Dr. Dre presented Kendrick Lamar with the Vanguard Award at this year's ASCAP Rhythm & Soul Awards, which took place last Thursday evening. The Compton emcee earned the distinction for his impact on "musical genres that help shape the future of American music."
Dre made a speech, during which he described K. Dot as being "ahead of the trends," also mentioned how they'd attended the same high school decades apart. "Kendrick Lamar is a class act," he said. "I’m proud to know him. I’m proud to work with him and he is an important part of the new generation of Hip Hop, and it’s definitely continuing the legacy of Compton. Believe."
ASCAP President and Chairman Paul Williams had also weighed in on the accomplishments of the young emcee. "Kendrick Lamar’s smart, structured story-telling and genre-bending sound make him stand out amongst his peers. He pushes boundaries with his creativity, perfectly illustrating everything that the ASCAP Vanguard Award recognizes."
In an interview with MTV news during the ceremony, Kendrick spoke on his upcoming performance at the BET Awards, which take place in L.A. on Sunday. He's nominated for Best Collaboration, Best New Artist and Video of the Year for "Poetic Justice." "I’m just going out there to have fun man,” he said. “Ain’t nothing to it, ain’t nothing over-the-top where I’ve gotta think about it, so I’m just enjoying myself."
The awards air tomorrow night at 8 PM.