die.”
 

Lecrae decided to release this verse on his own rather than Kendrick inviting him to do so as part of a remix or extended version. That being said, on two separate lines within the third verse of “Watch the Party Die,” Kendrick did say that he wondered “what Lecrae would do.”

• Sometimes I wonder what Lecrae would do
  Fuck these niggas up or show ’em just what prayer do?
  …
  A nigga wonder what Lecrae would do

Lecrae thus seems to have reasonably concluded that those two lines from “Watch the Party Die” were an open invitation for him to write and release his verse on “Die for the Party.”

Lecrae here makes a reference to Jay-Z’s classic and often-quoted lines from the 2001 track “Izzo (H.O.V.A.)” where Kendrick challenges the status quo of the music industry.

• I do this for my culture, to let ’em know
  What a nigga look like when a nigga in a roadster
  Show ’em how to move in a room full of vultures
  Industry shady, it need to be taken over
  Label owners hate me, I’m raisin’ the status quo up
  I’m overcharging niggas for what they did to the Cold Crush
  Pay us like you owe us for &&all the years that you hoed us*
  We can talk, but money talks, so talk more bucks*

Recall that on the third verse of “Watch the Party Die,” Kendrick also makes a subtle reference to these exact lines from “Izzo (H.O.V.A.).”

• Say hello to your future fate, the culture bred with carnivores
  You let ’em snack, they eat your face, the signatures is bein’ forged

In slang, the phrase “clout-chasing” is used to describe a person who seeks attention, fame, or influence, often by engaging in behavior that attracts public interest or aligns themself with popular trends or influential figures.
 

In many cases, rappers are accused of “clout-chasing” when they directly name more famous hip-hop artists in order to associate themselves with a more famous artist without actually being invited to collaborate with such an artist.
 

“Clout chasers” can be seen as a form of “culture vulture” since “clout chasers” are metaphorically scavenging off of someone else who has been “killing it” rather than using their own skills, discipline, or hard work to eat what they kill. Thus, “clout chasing” is also a way for someone to avoid “paying dues” or working hard, as Kendrick mentioned in the first verse.
 

Kendrick previously described “clout chasing” as kind of mask on “N95 and as a disease on “Rich Spirit” from Mr. Morale & the Big Steppers.

• Take off the foo-foo
  Take off the clout chase
  Take off the Wi-Fi
  Take off the money phone
  Take off the car loan
  Take off the flex and the white lies
  Take off the weird-ass jewelry
  I’ma take ten steps
  Then I’m takin’ off top five
  Take off them fabricated streams
  And them microwave memes
  It’s a real world outside (take that shit off)
  -“N95”
   
• Frat brother, real nigga, that brother
  We just upped the score, give me dap, brother
  Spirit medium, I don’t rap, brother
  We headed there now, are you strapped brother?
  Ayy, peacemaker, but I’m not naïve, brother
  Ayy, gotta watch your homies and police, brother
  Ayy, clout chasing hell of a disease, brother
  I’m fasting four days out the week, brother
  -“Rich Spirit”

It is also notable that on the battle track “THE HEART PART 6,” Drake accused Kendrick of “clout chasing” as Drake denied Kendrick’s allegations that Drake was involved in pedophilia and sex trafficking.

• Album droppin’ soon, no wonder you turn to a clout chaser ‘stead of doin’ hard labor

Lecrae suggests that “culture vulture” rappers turn to “clout-chasing” in order to “prove their worth.” This psychological need to prove one’s own worth through success as a rapper is a vice with which Lecrae has personally struggled, even as he is learning to find his identity in who God made him to be.
 

During Lecrae’s own The Deep End podcast episode where he discussed the battle between Kendrick and Drake, Lecrae concluded that the main problem with the battle was that both rappers were trying to tear down their rival in order to obtain a false sense of value and worth.

• It becomes a problem when your identity is on the line a war trying to tear down someone’s identity it’s not me trying to best you to show you you’re fake and I’m real it’s not me trying to best you to show you that I’m superior to you and that is the ultimate problem with finding our worth in what we do. What we tend to do is find the quality of our work as the quality of our worth and I think that’s a lot of what we’re seeing between these guys which I think is so unhealthy because at the end of the day you’re in order to be great you’ve got to have someone less than you—that you got to have someone to step on in order for you to have value and worth. If we’re talking about the quality of our work—if your identity is shaped by what you do and being the best at it, then you got to step on someone else to prove that you are worthy of whatever it is you say you are.
   
  So, at the end of the day, I think the real battle is between whenever you make anything like your ability or your body or your looks a part of your identity, they’ll ultimately begin to crush you. Those things are going to crush you because they’ve got to always measure up. When they don’t measure up, now your identity and your value are worthless.
   
  So I wouldn’t be surprised if internally Drake is feeling a sense of worthlessness … I wouldn’t be surprised if he has to go look at the things he’s done to remind himself of his worth.
   
  I remember when I was in high school, and in high school, my value was being the dope rapper. … And here comes Steve from Brooklyn. He’s kicking metaphors and similes and bars and references. I was just destroyed. And because of that, my value was now in question. My identity, my worth, was in question.
   
  So what did I do? I had two choices: I could either run away from him so that I could maintain some semblance of value, or I could associate with him so I could regain some sense of value.
   
  Now, the good news is, I became a better rapper. The bad news is that all it did was reignite a false sense of self-worth and identity, to where, fast forward, I’m writing a song about identity because I’m still wrestling with that reality.
   
  And God already told me I mattered. He told me in scripture. I mean, the creator of creation Himself knows me by name, and I’m still fighting. I’m still fighting for a false sense of identity.

The word “mission” in the most general sense can be defined as “a set of tasks that fulfills a purpose.” The word also tends to imply that the person will need to leave their home and go to a different land, nation, or people group in order to fulfill their purpose (e.g., a diplomatic mission or spy mission).
 

Within the history of Western culture, the word “mission” has most often been used to refer to efforts made by a church or an individual Christian who goes to a foreign country in order to introduce Jesus’s life and teachings to people from that country using language and references that the people can understand within their own cultural context.
 

As rappers who became Christians later in their teenage years or early 20s, Lecrae and Kendrick both came to the conclusion that God had sent them on a mission to introduce Jesus’s life and teachings to members of the Black community in America using language and references that Black Americans could understand within their own cultural context.
 

As a Christian hip-hop artist, Lecrae has been very clear and overt about his mission throughout all of his albums. In contrast, Kendrick has not usually been so overt. Most of his albums do have an overarching storyline that communicates central Christian understandings about Jesus and living a Christian life. However, listeners usually have to pay more attention to notice these overarching messages.
 

However, on the 2009 track “Faith” from Kendrick’s first project released under the stage name Kendrick Lamar, Kendrick openly discussed the moment when he talked to God and accepted his mission.

• I found myself losing focus at a Sunday service
  Embarrassed so I start questioning God, “What is my purpose?”
  He said to live the way he did, that’s all he want from me
  Spread the word and witness, he rose on the first Sunday
  I said alright, enthused that my Lord gave a listen
  I opened my Bible in search to be a better Christian
  And this from a person that never believed in religion
  But shit, my life is so fucked up, man; I can’t help but give in
  I’m giving testimonies to strangers I never met
  Hopped on the pulpit and told them how I was truly blessed

Lecrae builds off the “party” metaphor by saying that he was a “party victim.” At the most basic level, Lecrae seems to be reflecting on how his life prior to becoming a Christian was undisciplined in his pursuit of temporary pleasure in a way that led him to seek enjoyment in ways that ultimately led to pain and hurt.
 

At the same time, we should recall that in the analysis of the first verse of “Watch the Party Die,” “the party” could also be interpreted as a reference to acts of sexual abuse, particularly abuse of underage girls and boys.
 

It is thus notable that on the track “Good, Bad, Ugly,” Lecrae discussed the trauma he experienced after being a victim of sexual abuse by a babysitter who performed a sex act on him when he was seven years old.

• Folks workin’ late I had a baby sitter
  I ain’t ‘bout to sit here and name her
  I was almost 8 when she came in late
  Woke me up with a game to play
  Did a few things that’s hard to say
  And told me to keep that secret safe
  Now how a young boy supposed to deal
  I’m tryna act like it ain’t real
  Had my innocence just stripped from me
  And I still don’t know how to feel

Lecrae’s traumatic experience seems to align with Kendrick’s own assessment that “every other rapper” he knows has been sexually abused and that this trauma continues to go unaddressed in many Black families, leading many Black people to live as “victims,” as Kendrick discussed on the track “Mother I Sober” from Mr. Morale & the Big Steppers.

• Family ties, they accused my cousin, “Did he touch you, Kendrick?”
  Never lied, but no one believed me when I said “He didn’t”
  …
  “Did he touch you?” I said “No” again, still they didn’t believe me
  …
  I asked my momma why she didn’t believe me when I told her “No”
  I never knew she was violated in Chicago, I’m sympathetic
  Told me that she feared it happened to me, for my protection
  Though it never happened, she wouldn’t agree
  Now I’m affected, twenty years later trauma has resurfaced
  Amplified as I write this song, I shiver ‘cause I’m nervous
  …
  A conversation not bein’ addressed in Black families
  The devastation, hauntin’ generations and humanity
  They raped our mothers, then they raped our sisters
  Then they made us watch, then made us rape each other
  Psychotic torture between our lives, we ain’t recovered
  Still livin’ as victims in the public eyes who pledge allegiance
  Every other brother has been compromised
  I know the secrets, every other rapper sexually abused
  I see ’em daily buryin’ they pain in chains and tattoos
  So listen close before you start to pass judgment on how he move
  Learn how he cope, whenever his uncle had to walk him from school
  His anger grows deep in misogyny
  This is post-traumatic Black families and a sodomy, today is still active

After telling us that he was a “party victim,” Lecrae then says that he “brought the party favors.”
 

“Party favors” are gifts that a party host gives to the party attendees to thank them for coming. This transition seems to suggest that Lecrae went from someone who was forced to be an unwilling participant of “the party” to someone who not only attended and willingly participated but seemingly organized and hosted “the party.”
 

At the most basic level, Lecrae seems to be saying that as someone who became successful in the entertainment industry, he was at the center of groups of people who were also undisciplined in their pursuit of temporary pleasure.

At the same time, if we take into account Lecrae’s history of being sexually abused, one could also interpret the line as a reflection of how Lecrae’s trauma from sexual abuse led him later to engage in sexual behavior that—while maybe not criminal—was not healthy or loving for himself or for those with whom he was sexually involved.

Fittingly, on the same verse of “Good, Bad, Ugly” where Lecrae revealed that he had been sexually abused, he talked about the connection between his early sexual trauma and the sexual misbehavior that he engaged in later in life. This sexual misbehavior continued until Lecrae forgave his abuser, received forgiveness, and got on his mission.

• And I wonder how to address it
  Can’t tell my family too messy
  So I just embrace it it’s hard to face it
  I’m too ashamed to confess it
  So I kept it in and ain’t speak
  Didn’t think it hit me so deep
  So into it I got promiscuous
  And only God could help me get free
  But I been forgiven
  My Savior risen
  I’m out the prison
  I know that (I know that)
  I got the power to say to no to all of my struggles
  God will control that (yeah)
  Every time we slip and we fall
  Gotta get back up and fight on
  We are not defined by our past
  The future look bright
  I see the light on

It is notable that on “Mother I Sober,” Kendrick also wrestled with his own sexual misbehavior and addiction, which he saw as one of the effects of the unresolved generational trauma from sexual abuse.

• Intoxicated, there’s a lustful nature that I failed to mention
  Insecurities that I project, sleepin’ with other women
  Whitney’s hurt, the purest soul I know, I found her in the kitchen
  Askin’ God, “Where did I lose myself? And can it be forgiven?”
  Broke me down, she looked me in my eyes, “Is there an addiction?”
  I said “No,” but this time I lied, I knew that I can’t fix it
  Pure soul, even in her pain, know she cared for me
  Gave me a number, said she recommended some therapy
  I asked my momma why she didn’t believe me when I told her “No”
  I never knew she was violated in Chicago, I’m sympathetic
  Told me that she feared it happened to me, for my protection
  Though it never happened, she wouldn’t agree
  Now I’m affected, twenty years later trauma has resurfaced
  Amplified as I write this song, I shiver ‘cause I’m nervous

After acknowledging that he was a “party victim” who later “brought the party favors,” Lecrae goes on to explain that he had money to buy the party favors after he used his own trauma—including the trauma of growing up without a father and being a “party victim”—as a justification for having an unhealthy focus on wealth.
 

