Kendrick is treating TPAB not as a finished product but a continued work in progress, capable of shape shifting as needed. The skateboarder disappears and the scene changes abruptly.Īfter the switch is the first time we truly hear Kendrick, reciting the poem that is spoken throughout TPAB, although it’s important to notice that it’s not the same poem as the album, small tweaks are made. I thought my computer froze the first few times I watched it but no, for reasons I can’t fathom it’s intentional. The video freezes like a buffering computer or a glitch in the matrix when a skateboarder appears soaring across the sky. The next scene is where things get weird. The addition of a drunken Kendrick in a hotel room on the verge of jumping from the 16th floor mixed into this array of images would perfectly symbolize the depression and loneliness of “U.” It’s like a mini video within the video, a sign of things to come. They intertwine an audio clip of “loving me is complicated” in the background before our ears are filled with Kendrick’s horrifying scream from “U.” Both screams are used during a strange shot of a black ceiling with mini lights glowing.
Zooming in on the Port of Oakland, boats at sea, a neighborhood cloaked by smoke and sky scrapers. The first 30 seconds is completely b-roll footage that’s made into a slideshow of deserted locations, bleak and almost apocalyptic imagery. It’s a black and white tone with a deep contrast that gives off a gorgeous yet ominous ambiance. “But if God got us, then we gon’ be alright,” is an acknowledgment of hope spoken into existence Kendrick’s vision of a better future headed by faith and unity.The video begins with a wide angle shot of the Oakland Bay Bridge in a color that can only be described as dark sky paradise (you’re welcome Sean). The Black Lives Matter movement uses this as a holy testimony to use faith in protest for their equal treatment. This is where the “Alright” develops from a song to an anthem. This line is crucial to the choir of the song Kendrick outlines the numerous hours he spent on his knees praying for change, eventually learning that he must take action through faith. Yet, to alleviate this frustration, the next verse is “I’m at the preacher’s door/My knees gettin’ weak, and my gun might blow,” reinstating his religious connotations. Police brutality is mentioned at the apex of the song, Lamar claiming “and we hate po-po/Wanna kill us dead in the street fo sho,'” emphasizing the frustrations of the law working against the black community.
The lyrics express a life-long struggle and years of pain that span longer than Kendrick’s own life specifically the systematic oppression of black men. The lyrics are very much conflicting with charismatic instrumentals of the song.
At first listen, the joint choir seems optimistic, chanting “We gon’ be alright/Do you hear me, do you feel me? We gon’ be alright,” encouraging those to look past their tribulations and have confidence that everything will be okay a deeper meaning expresses why he raps this message. These urges and fantasies of revenge are his “Images of Lucy,” unfaithful ideas manifesting in his head. In his song “Alright,” he targets oppression in the black community, specifically police brutality, and his urge to go rogue and fight back. Lamar presents his conflict with a seemingly unresponsive God and visions of Lucifer, “Lucy,” surrounding his everyday life. With an infamous fixation on religion, Kendrick addresses his confidence in God to ease his burdens as a black man escaping Compton, California, and his new role as an influencer in the whitest tier of society. To Pimp a Butterfly details an inner-battle to find a higher purpose. But of the 16 song album, why is “Alright” the voice of protest? To find the answer you need to understand the controversy of the album as a whole. Immediately after release, Lamar’s song appeared in BLM marches and protests across the country. More than just a catchy choir, Kendrick Lamar’s “Alright” off the respected “To Pimp a Butterfly” album is a testimony of prosperity to oppressed and colored communities.
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