Kendrick Lamar has had to fight all his life, and now he enters this year’s Grammys just one nomination short of Michael Jackson’s record for most in a year. In honor of that seemingly impossible milestone, Kendrick has teamed up with the Grammys for a promotion that traces his roots. The clip puts the spotlight not on Cornrow Kenny, but on a select few of the 97,877 people from his hometown of Compton, where they can be seen proudly reciting Kendrick’s “Alright,†likely from memory. As a new black anthem, the song means everything. But as an anthem for Compton, it means something even greater. Kendrick doesn’t even join in on the fun until the very end, but you get the sense that his influence is omnipresent no matter how long he’s away these days.
Watch Kendrick Lamar’s Hometown of Compton Recite ‘Alright’ for the Grammys, and Feel Inspired