Here, “commas” refers to a large amount of money that needs a comma to separate the hundreds digit from the thousands digit and the ten-thousands digit from the millions digit.
 

Throughout Mr. Morale & the Big Steppers, Kendrick also talked about the unhealthy pattern of hip-hop artists trying to profit by making music about their trauma.

• So what? Paralyzed, the county building controlled us
  I bought a Rolex watch, I only wore it once
  I bought infinity pools I never swimmed in
  I watched Keem buy four cars in four months
  You know the family dynamics on repeat
  The insecurities locked down on PC
  I bought a .223, nobody peace treat
  You won’t doo-doo me, I smell TNT
  &&Dave got him a Porsche, so I got me a Porsche
  Paid lottery for it*, I ain’t want it in portions
  Poverty was the case
  But the money wipin’ the tears away*
  -“United In Grief”

Rich nigga, gettin’ my dick sucked after the show
I ain’t gon’ lie, we were poor
A bunch of lost souls in survival mode
It wasn’t no way for us unless we found our own
Runnin’ in stores, kickin’ in doors, nigga, give me my glory
Nigga play with me, he ain’t gon’ live to tell the story
You know, this the type of shit we glorify, everybody gang-gang
Most of the people that you grew up with are now in the chain gang
In the box, gettin’ pink
“Rich (Interlude)”

My mother’s mother followed me for years in her afterlife
Starin’ at me on back of some buses, I wake up at night
Loved her dearly, traded in my tears for a Range Rover
Transformation, you ain’t felt grief ’til you felt it sober
-“Mother I Sober”
Girl, I’m not relevant to givin’ on profit
Personal gain off my pain, it’s nonsense
-“Mirror”

Lecrae describes the large amounts of money as the “devil’s wages.” The use of the word “devil” connects to the third verse of “Watch the Party Die,” where Kendrick rapped:

• It’s time to get these devils out the way, heavy metals on my sword
  We settle hard disputes today, the ghetto Hollywood divorce

It’s also notable that in St. Paul’s letter to the Church in Rome, he says, “The wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.” The idea that the wages of the [“devil” / “satan” / “false accuser” / “diabolical one”] are closely associated with death also connects to the titles of “Watch the Party Die” and “Die for the Party.”

The phrase “went over their head” refers to a situation in which a speaker says something that the listener does not understand, usually because what the speaker said was too complex or because the listener is not refined or thoughtful enough to understand.
 

On the surface, it seems that Lecrae is saying that many of his listeners will probably not understand all the terminology or references in the previous lines.
 

At the same time, Lecrae is also recycling lines from “Always Knew,” the opening track to Lecrae’s 2017 album, All Things Work Together.

• I know this might go over some heads
  But I come from being government fed
  Could be running from feds
  But now I give the government bread
  ‘Cause you playin’ back the words that I said*

Here on “Die for the Party,” Lecrae essentially flips those lines from “Always Knew” by using many of the same words but slightly tweaking their presentation or meaning.

After describing himself as being “bred for doin’ time in the feds,” Lecrae then says, “Jesus bled.” Here, “Jesus bled” is a reference to the scene in all four Gospel accounts in which Jesus’s blood spilled out of his body when Roman soldiers whipped him, forced a crown of thorns onto his head, and hammered nails through his hands and feet to attach him to the wooden beams of an execution cross.
 

It is notable that Lecrae uses the word “but” between “bred for doin’ time in the feds” and “Jesus bled,” which seems to imply a contrast. In particular, the punishment of a federal prison sentence that guilty people receive for committing federal crimes is contrasted with the punishment of beatings, whipping, torture, and crucifixion that an innocent Jesus received for a crime that he did not commit. Moreover, all four Gospel accounts make it clear that as the only truly innocent man, Jesus died on behalf of and in place of those who were actually guilty.
 

• Now at the Passover feast the Roman governor was accustomed to release to the crown one prisoner whom they desired. At the time, they had a notorious prisoner called Barabbas (one who was thrown into prison for a certain revolt in the city, and for murder). When therefore they were gathered together, Pilate said to them, “Whom do you want me to release to you? Barabbas, or Jesus who is called Christ?”
   
  Now the chief priests and the elders persuaded the crowds to ask for Barabbas and destroy Jesus. But the Roman governor answered them, “Which of the two do you want me to release to you?”
   
  They said, “Barabbas!”
   
  Pilate, the Roman governor, said to them, “What then shall I do to Jesus who is called Christ?”
   
  They all said to him, “Let him be crucified!”
   
  But the governor said, “Why? What evil has he done?
   
  But they cried out exceedingly, saying, “Let him be crucified!”
   
  So when Pilate, the Roman governor, saw that nothing was being gained, but rather that a disturbance was starting, he took water and washed his hands before the crown, saying, “I am innocent of the blood of this righteous person. You see to it.”
   
  All the people answered, “May his blood be on us and on our children!”
   
  Then he released Barabbas to them, but Jesus he whipped and delivered to be crucified.
   
  -Matthew 27:15-26

Additionally, as we already pointed out, the word “bred” (i.e., past tense of “breed”) is a homophone with the food item “bread” and also rhymes with “bled.” In another famous scene that is often referred to as the “Last Supper” or “Lord’s Supper,” Jesus shares broken pieces of bread and a cup of wine with his disciples and declares that the broken bread is actually Jesus’s body, which is broken during Jesus’s crucifixion, and the wine is actually Jesus’s blood, which is shed during Jesus’s crucifixion. By giving his disciples his body and blood to eat and drink, Jesus promises to use this meal to help the disciples find freedom from their sins and transform them to be more like Jesus.
 

• As they were eating, Jesus took bread, gave thanks (Greek: eucharisteō) for it, and broke it. He gave to the disciples and said, “Take, eat; this is my body.”
   
  He took the cup of wine, gave thanks (Greek: eucharisteō), and gave to them, saying, “All of you drink it, for this is my blood of the new agreement, which is poured out for many for the forgiveness and freedom from sins.  
  -Matthew 26:26-28

This “Last Supper” or “Lord’s Supper” was later instituted as a Christian ritual called “communion,” referring to the idea of the church community forming a union with God. The ritual is alternatively known as the “Eucharist,” referring to the Greek word for “give thanks.” For most of church history, communion/the Eucharist has been the central component of church services and of Christian life as a whole.
 

Hence, we now recognize that the word “bred” is actually a quadruple entendre, which refers to:

• “Bred” as in breeding offspring
• “Bread” as in a loaf of bread
• “Bread” as in money
• “Bread” as in Jesus’s body
   

This quadruple entendre probably went over almost everyone’s head.

“Put a dent in their head” is a slang phrase that is normally said by someone who is annoyed or angry with another person and wants to threaten that they will violently hurt that person by striking them on the head.
 

The phrase “puttin’ dents in they head” mirrors the second verse of “Watch the Party Die,” where Kendrick said, “I want his head cracked before he’s back home.”
 

As Lecrae points out, unlike Kendrick and others who might want to put a dent in the heads of their enemies, Jesus turned his head. Here, the phrase “turned his” is a reference to Jesus’s teaching that instead of using violence to oppose and hurt an evil person in the same way that the evil person hurt one of Jesus’s disciples, it would be better for the disciple to “turn the other cheek” when they are slapped in the face or otherwise insulted.

• “You have heard that it was said, ‘Eye for eye, and tooth for tooth.’ But I say to you, do not show opposition in the same way as an evil person; but whoever slaps you on your right cheek, turn the other cheek toward him also.
  -Matthew 5:38-39

Jesus exemplified his own teaching after he was arrested and one of the officers slapped Jesus on the face.
 

• The high priest therefore asked Jesus about his disciples and about his teaching. Jesus answered him, “I spoke openly to the world. I always taught in synagogues, and in the temple, where the Judeans always meet. I said nothing in secret. Why do you ask me? Ask those who have heard me what I said to them. Behold, they know the things which I said.”  
  When Jesus had said this, one of the officers standing by slapped Jesus, saying, “Do you answer the high priest like that?”  
  Jesus answered him, “If I have spoken wrongly, confirm the wrong; but if I spoke rightly, why do you beat me?”

  • It is notable that when Jesus was slapped in the face, he did speak against the wrong that was being done to him, but he did not add another wrong to the situation by using his power to slap the officer in response.

The phrase “my cup runneth over” is a reference to a poem called Psalm 23, in which King David reflects on how the Lord takes care of him, provides what he needs, and keeps him safe from danger even in the “presence of his enemies.”

• You prepare a table before me
  in the presence of my enemies.
  You anoint my head with oil.
  My cup runs over.
  Surely goodness and loyal love will follow me all the days of my life,
  and I will live in the house of the LORD forever.
  -Psalm 23:4-6

In Psalm 23, King David expresses a deep trust in God’s protection, which allows him to sit at a table and drink wine from a cup even while his enemies are around him. This trust in God’s protection leads David to a peaceful disposition, which is a clear contrast with Kendrick, who seems convinced that he must deal with his enemies himself throughout “Watch the Party Die” and throughout the battle with Drake.
 

The fact that Lecrae says his cup “runs over with nonsense” puts an interesting twist on Psalm 23. This twist seems to suggest a very different dynamic, where he does not have the sense to trust the Lord in the presence of his enemies.
 

The lack of sense might be due to Lecrae being emotionally dysregulated, not being able to think clearly, or making bad decisions after drinking alcohol. Lecrae has more recently quit drinking alcohol for his own health and well-being, which is something that he has talked about openly in a few interviews and podcast episodes.
 

Given that Lecrae already mentioned how he used his trauma to “pay the wages,” Lecrae could also be building on this idea of using alcohol as an unhealthy way to deal with personal pain.

“The hearts grow cold” seems to be a reference to Jesus’s prophecy about a pattern of destructive circumstances in which various individuals and false prophets will misrepresent Jesus and claim to be anointed leaders while leading many people away from Jesus. Leading people away from Jesus will eventually lead to wars, betrayal, sin, lawlessness, famine, environmental devastation, and eventually to the end of the world as we know it. Within such a pattern of turning from Jesus’s commandments toward chaos, Jesus said that many humans’ “love will grow cold.”
 

• Jesus answered them, “Be careful that no one leads you astray. For many will come in my name, saying, ‘I am the Christ (anointed leader),’ and will lead many astray. You will hear of wars and rumors of wars. See that you are not troubled, for all this must happen, but the end is not yet. For nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom; and there will be famines, plagues, and earthquakes in various places. But all these things are the beginning of birth pains.
   
  Then they will deliver you up to oppression and will kill you. You will be hated by all of the nations for my name’s sake. Then many will stumble, and will hand one another over to the authorities, and will hate one another. Many false prophets will arise and will lead many astray. Because actions against the law will be multiplied, the love of many will grow cold. But the one who endures to the end will be saved. This Good News (aka Gospel) of the Kingdom will be preached in the whole world for a testimony to all the nations, and then the end will come.
  -Matthew 24:4-14

This idea of human wickedness being a sign that the end is coming is similar to Kendrick’s assessment of why it’s time for the party to end.

• I think it’s time to watch the party die
  This shit done got too wicked to apologize

“They love to do evil” is reminiscent of Jesus’s words to one of the Judean religious leaders, where he explained that although God loved the world and had sent Jesus to be the “light of the world” who would rescue people from death and give them a new kind of eternal life, not all humans would receive this eternal life. Jesus said that some humans would be condemned to death not necessarily in a direct form of Jesus condemning them but in the indirect form of the natural consequences for preferring to do evil in the darkness rather than coming into the light, where they would need to stop doing evil.

• For God so loved the world, that he gave his unique and only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish, but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world should be [saved / rescued] through him.
   
  The one who believes in him is not condemned. The one who does not believe has already been condemned, because that one has not believed in the name of the unique and only Son of God.
   
