Good kid, m.A.A.d city

2012

This Dr. Dre-endorsed landmark introduced the general public to the otherworldly talents of the young genius from Compton. Blessed with a distinctively highpitched vocal tone — he sounds like a Martian who spent his formative years somewhere on Rosecrans Avenue — Kendrick gave us a brilliant panoramic view of Black life in Los Angeles. The humid “m.A.A.d city,” with its wounded reminiscences of routine violence, is like the auditory equivalent to a stress pillow: It’s an apt outlet for Kendrick’s righteous rage, making PTSD palatable for the mainstream. This is where Kendrick turned his hardscrabble journey into a high-charting yet uncompromising work of art.