Pray

On “Pray,” Kendrick Lamar reflects over “the voices of art” and personifies a song by Michael Jackson and a speech by Martin Luther King, Jr., respectively. In each of the first two verses, Lamar mentions two dates that relate to the lives of each man—The Jackson 5’s “ABC” released on February 24, 1970, and MLK delivered his “I Have A Dream” speech on August 28, 1963. Kendrick uses every verse to explore how the media is quick to dismiss an artist’s contributions to society due to their personal shortcomings—he specifically delves into Jackson’s pedophilia accusations and King’s marital infidelity. In the final verse, Kendrick establishes that artists bring meaning to the world regardless of their individual imperfections. The song was recorded sometime in 2019. Leaked on August 18th, 2020, under the name “Prayer”, however it was only ever titled “Pray” and “Mr. Morale”. Ultimately scr…

via Genius — lyrics & more ↗

On “Pray,” Kendrick Lamar reflects over “the voices of art” and personifies a song by Michael Jackson and a speech by Martin Luther King, Jr., respectively. In each of the first two verses, Lamar mentions two dates that relate to the lives of each man—The Jackson 5’s “ABC” released on February 24, 1970, and MLK delivered his “I Have A Dream” speech on August 28, 1963. Kendrick uses every verse to explore how the media is quick to dismiss an artist’s contributions to society due to their personal shortcomings—he specifically delves into Jackson’s pedophilia accusations and King’s marital infidelity. In the final verse, Kendrick establishes that artists bring meaning to the world regardless of their individual imperfections. The song was recorded sometime in 2019. Leaked on August 18th, 2020, under the name “Prayer”, however it was only ever titled “Pray” and “Mr. Morale”. Ultimately scr…

via Genius — lyrics & more ↗