  This is the condemnation, that the light has come into the world, but humans loved the darkness rather than the light; because their works were evil. For everyone who does evil hates the light, and doesn’t come to the light, unless his actions would be exposed. But the one who does what is true comes to the light, that his actions may be revealed, that they have been done in God.
  -John 3:16-21

“They burn their conscience” is a reference to St. Paul’s first letter to Timothy, where St. Paul also talks about the pattern leading to the end of the world as we know it. St. Paul says that some people will turn away from Jesus’s teaching and instead listen to the teaching of “deceitful spirits,” “demons,” “liars,” and “hypocrites.” St. Paul suggests that these liars and hypocrites can be identified by the fact that they have burned a brand mark into their own conscience, which shows that they are owned by the [“devil” / “satan” / “false accuser” / “diabolical one”].

• The Spirit explicitly says that in later times some will fall away from the faith, paying attention to deceitful spirits and teachings of demons, under the influence of liars and hypocrites who have burned their own conscience as with a branding iron.
  -1 Timothy 4:1-2

The wicked choices that allowed Lecrae’s cousin to take fentanyl lead Lecrae to say, “I want the dealer’s head.” This statement seems to imply that somewhere inside his heart, Lecrae would like the dealer to be murdered—maybe even decapitated so the head can be brought back to Lecrae for inspection.
 

This line directly mirrors Kendrick’s line from the second verse of “Watch the Party Die,” where Kendrick said:

• If I’m not his vote
  Then you need to bring his fuckin’ head, or film that shit in hi-res

Given that Lecrae has been a Christian hip-hop artist for almost two decades, it might be surprising to hear him express this desire to take revenge for his cousin through a vicious murder.
 

However, this honest confession highlights the fact that even after “getting on his mission,” Lecrae still faces spiritual, mental, and emotional tests that cause him to wrestle with faith and really decide if he wants to follow Jesus’s teachings and example. Lecrae’s honest wrestling is likely one of the main reasons that Kendrick wanted to know “what Lecrae would do.”

Having just highlighted gangs that profit by exploiting individuals addicted to opioids, Lecrae now compares those gangs to music labels that profit from exploiting listeners and rappers addicted to hip-hop.
 

This comparison between selling addictive drugs and selling addictive music is a longstanding motif within hip-hop lyrics.
 

• New York-based rap legend Nas largely introduced the motif in a single line from the second verse of the track “Represent” from his classic debut album Illmatic, released on April 19, 1994.

  • Somehow the rap game reminds me of the crack game

• Exactly one week after the release of “Represent,” on April 26, 1994, the legendary Atlanta-based duo Outkast released their classic debut album, Southernplayalisticadillacmuzik, whose first full track, “Myintrotoletuknow,” featured a verse from André that further developed the motif.

  • See, that rap shit is really just like sellin’ smoke
    If you got some fire shit, your niggas gonna always toke
    Dope is not what I be slingin’ on this track*

• Jay-Z then turned the motif into an extended metaphor on an entire song called “Rap Game / Crack Game,” which was released on Jay-Z’s 1997 album, In My Lifetime, Vol. 1. Notably, the hook for “Rap Game / Crack Game” samples both “Represent” and “Myintrotoletuknow.”

  • Won’t stop niggas
    “Somehow the rap game remind me of the crack game”
    Jigga! Feel me!
    Pa-pause, told ya motherfuckers, told ya
    “See that rap shit is really just like sellin smoke”
    Uhh, Roc-A-Fella
    …
    We treat this rap shit just like, handlin’ weight
    What they want we give it to ’em, what they abandon we take
    Hit a rapper with consignment, let him know it’s at stake
    Put his ass in the studio, let him cook up a cake
    When it’s hot, get on my money spot in every state
    Like the Wiz and Camelot, the mom-and-pop’s is the gate
    But first we scope shit, advertise in every area
    Let the fiends know hey, we got some dope shit
    Gon’ need a middle man, so we look to radio
    Let ’em test the product, give ’em a promo show
    Just a breeze, not enough to catch a real vibe
    Then we drop a maxi single and charge ’em two for five
    Ain’t tryin’ to, kill ’em at first just, buildin’ clientele
    So when the album drops the first weeks it’s on sale
    But when demand grows it’s time to expand yo
    You don’t want no garbage papi, it’s ten grand per blow, fo’ sho’
    …
    I got that uncut raw to make a fiend’s body jerk
    Got your whole block now, pumpin’ my work
    My CD’s is like keys for you Willie’s who
    Like to floss my cassette tapes in sixty-two’s
    And my singles like gems, you know the treys
    Get you high for a while, but the, high don’t stay
    You need another fix, you better cop these last two bricks
    ‘Cause when this shit flip, I’ma get on some other shit
    Never pitchin’ for a label, Jigga’s the hook-up
    You know my shit is fishscale, y’all niggas is cook up
    Just blow up, scream my name from Brooklyn to Da-kota
    They know my shit stretch without the bakin’ soda
    Went from an eighth, to a quarter, to a half a key
    Priority’s work wasn’t right so I switched factories
    Now I’m the new nigga, who figured I’d get the game locked
    Now watch how the prices of your cocaine drop, papa

Drake even referenced “Rap Game / Crack Game” when he was rapping about a former girlfriend and acting like a “street nigga” on the 2013 track “Come Thru” on Nothing Was the Same.

• Someone put a order in for a chicken
  Told my girl to order in, I need the kitchen
  Yeah, they know I got the hookup, they just wait on me to cook up
  Baby, I heat up the stove, you do the dishes, ya know?
  Rap game, crack game, ain’t that different, ya know?
  Last album had it boomin’ somethin’ vicious, ya know?
  And ya know I need ya back in my life

The idea of corporate figures in the entertainment industry using hip-hop music like an addictive substance is also something that Kendrick alluded to on the third verse of “Watch the Party Die” when Kendrick rapped:

• It’s cynical to say I know these artists petrified
  The end result, in jail by Jezebel or drugged up full of lies

Much like Kendrick, Lecrae criticizes the music industry—particularly record labels—for exploiting youth who feel they can’t live without hip-hop music. These labels obtain precursor materials from Black artists coming out of poor, urban areas, who then produce music that “parade in gluttony without givin’ truth to the youth” and may inspire young people to make choices that eventually lead them to a federal prison cell or a casket.

Lecrae also seems to acknowledge that we can’t fully blame hip-hop addicts for their choices because addiction is a sickness. This acknowledgment leads Lecrae to tell the music labels, “I’m sick of y’all.”

Lecrae notes that his father was a member of the Compton Crips gang and his uncle was a member of the Pirus gang. Although Lecrae never met his father, knowing that the men in his family chose to be affiliated with gangs still had a deep influence on Lecrae as he was growing up with a single mother in a poor, urban Black neighborhood.
 

Once Lecrae became a teenager, he faced his own choice about whether to follow in the footsteps of his absent father or uncle and join the Crips or the Pirus—or whether he would take a totally different path.
 

It is notable that Kendrick specifically mentioned the Compton Crips and Pirus when he detailed Compton’s violent environment on the track “m.A.A.d city” from Kendrick’s classic debut album.

• If Pirus and Crips all got along
  They’d probably gun me down by the end of this song
  Seem like the whole city go against me
  Every time I’m in the street, I hear—
  Yawk! Yawk! Yawk! Yawk!*

Moreover, by saying that he is “stuck in the middle of this madness,” Lecrae seems to be making another subtle allusion to the “m.A.A.d city” of Compton, California.

Lecrae seems to be having a conversation with one of these former peers where he says, “You want me put you on but I know you still with the scammin’”.
 

The phrase “put me on” is a slang way for someone to ask another person to use their position, connections, success, or abundance to hook the speaker up, show the speaker undeserved favor, or help the speaker get something that the speaker wants.
 

In this case, the request seems to be from a former peer who is asking Lecrae to use his wealth and status as a successful Grammy-winning hip hop artist to “put him on” with some kind of economic opportunity.
 

Lecrae indicates that he is reluctant and will probably refuse to put this former peer on because Lecrae knows that the peer is still involved with illegal activity, particularly scamming people to get money.
 

Recall that Kendrick called out rappers and influencers who “glorify scamming” and threatened to execute them by saying “you get chipped over this credit card.”
 

As we previously noted, Kendrick has mentioned the destructive behavior of scammers on several tracks throughout his career.

• Baby wanna go back to school, but she need some help
  Because it’s hard trying to pay the bills when you’re by yourself
  She thought about credit card scams, ’til she heard a voice
  That said, “The Devil is a lie, make a better choice”
  -“Faith”
   
  The high school female need earrings and details
  So she can be cool to be amongst popularity
  The various name brands that reached the price scan
  It’s not about the right price but more like the right scam
  -“Vanity Slaves”
   
  Credit card scam, get you a Visa, make it pay your rent
  -“LUST.”

After empathizing with his peers who have profited from illegal activity while also refusing to further enable them, Lecrae calls out the “crooked doctor” who prescribed Xanax to Lecrae, which eventually led to his addiction.
 

Xanax is the brand name form of a prescription medication named alprazolam that produces a calming effect on a patient and thus is primarily used to treat anxiety disorders. However, that same calming effect makes it very easy for patients to become addicted.
 

Within the medical system of the United States, there have been numerous examples of corrupt doctors who have overprescribed Xanax to patients when there was little to no medical justification for the patient to be taking Xanax.
 

These doctors were often incentivized to overprescribe Xanax because of:
 

• “Kickback” payments that doctors receive from pharmaceutical companies whenever they prescribe the medication.
   
• Submitting to the pressure of patients who demanded Xanax.
   
• So-called “pill mill” business models where patients can skip insurance coverage and pay cash directly to doctors to obtain Xanax without a justifiable medical reason.

In many cases, people who were prescribed Xanax without justification ended up hospitalized or dead.
 

A significant amount of the patient demand for Xanax and the subsequent opportunity for “pill mill” business practices for Xanax can be traced to media influencers and stars, including hip hop artists, who have released a countless number of songs that glorify taking Xanax, or Xans, similar to the trend of making songs about molly.
 

These doctors who overprescribed Xanax, along with the pharmaceutical corporations who profited from selling Xanax, thus seem to illustrate Kendrick’s point from “Worldwide Steppers” that seemingly everyone is a killer or silent murderer, particularly when they are seeking profit.

• Eight billion people on Earth, silent murderers
  Non-profits, preachers and church? Crooks and burglars (Woo)
  Hollywood corporate in school, teachin’ philosophies
  You either gon’ be dead or in jail, killer psychology
  Silent murderer, what’s your body count? Who your sponsorship?

Since 2017, Lecrae has been vocal about his own personal struggle and journey with anxiety, which included a time when he was taking Xanax as prescribed by a doctor.
 

On the 2017 track “Worth It,” Lecrae mentioned that stress had led him to be on Xans for a bit before getting off of them.

• I’ve been over-stressin’, I’ve been second guessin’
  I was on them Xans for a second, I was feelin’ so defeated

On the 2022 track “Deconstruction,” Lecrae went into more detail about how his mental, emotional, and spiritual struggle led him to lose his faith in God and look to Xanax for peace of mind.

• I ain’t know if God was real no mo’
  Every day we gettin’ killed and I can’t deal no mo’
  I started slipping in the darkness, I’m feeling heartless
  Christians got me traumatized, I don’t know who God is
  Drinking liquor for my therapy, and smoking Mary tree
  Maybe I should get divorced, I don’t know why she married me
  What’s the purpose? What’s the point?
  Nothing matters, I’m just matter, I’m just atoms
  Ain’t no Eve and ain’t no Adam
  Where the Xannies? Let me at ’em
  I was floating in confusion until I dropped
  Woke up in a clinical depression, then it all stopped
  Sinnin’ like Saul ’til I hit Damascus
  God knocked me off the mule ‘fore I hit the casket
  Heard a faint voice calling me late, I couldn’t sleep
  It said, “‘Crae I know you love Me, I need you to feed My sheep”
  Tears streaming as I weep, felt I heard the Lord speak
  I’ve been running from You, but You never ran away from me

Later in 2024, Lecrae released a podcast episode where he talked at length about his journey with mental health, including his diagnosis for ADHD, anxiety, and depression, along with his positive and negative experiences of taking medications.

Having just called out crooked doctors who have indirectly killed people by overprescribing Xanax, Lecrae shifts his focus to people who have been found guilty and sentenced to time in a prison cell after directly killing an innocent person.
 

This line mirrors the first verse from “Watch the Party Die” where Kendrick rapped:

• We even kill the killers ‘cause they like taking innocent lives

At some level, Lecrae seems to feel genuinely surprised and disappointed to know that some of these killers feel no remorse about taking the life of someone innocent. However, at another level, he is probably not surprised at this lack of remorse based on the earlier lines such as “They hearts grow colder, they love to do evil, they burn they conscience.”

Lecrae also attributes the killers’ lack of remorse to them displaying the “worst ignorance.”
 

At one level, labeling these killers as “ignorant” in a pejorative sense could be seen as an insult or a justification for them to have an even harsher punishment. However, if you take the word “ignorance” at face value, Lecrae is really just pointing out that these killers are unfortunately lacking in knowledge, education, or the ability to comprehend the consequences of their actions.
 

If one recognizes that these killers are really lacking in knowledge, education, and the ability to comprehend consequences, it becomes possible to begin empathizing with them, particularly since they may never have been able to choose between Howard and Hampton.

After expressing his disdain for crooked doctors and killers who feel no remorse, Lecrae suddenly shifts the focus back to himself as he looks in the mirror.
 

This idea of looking in the mirror to examine oneself—particularly to examine one’s own moral choices, virtues, and vices—is one of the most common recurring motifs throughout Kendrick’s albums.
 

On “Bitch, Don’t Kill My Vibe” from good kid, m.A.A.d city, Kendrick talked about a girl who was scared of dealing with her emotions and lived behind a mirror.

• You live in a world, you livin’ behind the mirror
  I know what you’re scared of, the feeling of feeling emotions inferior

On “Poetic Justice” from good kid, m.A.A.d city, Kendrick talked to a girl that he was interested in and told her that authentic love required an individual to look in the mirror.

• Love is not just a verb, it’s you lookin’ in the mirror
  Love is not just a verb, it’s you lookin’ for it, maybe

On “Sing About Me, I’m Dying of Thirst” from good kid, m.A.A.d city, Kendrick began to face his own mistakes that had led to the death of his friend as he rapped.

• Sometimes I look in the mirror
  And ask myself am I really scared of passin’ away?
  If it’s today, I hope I hear a
  Cry out from Heaven so loud it can water down a demon
  With the Holy Ghost ’til it drown in the blood of Jesus
  I wrote some raps that made sure that my lifeline reekin’
  The scent of a reaper, ensurin’ that my allegiance
  With the other side may come soon, and if I’m doomed
  May the womb of my mother be blessed for many moons
  I suffer a lot
  And every day that glass mirror get tougher to watch
  I tie my stomach in knots

On “Real” from good kid, m.A.A.d city, after accepting Jesus as his savior, Kendrick was finally able to see himself clearly in the mirror.

• I do what I wanna do
  I say what I wanna say, when I feel, and I
  Look in the mirror and know I’m there
  With my hands in the air, I’m proud to say yeah
  I’m real, I’m real, I’m really, really, real

On “u” from To Pimp a Butterfly, Kendrick considered committing suicide as he talked to himself in the mirror.

• Should’ve killed yo’ ass long time ago
  You should’ve felt that black revolver blast a long time ago
  And if these mirrors could talk it’d say, “You gotta go”
  And if I told your secrets the world’ll know money can’t stop
  a suicidal weakness

On “i” from To Pimp a Butterfly, Kendrick declared that he loves himself after looking in a mirror.

• As I look around me
  So many motherfuckers wanna down me
  But enemy gon’ never drown me
  In front of a dirty double-mirror they found me
  And I love my, I love myself
  Huh, when you lookin’ at me, ah, tell me what do you see?
  I love myself,
  Ahh, I put a bullet in the back of the back of the head of the poli’
  I love myself
  Uh, illuminated by the hand of God, boy, don’t seem shy
  I love myself
  One day at a time, huh

On “XXX.” from DAMN., Kendrick detailed the murderous pattern of thoughts that characterize America before looking in the mirror and seeing that he is a reflection of America.

• Hail Mary, Jesus, and Joseph
  The great American flag is wrapped and dragged with explosives
  Compulsive disorder, sons and daughters
  Barricaded blocks and borders, look what you taught us
  It’s murder on my street, your street, back streets, Wall Street
  Corporate offices, banks, employees, and bosses with
  Homicidal thoughts, Donald Trump’s in office
  We lost Barack and promised to never doubt him again
  But is America honest or do we bask in sin?
  Pass the gin, I mix it with American blood
  Then bash him in, you Crippin’ or you married to Blood?
  I’ll ask again, oops, accident
  It’s nasty when you set us up then roll the dice, then bet us up
  You overnight the big rifles, then tell Fox to be scared of us
  Gang members or terrorists, et cetera, et cetera
  America’s reflections of me, that’s what a mirror does

The entire DAMN. also seems to be designed so that the first half of the album mirrors the latter half of the album to form a mirrored literary structure known as a “chiasm.”
 

On “Rich Spirit” from Mr. Morale & the Big Steppers, Kendrick questions why a particular man keeps looking at the mirror.

• More power to ya, love ’em from a distance
  Why you always in the mirror more than the bitches?

On “Count Me Out” from Mr. Morale & the Big Steppers, Kendrick was scared by what he saw in the mirror.

• Wipe my ego, dodge my pride
  (And I’m tripping and falling)
  Look myself in the mirror
  Amityville, ain’t seen nothin’ scarier
  …
  When you was at your lowest, tell me where the hoes was at?
  When you was at your lowest, tell me where the bros was at?
  3:30 in the mornin’, scroll through the call log (Huh, huh, huh, huh)
  Ain’t nobody but the mirror lookin’ for the fall off (Brrrt)

On “Mother I Sober,” Kendrick recalled looking in the mirror as a child, recognizing that he was unique and gifted.

• I remember lookin’ in the mirror knowin’ I was gifted
  Only child, me for seven years, everything for Christmas

On “Mirror,” Kendrick personifies “the culture” as a woman as Kendrick tells the personified culture to get a mirror and point it at him to see a reflection of freedom.

• ‘Cause all of it’s toxic
  Girl, I’m not relevant to givin’ on profit
  Personal gain off my pain, it’s nonsense
  Darlin’, my demons is off the leash for a moshpit
  Baby, I just had a baby, you know she need me
  Workin’ on myself, the counselin’ is not easy
  Don’t you point a finger just to point a finger
  ‘Cause critical thinkin’ is a deal-breaker
  Faith in one man is a ship sinking
  Do yourself a favor and get a mirror that mirror grievance
  Then point it at me so the reflection can mirror freedom
  She told me that she need me the most, I didn’t believe her
  She even called me names on the post, the world can see it
  Jokes and gaslightin’
  Mad at me ‘cause she didn’t get my vote, she say I’m triflin’
  Disregardin’ the way that I cope with my own vices
  Maybe it’s time to break it off
  Run away from the culture to follow my heart

Still, the most famous reference to someone looking in the mirror in a popular music song can be found in Michael Jackson’s hit single “Man in the Mirror.” On that track, Michael Jackson sang about his recognition that there were so many people in need while the systems of the world were not making the changes needed to address their needs. Michael Jackson came to the conclusion that any change would need to start with Michael looking in the mirror to see his own selfishness and start to make change in himself and in the world.

• I’m gonna make a change for once in my life
  It’s gonna feel real good
  Gonna make a difference, gonna make it right
  As I turned up the collar on my favorite winter coat
  This wind is blowin’ my mind
  I see the kids in the street with not enough to eat
  Who am I to be blind, pretending not to see their needs?
  A summer’s disregard, a broken bottle top
  And a one man’s soul
  They follow each other on the wind, ya know
  ‘Cause they got nowhere to go
  That’s why I want you to know
  I’m starting with the man in the mirror
  I’m asking him to change his ways
  And no message could have been any clearer
  If you wanna make the world a better place
  Take a look at yourself and then make a change

As Lecrae looks in the mirror, he confesses himself to be a killer.
 

By expressing anger, sadness, and criticism of those who unjustly kill others and then suddenly turning to acknowledge that he himself is a killer, Lecrae depicts himself as a hypocrite similar to Kendrick at the end of the track “Blacker the Berry” from To Pimp a Butterfly.

• So why did I weep when Trayvon Martin was in the street
  When gang-banging make me kill a nigga blacker than me?
  Hypocrite!

In contrast to the “ignorant” “killers sittin’ in they cell” who “don’t feel no remorse,” Lecrae clearly feels a great amount of remorse for being a killer. This remorse is emphasized by the phrase “blood on my hands,” which is usually used to emphasize that a person is responsible for another person’s death even if the responsible person did not directly kill them.

Kendrick has clearly reflected on the story of King David and how the lessons from King David’s story might apply to Kendrick’s own life. Most notably, just a few days before the release of Kendrick’s major label debut album good kid, m.A.A.d city, Kendrick released the track “The Heart Pt. 3” where Kendrick expresses how the pressure he faced as a rising hip hop star made him want to pray and read “the Book of David”.

• ‘Cause when the whole world see you as ‘Pac reincarnated
  Enough pressure to make you just open the Book of David
  And pray to God that you make it or live your life in The Matrix
  ‘Cause falling off is a sickness—I heard that it’s quite contagious

On “The Heart Pt. 3”, Kendrick also mentions a girl named Sherane who would go on to be a pivotal figure in the storyline of good kid, m.A.A.d city.

• Thinking ‘bout when Sherane tried to set me up
  Cold game, full circle—they set up her.

On “Sherane a.k.a Master Splinter’s Daughter”, the first track on good kid, m.A.A.d city, Kendrick tells the story of how a 17-year-old Kendrick met a girl named Sherane at a house party. Kendrick was immediately overwhelmed by sexual desire for Sherane, which caused him to ignore the potential danger that he could get into with Sherane’s male family members who had a history of gang banging. Kendrick thus proceeded to get Sherane’s number, start a texting relationship, and eventually drive to Sherane’s house in hopes of having sex with her.

• I met her at this house party on El Segundo and Central
  She had the credentials of strippers in Atlanta
  Ass came with a hump, from the jump she was a camel
  I want to ride like Arabians, push an ‘04 Mercedes-Benz
  “Hello, my name is Kendrick,” she said, “No, you’re handsome”
  Whispered in my ear, disappeared, then found her dancin’
  Ciara had played in the background
  The parade music we made had us all wearin’ shades now, cool
  “Where you stay?” She said, “Down the street from Dominguez High”
  Okay, I know that’s borderline Compton or Paramount
  “Well, is it Compton?” “No,” she replied
  Then quickly start battin’ her eyes
  I strictly had wanted her thighs around me
  Seventeen with nothin’ but pussy stuck on my mental
  My motive was rather sinful, “What you tryna get into?”
  She didn’t tell, just gave me her Nextel
  Dropped the number, we chirped the whole summer, and, well
  The summer had passed, and now I’m likin’ her
  Conversation we havin’ probably enticin’ her
  Who can imagine? Maybe my actions’ll end up wifin’ her
  Love or lust, regardless, we’ll fuck ‘cause the trife in us
  It’s deep-rooted, the music of bein’ young and dumb
  Is never muted, in fact, it’s much louder where I’m from
  We know a lot ‘bout each other, her mother was a crack addict
  She live with her granny and her younger two brothers
  Her favorite cousin Demetrius is irrepetible
  Family history of gangbangin’ did make me skeptical
  But not enough to stop me from gettin’ a nut
  “I wanna come over, what’s up?”
  That’s what I told her soon as this episode
  Of Martin go off, I’m tryna get off
  I was in heat like a cactus
  My tactics of bein’ thirsty probably could hurt me
  But fuck it, I got some heart
  Grabbed my mama keys, hopped in the car, then, oh boy
  So now I’m down Rosecrans in a Caravan
  Passin’ Alameda, my gas meter in need of a pump
  I got enough to get me through the traffic jam
  At least I hope, ‘cause my pockets broke as a promise, man
  I’m thinkin’ ‘bout that sex
  Thinkin’ ‘bout her thighs or maybe kissin’ on her neck
  or maybe what position’s next
  Sent a picture of her titties, blowin’ up my texts
  I looked at ’em and almost ran my front bumper into Corvette
  Enthused by the touch of a woman, she’s a masseuse
  And I’m a professional pornstar when off the Goose
  I had a fifth in the trunk like Curtis Jackson for ransom
  I’m hopin’ to get her loose like an Uncle Luke anthem

However, when Kendrick pulled up to Sherane’s house, he was questioned and then beaten up by two young Black men in black hoodies.

• I’m two blocks away, two hundred and fifty feet
  And six steps from where she stay, she wavin’ me ‘cross the street
  I pulled up, a smile on my face, and then I see
  Two niggas, two black hoodies, I froze as my phone rang
  -“Sherane a.k.a Master Splinter’s Daughter”
   
  “I’m gon’ ask you one more time, homie, where is you from? Or it is a problem.”
   
  “Ayy, ayy, ayy, ayy, ayy, ask him if he over here for Sherane. Ayy, you over here for Sherane, homie?”
   
  “I don’t care who this nigga over here for, if he don’t tell me where he from, it’s a wrap, I’m sorry”
   
  “Hold up, hold up, hold up, hold up, we gon’ do it like this, okay? I’ma tell you where I’m from, okay? You gon’ tell me where you from, okay? Or, or, or where your grandma stay, where your mama stay, or where your daddy stay, okay?”
   
  “Fuck all this talkin’. As a matter fact, get out the van, homie. Get out the car ‘fore I snatch you out that motherfucker, homie
  -“Poetic Justice”

After getting beaten up, Kendrick made it back to his homies. The homies then found out that Sherane had set Kendrick up to get stomped on, just like Kendrick mentioned on “The Heart Pt. 3”.

• Thinking ‘bout when Sherane tried to set me up
  Cold game, full circle—they set up her.

The homies drove back to Sherane’s neighborhood looking to fire gunshots at the two guys in hoodies who beat Kendrick up. However, this plan for revenge went horribly wrong when the guys in hoodies shot back and killed Kendrick’s friend, Dave, as heard during a skit at the end of “Swimming Pools (Drank) - Extended Version”.

• ”They stomped the homie out over a bitch? K-Dot, you good, blood? Now we can drop, ye we can drop you back off"  
  “That nigga’s straight, man, that nigga ain’t trippin’”  
  “We gon’ do the same ol’ shit. I’ma pop a few shots, they gon’ ru—they run opposite way, fall right in [BLEEP]’s lap and he gon’ tear they ass up, simple as that”
   
  “And I hope that bitch that set him up, out there. We gon’ pop that bitch too”  
  “Wait hold up, ayy, I see somebody”
   
  [Car door opens and gunshots are fired]
   
  “Aha! Got them niggas, K-Dot, you good?”
   
  “L[BLEEP], you good?”
   
  “Yeah, blood, I’m good – Dave, you good? Dave? Dave, say somethin’ – Dave? These bitch-ass niggas killed my brother!”

Right after that scene from the end of “Swimming Pools (Drank) - Extended Version”, the album transitions into the pivotal track, “Sing About Me, I’m Dying of Thirst”. In the first verse of “Sing About Me, I’m Dying of Thirst”, Kendrick raps from the perspective of Dave’s brother as Kendrick describes himself literally and metaphorically having “blood on his hands”.

• And last night was just another distraction
  Or a reaction of what we consider madness
  I know exactly what happened
  You ran outside when you heard my brother cry for help
  Held him like a newborn baby and made him feel
  Like everything was alright in a fight he tried to put up
  But the type of bullet that stuck
  Had went against his will, as blood spilled on your hands
  My plan’s rather vindictive
  Everybody’s a victim in my eyes
  When I ride it’s a murderous rhythm
  And outside became pitch black
  A demon glued to my back, whispering “Get ’em!”
  I got ’em and I ain’t give a fuck
  That same mentality that told my brother not to duck

good kid, m.A.A.d. city thus tells the story of how Kendrick’s uncontrolled sexual desire led to the death of his loyal friend, Dave, which mirrors how King David’s uncontrolled sexual desire led to the death of his loyal soldier, Uriah.

In contrast to Kendrick, Lecrae has never given any indication that he was significantly involved with any shooting or gang activity that could have led to someone’s death. We may then wonder why Lecrae claims that he has “blood on his hands”.
 

Given that Lecrae’s confession about being a killer is tied to a confession about having sex with someone with whom he shouldn’t have been having sex, it is likely that Lecrae is alluding to an earlier period of his life when he impregnated a woman who later had an abortion.
 

The choices that led to the abortion happened after Lecrae had already become a Christian and, in theory, accepted the idea that he shouldn’t have sex outside of marriage. However, like King David, Lecrae’s old habits and desires drove him to remain sexually active with a girlfriend. Like Bathsheba, the girlfriend at some point told Lecrae that she was pregnant.
 

Due to the influence of the Christian community that he was part of, Lecrae had theoretically accepted the idea that he should not advocate for an abortion in this particular situation. The girlfriend was also apparently open to the idea of keeping the pregnancy. However, Lecrae was unwilling to take on the responsibility of becoming a father while risking his opportunities and image, so he helped sway the girl towards the decision of having an abortion.
 

Lecrae recounts the true story of this abortion on the first verse of “Good, Bad, Ugly”.

• Remember back in ‘02
  When I was in school and actin’ a fool
  My soul got saved
  My debt had been paid
  But still I kept running off with my crew
  Sex on my brain and death in my veins
  Had a main thang we stayed up til 2
  Smokin’
  Waking and bakin’ we naked
  My body was lovin’ it
  Soul was hatin’ it
  Time and time after time
  Our bodies grew close the girl was so fine
  Heard a heart beat that wasn’t hers or mine
  The miracle of life had started inside
  My God
  Ignored the warning signs
  Supressed that truth I felt inside
  I was just havin’ fun with this
  I’m too young for this
  I’m thinkin’ me myself and I
  Should I sacrifice this life
  To keep my vanity and live nice
  And she love and trust me so much
  That whatever I say she’ll probably oblige
  But I was too selfish with my time
  Scared my dreams were not gone survive
  So I dropped her off at that clinic
  That day a part of us died

Since Lecrae has held to the conviction that an unborn child with a heartbeat is a life, when Lecrae looks in the mirror, he sees himself as a killer who took the life of somebody innocent. Rather than taking the life of a loyal neighbor like Uriah, Lecrae likely feels even more guilty about taking the life of what would have been his firstborn child.

We never actually hear what Lecrae intended to say after “I’m that—”. It seems like Lecrae is censoring his own lyrics, similar to how Kendrick censored his own lyrics on the third verse of “Watch the Party Die” when Kendrick mentioned Lecrae by name as he rapped:

• Sometimes I wonder what Lecrae would do
  Fuck these niggas up or show ’em just what prayer do?
  I want to be empathetic, my heart like Dee-1
  But I will—

With Kendrick’s lines from “Watch the Party Die”, we didn’t arrive at much certainty about what exactly the uncensored line would have been. However, in the case of Lecrae’s censored line, we do have some more potential clues. In particular, we can note that the bar before the censored line ends with Lecrae saying “I’m that killer” and the bar after the censored line ends with Lecrae saying “I’m that sinner”. If the censored line is following the pattern of those other two lines, we could expect that the censored part of the line should be a single two-syllable word which has a short “i” in the first syllable and an “er” sound ending the second syllable. Of all words that would fit these requirements, the most likely choice would be the word “nigger”, which would mean that the uncensored line is “I’m that nigger”.
 

Censoring the word “nigger” would make a lot of sense for Lecrae since Lecrae releases music in the Christian hip hop sub-genre where explicit songs with profanity or racial epithets are not socially acceptable to most of the core audience.

The phrase “I’m that nigga” is a very popular catchphrase within mainstream hip hop culture and has been used in the lyrics of countless rappers to depict themselves as strong, proud, hyper-masculine individuals who can get money by any means necessary, intimidate their enemies, and have sex with the most attractive women wherever they go.
 

The popularity of the phrase “I’m that nigga” can likely be traced back to the soul singer Curtis Mayfield’s 1972 song “Pusherman,” which plays during the opening scene of the 1972 blaxploitation film Super Fly. Super Fly glorifies the life of a successful drug dealer who boasts of having lots of money and having sex with lots of women. Within the context of “Pusherman,” this drug dealer refers to himself by saying, “I’m that nigga in the alley.”

• I’m your mama, I’m your daddy
  I’m that nigga in the alley
  I’m your doctor when in need
  Want some coke? Have some weed
  You know me, I’m your friend
  Your main boy, thick and thin
  I’m your pusherman
  I’m your pusherman
  …
  Ain’t I clean? Bad machine
  Super cool, super mean
  Feelin’ good for the man
  Super fly, here I stand
  Secret stash, heavy bread
  Baddest bitches in the bed
  …
  Silent life
  Of crime
  A man of odd circumstance
  A victim of ghetto demands
  Feed me money for style
  And I’ll let you trip for a while
  Insecure from the past
  How long can a good thing last?
  …
  Heavy mind, heavy sign
  Makin’ money, all the time
  My ‘El D’ and just me
  For all junkies to see
  Ghetto prince is my thing
  Makin’ love’s how I swing

By seemingly alluding to the censored phrase “I’m that nigger,” Lecrae once again examines himself in the mirror and sees that his past attitudes toward women, sex, and success at the expense of others make him no different from the drug-dealing protagonist of Super Fly or the dealer who sold Lecrae’s cousin fentanyl.

While using profanity or racial epithets is not socially acceptable to most of Christian hip hop’s core audience, one particularly notable and early example of a Christian hip hop artist pushing back against audience expectations can be found on Sho Baraka’s 2013 track “Chapter 9: Jim Crow,” whose hook prominently features the word “nigga.”

• I feel I’m trapped in a crazy place
  Asking the Lord for amazing grace
  I see the masses wanna change me
  I’m waiting for someone to save me until then, until then
  I guess I’m stuck here on nigga island
  Yeah, where niggas be wylin
  Yeah, and color is violence

“Chapter 9: Jim Crow” delivers a stinging criticism of the legacy of Jim Crow segregation laws, white supremacy, and the exploitation of Black people in America, though as expected, the track was very controversial within the Christian hip hop community.

• Yeah, I am the invisible man though I have a soul I am from an invisible land
  They gave me a slave pen for my freedom of speech
  Yeah I’m tryin’ to leave the island but swimming through bleach
  Come on son, why you always ruin the mood
  Race talks happen every time you enter the room
  Cuz there’s ignorance in the masses
  Too many people think racism is past tense
  We fight for blackness but we don’t know what black is
  I know it ain’t the zero sum of white man
  They wanna know how to reach the hood like there’s magic
  Like we’re all the same, huh like we’re not dynamic
  Hollywood wants to pimp us to get dough
  Exploit us but give us money, somebody say h
  Yeah let’s thank those movies and them TV shows
  Be a token or a player, Uncle Tom row
  Or be a magic negro until the day I’m gone
  Hope the white man reach his goal but never reach my own
  Or an oxed male, even a coon
  A young man who loves ignorance praisin’ his doom, until then
  … Say hello to the great cultural brain wash
  Washin’ my brain from some of the things that race taught
  Miseducate, colonize, divide
  Teach beauty is straight hair and the bluest of eyes
  And because of lies I’m debating five percenters
  How the mid-east movement gon’ be a white man’s religion
  How the privileged man say it’s time to move forward
  And say the game’s fair when he monopolize the board
  And corporate greed just manipulates the poor
  Outside the hood I don’t see liquor stores
  I know God is sovereign and I should pray about it
  But a man won’t stop it if it increases his profits
  And most ain’t realistic with the flow
  They make music for the streets but I don’t see ’em at the show
  So instead of truth they’d rather be duped
  I guess they want me to make more songs for youth groups, until then…
  … Yeah I got a double consciousness but I’m still in touch
  Cops got my hands in the air so I ain’t feelin’ much
  Lookin’ for protection all I can see is tyrants
  I’m fightin’ them coons and thugs racists and dyin’ honors
  That lady you call ho, that’s my lover
  That woman you call bitch, that’s my mother
  Them boys that you killed, them my brothers
  Send the ship to the island we can rescue some others
  Did they fight for civil rights so we could sit on gold
  I can’t walk in your shoes, you keep sellin’ your soul
  No, ain’t much Booker T when you look at me
  But a whole lot of Du Bois makin’ noise until then

Following the censored word, Lecrae’s comparative self-examination goes back to the beginning of time as he seems to be saying…

• I’m that nigger who let Eve taste the forbidden fruit

Here, Lecrae is comparing himself to Adam, the prototypical first man from the first narrative section in the first book of the Bible.
 

• In this first biblical narrative section, God creates humanity and places humanity in a paradise garden in a delightful area called “Eden”. God provides humanity with an abundance of delicious fruit trees to eat.
   
• God splits humanity into a male and a female. The male was later referred to as “Adam,” which means “human,” while the female was referred to as “Eve,” which means “life.”
   
• God tells Adam and Eve that they can live forever in the delightful garden if they follow God’s one commandment: to not eat the fruit from one particular tree. However, if anyone eats the fruit from this particular tree, that person will die. This “forbidden” tree is the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil and represents the choice to redefine what actions should be considered good and bad without having to listen to God’s instructions.
   
• However, one day a spiritual figure speaks to Eve in the form of a snake and suggests that she should eat the fruit from the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil. Initially, Eve restrains herself by recounting God’s instruction that she will die if she eats the fruit. However, the snake convinces Eve that God had not told her the truth and is holding her back from gaining great wisdom and becoming like God.
   
• Eve then eats the forbidden fruit and also gives some of the fruit to Adam, who also eats the fruit despite knowing God’s instructions. Immediately, the two of them realize that they are naked and vulnerable to being taken advantage of by the other. Adam and Eve then make clothes to cover their vulnerability and shame.
   
• When God comes to confront Adam and Eve about the decision to eat the forbidden fruit, both of them try to shift blame—to each other, to the snake, or even to God—rather than taking responsibility for their own actions.
   
• God then forces Adam and Eve into exile outside the delightful paradise garden, where they will eventually die without access to the life-giving fruit that God had actually permitted them to eat in the garden.

Similar to Adam, Lecrae knew God’s instructions, which forbade him from having sex outside of a lifelong commitment to his partner, but due to his own desires and the snake-like influence of peers, music, movies, TV shows, and drugs, Lecrae disregarded God’s instructions, thinking that he could decide for himself what sexual behavior should be considered good and bad. Lecrae’s decision to disregard God’s instruction ultimately led to the death of his relationship with his girlfriend and the end of what would have been Lecrae’s firstborn child.
 

However, now, as Lecrae examines himself in the mirror, he takes responsibility for his own actions, including those that led to the abortion. Lecrae even takes responsibility for some of the choices that his girlfriend might now regret, as he says that he was the one who “let Eve taste the fruit of death.” When applied to Lecrae’s own situation with the abortion, Lecrae seems to be acknowledging that he failed in his responsibility to prevent his girlfriend from facing the tough decision of getting an abortion.

First and foremost, Lecrae seems to be acknowledging that he played a significant role in getting his girlfriend to have sex with him. Moreover, as Lecrae mentioned in “Good, Bad, Ugly,” his girlfriend had such strong feelings for him that she probably would have kept the baby if Lecrae had been willing and supportive. However, from Lecrae’s perspective, his selfish focus on his own pleasure and success placed his girlfriend in a position where having an abortion seemed to be the wisest choice.

• And she love and trust me so much
  That whatever I say she’ll probably oblige
  But I was too selfish with my time
  Scared my dreams were not gone survive
  So I dropped her off at that clinic
  That day a part of us died

By depicting himself as Adam, Lecrae is also depicting himself as the prototypical sinner.
 

In biblical terminology, the word “sin” is used to refer to a failure to achieve a goal or reach a destination or follow directions.
 

In the Bible, Adam and Eve are presented as the first sinners because they failed to follow the direction that God had given them and thus failed to achieve their goal of continuing to live in the delightful garden.
 

While later biblical characters do not receive the same directions that God gave to Adam and Eve, the authors of the Bible conveyed the idea that God does provide directions that are meant to be followed by all humans. Most notably, the prophet Micah addresses a prototypical human using the Hebrew word “adam” and says that God requires humans to “act with justice, show mercy to others, and be humble.”

• The LORD has shown you, O human (Hebrew: adam), what is good.
  What does the LORD require of you, but to act with justice,
  to love mercy, and to walk humbly with your God?
  -Micah 6:8

Based on the prophet Micah’s summary of God’s directions, humans sin when they act in a way that is unjust, unmerciful or pridefully unconcerned with others. Based on this criteria, Lecrae would likely see his past actions as truly sinful not necessarily because it broke some clearly stated rule about sex or abortions, but because he clearly acted in a way that focused on exalting his own pleasure and pride regardless of whether such actions led to outcomes that were unjust or unmerciful for his girlfriend or for his potential firstborn child.

From a modern perspective, it sounds extreme and unreasonable for Lecrae to say that he deserves death for having sex outside of a committed relationship, whether or not this led to an abortion. However, within the context of this verse, these lines should be understood as part of Lecrae comparing himself to King David and Adam.
 

Recall that when God sent the prophet Nathan to confront King David for murdering his neighbor after committing adultery with his neighbor’s wife, God acknowledged that David deserved to die for his unjust actions. However, because David repented, God forgave David and did not condemn David to death.
 

Moreover, going back to the beginning of the Bible, God told Adam that if he ate the fruit from the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil, he would die, which is what eventually happened after Adam sinned by disobeying God’s commandment.
 

Later in the New Testament section of the Bible, in his letter to the Church in Rome, St. Paul reflects on how the sin of breaking God’s law leads to death for Adam, who represents all of humanity.

• Therefore as sin entered into the world through one human, and death through sin; so death passed to all humans, because all sinned…death reigned from Adam until Moses, even over those whose sins were not like the violation of trust from Adam, who is a prototype of him who was to come
  -Romans 5:12-14

This idea of sin as a failure to act with justice, love mercy, and be humble, which ultimately leads to the spread of death to all humans, is an idea that Kendrick has explored, most notably in the intro to the track “PRIDE.”.

• Love’s gonna get you killed
  But pride’s gonna be the death of you and you and me
  And you and you and you and me
  And you and you and you and me
  And you and you and you and me and—

If Lecrae’s past actions are part of the problem that leads to the cycle of sin and death, it follows that Lecrae is thus deserving of death.

Lecrae acknowledges that his past actions have shown him to be a liar and a hypocrite.
 

If Lecrae is a liar, the natural conclusion is that he deserves to die along with the other targets of Kendrick’s execution orders on “Watch the Party Die”.

• I think it’s time to watch the party die
  Street niggas and the corporate guys,
  the rappers that report the lies
  I need they families mortified
  We can do life without ’em. Get they bodies organized.

It is also notable that throughout the battle with Drake, Kendrick repeatedly accused Drake of being a liar, as we discussed in the analysis of the line “the rappers that report the lies”.
 

By acknowledging himself as a “liar and hypocrite”, Lecrae seems to be saying that he is no better than those who have “burned their own conscience” and negatively influenced others, as St. Paul discussed in his first letter to Timothy and Lecrae alluded to earlier when he said, “They hearts grow colder, they love to do evil, they burn they conscience.”

• The Spirit explicitly says that in later times some will fall away from the faith, paying attention to deceitful spirits and teachings of demons, under the influence of liars and hypocrites who have burned their own conscience as with a branding iron.
  -1 Timothy 4:1-2

The word “hypocrite” entered into the English language through its use in translations of the original Greek New Testament Gospel accounts. In Greek, the word “hypokritēs” originally referred to a stage actor who wears a mask and assumes a role in a play.
 

In the Gospel accounts, Jesus uses the word “hypocrite” as a pejorative criticism of his people’s religious leaders who performed religious practices such as prayer, fasting, and charity primarily so that they could be seen and honored by other people like an actor looking for applause from an audience. Hence, their religious practices were not rooted in actual love for God or love for other people. Instead, their religious practices were rooted in self-centered focus on their own status, power, and fame.
 

Lecrae seems to recognize that he was clearly being a “hypocrite” or “stage actor” when he publicly claimed to be a Christian who follows God’s instructions while privately disobeying God’s instructions and leading his girlfriend to have an abortion to selfishly preserve his own dreams of becoming a famous rapper.
 

It is notable that in the first few lines of “euphoria”, Kendrick’s first battle track that directly aimed at Drake, Kendrick referred to Drake as an “actor”.

• Them super powers gettin’ neutralized, I can only watch in silence
  The famous actor we once knew is lookin’ paranoid and now is spiralin'

Also, on the battle track “meet the grahams”, Kendrick implores Drake to take off the mask that he has been using to play his staged role as he repeatedly lied about everything that was important.

• Take that mask off, I wanna see what’s under them achievements
  Why believe you? You never gave us nothin’ to believe in
  ‘Cause you lied about religious views, you lied about your surgery
  You lied about your accent and your past tense, all is perjury
  You lied about your ghostwriters, you lied about your crew members
  They all pussy, you lied on ’em, I know they all got you in ’em
  You lied about your son, you lied about your daughter, huh
  You lied about them other kids that’s out there hopin’ that you come
  You lied about the only artist that can offer you some help

However, back in 2015, when Drake and rapper Meek Mill released diss tracks that began over allegations that Drake had used ghostwriters, Kendrick also released the To Pimp a Butterfly track “Blacker the Berry”, where Kendrick acknowledged that he was actually the biggest hypocrite of the year when he spoke about bringing peace and unity within the Black community even though he was responsible for killing another young Black man.

• I’m the biggest hypocrite of 2015
  Once I finish this, witnesses will convey just what I mean
  …
  I’m the biggest hypocrite of 2015
  When I finish this, if you listen, then sure you will agree
  …
  It’s funny how Zulu and Xhosa might go to war
  Two tribal armies that wanna build and destroy
  Remind me of these Compton Crip gangs that live next door
  Beefin’ with Pirus, only death settle the score
  So don’t matter how much I say I like to preach with the Panthers
  Or tell Georgia State “Marcus Garvey got all the answers”
  Or try to celebrate February like it’s my B-Day
  Or eat watermelon, chicken, and Kool-Aid on weekdays
  Or jump high enough to get Michael Jordan endorsements
  Or watch BET ‘cause urban support is important
  So why did I weep when Trayvon Martin was in the street
  When gang-banging make me kill a nigga blacker than me?
  Hypocrite!

Now, with Kendrick’s own battle against Drake in 2024, Kendrick seems to have lost the spiritual clarity that he had back in 2015 when he recognized that he might be the biggest hypocrite.

Lecrae calls out “fake tough rappers” who make up or “fabricate” the challenging situations or predicaments that they have gone through, likely in order to objain credibility from “street niggas”. Lecrae seems to point to such rappers as an example of the “liars and hypocrites” whom he is no better than.

These “fake tough rappers” who “fabricate” their “predicaments” seems be included among the “steet niggas” and “rappers that report the lies” who Kendrick ordered to be executed in the first few lines of the second verse of “Watch the Party Die”.

• I think it’s time to watch the party die
  Street niggas and the corporate guys
  the rappers that report the lies
  I need they families mortified
  We can do life without ’em. Get they bodies organized.

The term “voodoo” refers to a set of spiritual beliefs and practices that mix indigenous forms of West African spirituality with certain aspects of Roman Catholic Christianity. Voodoo developed after enslaved Africans were brought to Haiti, Louisiana, and other French-speaking areas of the Western Hemisphere.
 

While voodoo incorporates aspects of Roman Catholic Christianity, most traditional branches of Christianity have consistently rejected voodoo as satanic or, at the very least, incompatible with a traditional understanding of Christian belief and practice.
 

As a Christian rapper and one of the most influential Black voices among Millennial and Gen Z Christians, Lecrae’s antagonism toward fake deep spiritual gurus is likely due to the fact that an increasing number of Millennials and Gen Z Americans are drifting far away from churches, Christianity, and “organized religion” while still retaining a strong sense of personal spirituality.
 

This outlook is often referred to as being “spiritual but not religious” and is seen as a way to pick and choose the spiritual practices that a person sees as most appealing or beneficial while being free to reject rules, structure, authority, or beliefs that do not align with a modern, liberal, secular perspective.
 

Individuals who align themselves with the “spiritual but not religious” perspective are often attracted to various Eastern spiritual practices from Hinduism and Buddhism such as meditation, chanting, astrology, burning incense, crystal healing, herbal medicine, and certain forms of yoga.
 

These practices were popularized in America after the counterculture movements of the 1960s, which largely rejected existing Western values and beliefs associated with Christianity and paved the way for “New Age” spirituality. This form of spirituality adopted the aforementioned Eastern spiritual practices from Hinduism and Buddhism and combined them with some reinterpretations of Christianity and a modern, liberal, secular perspective.
 

The growth of the New Age movement in 1960s and 1970s America was aided by several spiritual gurus who came from India or other places in Asia and taught various practices and ways of thought to those who were interested in what would come to be known as New Age spirituality.
 

In order to authentically transmit ideas and perspectives from Hinduism, Buddhism, and other Eastern spiritual traditions to people who were raised in a Western culture deeply influenced by Christianity, these gurus would often challenge or de-emphasize certain traditional Christian beliefs, such as the idea that there is a single God who should be worshiped.
 

It is notable that those who adopted New Age spirituality in the 1960s and 1970s were primarily White Americans. At that time, the vast majority of Black Americans identified as Christian, with less than ten percent identifying as non-religious, Muslim, or following some other non-Christian religion.
 

However, as Millennial and Gen Z individuals became teenagers and adults in the early 2000s, a significant number of young Black Americans began to identify themselves as spiritual but not religious, including many who were raised by parents who identified as Christian.
 

Along with this increase in individuals who identified as spiritual but not religious, an increasing number of Black Americans began to adopt various Eastern spiritual practices and beliefs that had been popularized by the New Age movement and spiritual gurus in the 1960s and 1970s.
 

Additionally, by the 2010s, a growing number of African Americans began to incorporate various practices from indigenous African spiritual traditions, most notably practices from Ifa, a spiritual tradition from the Yoruba region in Nigeria, Benin, and Togo.
 

Due to the displacement of the transatlantic slave trade, enslaved Africans brought Ifa and other indigenous spiritual traditions to the Western Hemisphere, where they were often mixed with certain aspects of Christianity to form new spiritual traditions such as Santeria in Cuba, Candomblé in Brazil, Vodou in Haiti, and Voodoo in Louisiana.
 

All of these traditions include many core practices from Ifa such as the worship of numerous deities (originally known as Orisha), sacrificial offerings, divination to communicate with deities or predict the future, ancestor veneration, and rituals to induce a worshiper to be possessed by spirits.
 

The increased interest and adoption of Ifa-inspired practices can be seen in many hip hop and R&B projects released in the decade prior to the release of “Watch the Party Die” and “Die for the Party.”
 

• “High & Holy”, the final track on Killer Mike’s Grammy-winning 2023 album, MICHAEL, opens with a Yoruba speaker praying to Ifa’s Orisha deities and the bones of ancestors.

  • Je ki owo…wa…
    Je ki alafia fun wa
    Je ki ere … fun wa
    Je ki Olodumare ati orisha ati gbobo egun
    Aribo Baba wa, Olodumare bless the west
     

• Jay-Z has made numerous references to spiritual connections with ancestors and Orisha deities from Ifa, Santeria, and Voodoo.

  • *My saint’s Changó, light a candle
    El Gran Santo on the mantle
    -“Pound Cake”
     
    What ancestors did you summon to the summit
    To give me what I needed, what you need to take from ’em
    -“Adnis”
     
    I got bloodlines in Benin, that explains the voodoo
    -“We Family”
     
    I’m a miracle born with imperial features
    I’m a page turner, sage burner, Santeria
    Chongón, December baby, my Orishas
    Saint Hov, story takes place in ancient Egypt
    They’ll cut off the nose to spite their face, they’ll steal ya Jesus
    I can’t tell Hattie White that blue-eyed version is make believe stuff
    -“The Neverending Story”

• Still, the most visible examples of Ifa’s influence on African American popular culture can be seen in Beyoncé’s films for Lemonade and Black Is King.
   

• On both Lemonade and Black Is King, Beyoncé surrounds herself with water and wears a flowing yellow dress that seems to be a nod to traditional depictions of the Ifa sex, fertility, and river deity, Oshun.
   

• On Black Is King, Beyoncé also wears outfits that seem to be inspired by other Ifa deities including Obatala, Yemoja Oba, and Oshumare.
   

• One scene in Black Is King also shows Beyoncé looking through Robert Farris Thompson’s illustrated book Black Gods and Kings, which contains numerous pictures and descriptions of Yoruba artwork that often depicts Ifa deities.
   

• The most direct acknowledgments of Ifa are found on Black Parade, the song that plays during the film credits and at the end of the album. On “Black Parade,” Beyoncé makes numerous references to Ifa deities, attending Ifa ceremonies, praying to ancestors, and adopting New Age practices.

  • Growin’, growin’ like a Baobab tree
    Of life on fertile ground, my ancestors put me on game
    Ankh charm on gold chains, with my Oshun energy, oh
    Drip all on me, woo, Ankara Dashiki print
    Hol’ up, don’t I smell like such a nag champa incense?
    …
    I charge my crystals in a full moon
    You could send them missiles, I’ma send my goons
    Baby sister reppin’ Yemaya (Yemaya)
    …
    Waist beads from Yoruba (Woo)
    …
    Children’ runnin’ through the house to my art, all black
    Ancestors on the wall, let the ghosts chit-chat
    Hold my hands, we gon’ pray together
    Lay down, face down in the gravel
    Woo, wearin’ all attire white to the funeral
    Black love, we gon’ stay together

Given this cultural backdrop, Lecrae likely sees voodoo as detrimental to his community because voodoo might serve as an alternative religion for Black Americans who are considering abandoning their faith in Jesus, and thus abandoning the ethical and moral teachings that Lecrae believes are essential for personal and communal well-being.

In many cases, African Americans have distanced themselves from Christianity, embraced New Age or Voodoo spiritual practices, and in some cases tried to convince others that the God Christianity is not real because they see Christianity as a “White man’s religion” that is primarily associated with Western Europe, colonialism, slavery, segregation, and racism.
 

The fact that Western cultures tend to depict Jesus as a White European further emphasizes the perception that Christians worship “the White man’s god”.
 

With the line “tellin’ folks that my God ain’t real” Lecrae pushes back against these seemingly racially charged accusations against Christianity by saying “my God” which emphasizes his deeply personal connection to God that is not based on White people, American identity or Western culture.
 

It is notable that over the course of the previous seven years, Lecrae had rapped about his journey and struggles with reconciling his Black identity with negative racial experiences among Christians that caused Lecrae to doubt whether God is real.
 

On “Come and Get Me”, Lecrae rapped about how prior to his rap career, his mother taught him not let the American education system fool him into thinking that God is a White man.

• Twenty-four years old, my momma brought me to the globe
  Tried to tell me it was cold and taught me how to keep the coat
  Now, now, now she told me to go to school and get my education
  But remember there’s a bias to them books that they be makin’
  Gave me, Soul on Ice and taught me
  ‘Bout the Middle Passage, told me
  God ain’t white and that there’s
  More to life than rap

Meanwhile, on the song “Deconstruction”, Lecrae raps about a period of his career in the 2010s when White Christians criticized and rejected him for speaking out about racial injustice and the killings of unarmed Black men. This criticism from White Christians pushed Lecrae towards the influence of several non-Christian Black thinkers who led him to doubt whether God was real.

• I would speak at churches, hang with leaders and such
  You know, Judah, Piper, and Keller, Tony Evans was clutch
  I was so involved, never thought that I could fall, y’all
  Right before the fall of 2015, I was all off
  It involved killing Michael Brown, had me feeling down
  Tweeted ‘bout it, Christians call me clown, I was losing ground
  And Voddie was a hero of mine, met with him plenty times
  This time, when he spoke, it cut me deeper than I realized
  Doubled-down, spoke about my pain, I was met with blame
  “Shame on you, ‘Crae, stop crying, get back to Jesus’ name”
  Cut me deep, I was losing sleep, “God, ain’t these Your sheep?”
  Why they hate me like they do? Maybe grace is really cheap
  Maybe this is all a lie, they don’t really love me
  They just love it when I say the things they wanna hear in public
  They’re like following they God mean turnin’ on Black people
  Is Black evil? Why do they hate and attack people?
  I’m vulnerable and cautious, I’m reading Baldwin
  Ta-Nehisi got me thinking, now I’m going all in
  I ain’t know if God was real no mo’
  Every day we gettin’ killed and I can’t deal no mo’
  I started slipping in the darkness, I’m feeling heartless
  Christians got me traumatized, I don’t know who God is

However, after a struggle with depression led him to the rock bottom, Lecrae eventually came to realize Americans living in Western society were often missing the context of the biblical Gospel accounts which might cause them to act in ways that do not reflect Jesus’s teaching and are contrary to God’s love. Lecrae discussed this breakthrough on “Can’t Stop Me Now (Destination)” and “Deconstruction”.

• And recently I found a peace to be
  Everything that I was meant to be
  This my identity, this what He give to me
  This what I’m made to be
  My daddy still on that crack
  And he might never come back
  But I still love the man, I don’t judge the man
  I could be on that track
  I’m glad that Jesus ain’t American
  And that’s the reason why I care again
  People started praying for me
  And homies tellin’ me I was being arrogant
  I quit poppin’ them pills
  And even though we get killed
  I know that God got a greater plan
  For the death and blood that we spill
  So tell depression it can fly away
  Tell my doubts that they can die today
  I’ma catch me a wave, sail away
  Can’t stop me now
  -“Can’t Stop Me Now (Destination)”
   
  Heard a faint voice calling me late, I couldn’t sleep
  It said, “‘Crae I know you love Me, I need you to feed My sheep”
  Tears streaming as I weep, felt I heard the Lord speak
  I’ve been running from You, but You never ran away from me
  It was people that hurt me, it wasn’t God, though
  I let the church trauma turn into a God wound
  I learned the western world has twisted up the Scriptures, so when I re-enlisted
  I learned the eastern context the way that Jesus meant it
  My peace has been cemented, my soul has been re-lifted
  My deconstruction ended, reconstruction is beginning
  -“Deconstruction”

Having personally gone through his own mental and spiritual crisis of faith, Lecrae now seems to now have a deeper, more personal connection with his God.
 

Lecrae is also particularly critical of “fake deep gurus” whose shallow teachings could lead other Black Christians to unnecessarily go through the kind of mental and spiritual crisis that Lecrae went through.

Lecrae goes so far as to say that the fake deep gurus who lead Black people away from God are participating in “real evil”.
 

From Lecrae’s perspective, if his God is the source of all that is good, it naturally follows that pushing people away from God is pushing them away from experiencing good and towards experiencing evil.
 

This pattern of leading God’s people to doubt God’s goodness and seek wisdom outside the bounds of a relationship with God is the same pattern that is depicted in the biblical Garden of Eden narrative where the snake convinces Adam and Eve to distrust God and acquire wisdom by eating the forbidden fruit from the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil.
 

• Now the snake was more shrewd than any animal of the field which the LORD God had made. He said to the woman, “Has God really said, ‘You shall not eat of any tree of the garden’?”.
   
  The woman said to the snake, “We may eat fruit from the trees of the garden, but not the fruit of the tree which is in the middle of the garden. God has said, ‘You shall not eat of it. You shall not touch it, lest you die.’”
   
  The snake said to the woman, “You won’t really die, for God knows that in the day you eat it, your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.”
   
  When the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was a delight to the eyes, and that the tree was desirable to make one wise, she took some of its fruit, and ate. Then she gave some to her husband with her, and he ate it, too.
  -Genesis 3:1-6

Throughout the New Testament, the snake is connected to the figure that is the primary source of evil who is known as the devil meaning “false accuser”, the satan meaning “adversary” or the “evil one”. This figure is described as someone who snatches away Jesus’s words about God’s rulership over humans and fights against the spiritual forces of good.

• When anyone hears the word of the Kingdom and doesn’t understand it, the evil one comes and snatches away that which has been sown in his heart.
  -Matthew 13:19
   
  For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the elemental forces, against the powers, against the world’s rulers of the darkness of this age, and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places. Therefore put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand. Stand therefore, having the utility belt of truth buckled around your waist, and having put on the breastplate of righteousness, and having fitted your feet with the preparation of the Good News of peace, above all, take up the shield of faith, with which you will be able to extinguish all the fiery arrows of the evil one. And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.
  -Ephesians 6:12-17
   
  There was war in the heavens. Michael and his angels made war on the dragon. The dragon and his angels made war. They didn’t prevail. No place was found for them any more in heaven. The great dragon was thrown down, the old serpent, he who is called the devil and Satan, the deceiver of the whole world. He was thrown down to the earth, and his angels were thrown down with him.
  -Revelation 12:7-9

Hence, by saying “that’s real evil” Lecrae seems to be asserting that the “fake deep gurus” are doing the work of the evil one by trying to snatch away people’s belief in God’s word and using shrewd but deceptive arguments to deconstruct Christian faith.

Lecrae refers to himself in the third person as he quotes from Kendrick’s line from “Watch the Party Die”.

• Sometimes I wonder what Lecrae would do
  Fuck these niggas up or show ’em just what prayer do?
  …
  A nigga wonder what Lecrae would do

Lecrae now seems to be posing the question to himself. Lecrae thus shows a notable amount of self-awareness and humility by recognizing that none of us really know what we would do if we were placed in the exact same situation as another person. This is essentially the same point Lecrae made earlier when he reflected on Kendrick and said “I can’t imagine his position”.
 

After looking in the mirror and confessing his own hypocrisy and injustice against the innocent, Lecrae seems keenly aware of the fact that he does not always act in a way that is consistent with his words, his beliefs, or with Jesus’s teaching.
 

Lecrae’s humility and awareness of his human limitations lead him to simply hope that he would do what he thinks is the right thing to do, namely to “seek the hand of God” and tell other people that Lecrae is himself incapable of always doing the right thing.

While Lecrae cannot be sure what he would actually do if he was placed in Kendrick’s position, he hopes that he would “seek the hand of God”.
 

In biblical literature, God’s “hand” symbolizes God’s ability to help, rescue, and save his people from their enemies and any forces of evil who would try to enslave them.
 

Within the Bible, this literary and symbolic reference to God’s hand is first used in a poetic song that the prophet Moses sang after God rescued the Israelite people out of slavery in Egypt, parted a sea for them to pass through to safety while drowning the Egyptians who were trying to re-enslave them.

• Then Moses and the children of Israel sang this song to the LORD, and said,
  “I will sing to the LORD, for he has triumphed gloriously.
  He has thrown the horse and his rider into the sea.
  The LORD is my strength and song.
  He has become my salvation.
  This is my God, and I will praise him;
  my father’s God, and I will exalt him.
  The LORD is a man of war.
  The LORD is his name.
  He has cast Pharaoh’s chariots and his army into the sea.
  His chosen captains are sunk in the Red Sea.
  The deeps cover them.
  They went down into the depths like a stone.
  Your right hand, the LORD, is glorious in power.
  Your right hand, the LORD, dashes the enemy in pieces.
  In the greatness of your excellency, you overthrow those who rise up against you.
  You send out your wrath. It consumes them as stubble.
  With the blast of your nostrils, the waters were piled up.
  The floods stood upright as a heap.
  The deeps were congealed in the heart of the sea.
  The enemy said, ‘I will pursue. I will overtake. I will divide the plunder.
  My desire will be satisfied on them.
  I will draw my sword. My hand will destroy them.’
  You blew with your wind.
  The sea covered them.
  They sank like lead in the mighty waters.
  Who is like you, the LORD, among the gods?
  Who is like you, glorious in holiness,
  fearful in praises, doing wonders?
  You stretched out your right hand.
  The earth swallowed them.
  You, in your loving kindness, have led the people that you have redeemed.
  You have guided them in your strength to your holy habitation.
  -Exodus 15:1-13

The story and poetry of God rescuing the Israelite people from slavery constantly emphasize the fact that God’s people are meant to fully rely on God’s power rather than relying on their own power. In many cases, God’s people must learn to rely on God in situations where relying on their own power would require them to use their hands for violence against their human enemies.
 

The importance of being humble enough to rely on the hand of God rather than using one’s own hands to commit acts of violence is further emphasized by Jesus and his disciples in the New Testament, most notably in chapter 4 of the letter from St. James.

• Where do wars and fightings among you come from? Don’t they come from your pleasures that war in your members? You lust, and don’t have. You murder and covet, and can’t obtain. You fight and make war. You don’t have, because you don’t ask. You ask, and don’t receive, because you ask with wrong motives, so that you may spend it on your pleasures. You adulterers and adulteresses, don’t you know that friendship with the world is hostility toward God? Whoever therefore wants to be a friend of the world makes himself an enemy of God. Or do you think that the Scripture says in vain, “The Spirit who lives in us yearns jealously”? But he gives more grace. Therefore it says, “God resists the proud, but gives grace to the humble.” Be subject therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. Draw near to God, and he will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners. Purify your hearts, you double-minded. Lament, mourn, and weep. Let your laughter be turned to mourning and your joy to gloom. Humble yourselves in the sight of the Lord, and he will exalt you.
  -James 4:1-10

It is notable that Kendrick specifically refers to chapter 4 of St. James’s letter on the song “LUST.”.

• Lately, in James 4:4 says
  “Friend of the world is enemy of the Lord”

Lecrae’s self-awareness and humility lead him to conclude that he does not possess the moral integrity that would make him qualified to judge others.
 

Despite the anger that Lecrae has justifiably expressed toward the drug dealers, music industry labels, crooked doctors, fake tough rappers, and fake deep gurus, Lecrae is simultaneously aware that he would be a hypocrite to pass judgment and condemn these people without expecting to face judgment himself and be condemned for his own acts of injustice.
 

Lecrae’s reluctance to judge or condemn others is likely inspired by a passage from Jesus’s most influential set of teachings. In this passage, Jesus warns people that they will be judged by the same standard by which they judge others. Jesus also spoke against hypocrites who point out the small wrongdoings of another person while they are blinded by their own much more significant wrongdoings.

• Don’t judge, so that you won’t be judged. For with whatever judgment you judge, you will be judged; and with whatever measure you measure, it will be measured to you.
   
  Why do you see the speck that is in your brother’s eye, but don’t consider the beam of wood that is in your own eye? Or how will you tell your brother, ‘Let me remove the speck from your eye,’ and behold, the beam is in your own eye? You hypocrite! First remove the beam of wood out of your own eye, and then you can see clearly to remove the speck out of your brother’s eye.
  -Matthew 7:1-5

Lecrae continues to acknowledge his shortcomings by saying that even the good deeds that he has done have been so messed up by all of his evil deeds that his good deeds should be thrown out of consideration, like a rug that had been stained by the discharge of blood and tissue during a woman’s menstrual period.
 

Here, Lecrae is alluding to a passage from Isaiah 64, where the prophet acknowledges the numerous sinful deeds of God’s people and compares their righteous deeds to an unclean menstrual rag, which women of that time used during their periods.

• Behold, You were angry, for we sinned,
  We continued this way for a long time;
  How shall we be saved?
  For we have all become like one who is unclean,
  all our righteous deads are like a menstrual rag.
  We all wither like a leaf;
  our sins carry us away like the wind.
  -Isaiah 64:4-6

Within the spiritual tradition of the Israelites, menstrual blood and any other bodily discharge from men or women were also considered ritually unclean which meant that Israelites were not allowed to go near God’s temple until the discharge stopped.
 

The implication here is that Lecrae’s good deeds have been so deeply affected by his evil deeds that based solely on his actions, he should not expect to be allowed to serve God or be on a mission as a Christian rapper.

Despite believing that he “deserves death” and believing that his good deeds are unacceptable due to his evil deeds, Lecrae also believes that he has received a new kind of life because of the unconditional love from God the Father and Jesus, the Son of God. Here, Lecrae is likely inspired by Jesus’s words in the Gospel according to St. John’s account of the Gospel, where Jesus states that God’s love for the world motivated God to send Jesus into the world to give humans an opportunity to have “eternal life.”

• For God so loved the world, that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish, but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to judge the world, but that the world should be saved through him.
  -John 3:16-17

Having personally experienced the transformative power of Jesus’s love, Lecrae now offers Jesus’s love to those who suffered due to the evil deeds of others and also offers Jesus’s love to the enemies who have committed the evil deeds that caused people to suffer.
 

Here, Lecrae seems to be following one of the commands in Jesus’s most famous set of teachings, which specifically instructed Jesus’s disciples to love their enemies because God the Father graciously loved those who did good deeds and those who did evil deeds.

• You have heard that it was said, “You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy.” But I tell you, love your enemies, bless those who curse you, do good to those who hate you, and pray for those who mistreat you and persecute you, so that you may be children of your Father who is in heaven. For He causes His sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the just and the unjust, the righteous and the unrighteous.
  -Matthew 5:43-45

Meanwhile, by offering Jesus’s love to those who have suffered from the evil deeds of others, Lecrae seems to be aligned with New Testament writers such as St. Paul, who were able to endure and even rejoice in the midst of suffering because of Jesus’s love.

• We also rejoice in our sufferings, knowing that suffering produces perseverance; and perseverance, proven character; and proven character, hope; and hope doesn’t disappoint us, because God’s love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit who was given to us.
  -Romans 5:3-5
   
  Who shall separate us from the love of [Christ / the anointed one]? Could oppression, or anguish, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword?
   
  Even as it is written:
  “For your sake we are killed all day long.
  We were accounted as sheep for the slaughter.”
   
  No, in all these things, we are more than overcomers through him who loved us. For I am convinced that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor demons, nor elemental forces, nor things present, nor things to come, nor powers, nor height, nor depth, nor any other created thing will be able to separate us from God’s love which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.
  -Romans 8:35-39

Even as Lecrae offers Jesus’s love to people who have suffered or are wondering what Lecrae would do to address all the evil in the world, Lecrae is very much aware that many people will feel disappointed and underwhelmed with Lecrae’s offer. These people may then respond to Lecrae by saying, “Really? That’s all you got for us?”
 

In particular, Lecrae knows that these people will think that simply offering love is foolish because it likely won’t stop all the evil deeds that are causing people to suffer. Moreover, the idea of offering love to one’s enemies will seem absolutely foolish to most people.

• It should be noted that, unlike the modern usage of the word “love,” within the teachings of Jesus and his followers, “love” does not primarily refer to a set of positive feelings or attraction to a person based on that delightful aspect of that person. Love also doesn’t mean having a close relationship. Instead, love tends to refer to actions that one does so that another person can live a good life, which in many cases might involve actions that help another person to stop doing things that are evil and destructive.

Nonetheless, the story of Jesus’s life, death, and resurrection in the Gospel accounts of the New Testament is primarily a story about how Jesus loved his friends and enemies so much that he was willing to die for them to live a good life. This is a point made by St. Paul in his letter to the Church in Rome.

• For while we were still helpless, at the right time Christ died for the ungodly. For one will hardly die for a righteous person; though perhaps for the good person someone would even dare to die. But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.
  -Romans 5:6-8

Most notably, Jesus showed love for enemies when he showed empathy for the ignorance of the people who were crucifying him and asked God the Father to forgive them as he was hanging on the cross.

• When they came to the place that is called “The Skull”, they crucified Jesus there… Jesus said, “Father, forgive them, for they don’t know what they are doing.”
  -Luke 23:33-34

By saying “the cross is foolish to the perishing,” Lecrae is quoting from a passage in St. Paul’s first letter to the Church in the Greek city of Corinth. In that passage, St. Paul acknowledges that Jesus’s death on the cross must seem foolish from the perspective of non-Christians who made choices based on the supposed wisdom of Greek philosophy.
 

• For the word of the cross is foolishness to those who are dying, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God. For it is written,
   
  “I will destroy the wisdom of the wise. I will bring the discernment of the discerning to nothing.”
   
  Where is the wise person? Where is the scribe? Where is the lawyer of this world? Hasn’t God made foolish the wisdom of this world? For seeing that in the wisdom of God, the world through its wisdom didn’t know God, it was God’s good pleasure through the foolishness of the preaching to save those who believe. For Judeans ask for signs, Greeks seek after wisdom, but we preach Christ crucified: a stumbling block to Judeans, and foolishness to Greeks, but to those who are called, both Judeans and Greeks, Christ is the power of God and the wisdom of God; because the foolishness of God is wiser than men, and the weakness of God is stronger than men.
   
  For you see your calling, brothers, that not many are wise according to the flesh, not many mighty, and not many noble; but God chose the foolish things of the world that he might put to shame those who are wise. God chose the weak things of the world that he might put to shame the things that are strong. God chose the lowly things of the world, and the things that are despised, and the things that do not exist, that he might bring to nothing the things that exist, so that no fleshly creature should boast before God. Because of him, you are in Christ Jesus, who was made to us wisdom from God, and righteousness and holiness, and redemption: that, as it is written, “He who boasts, let him boast in the Lord.”
  -1 Corinthians 1:18-30