Kendrick Lamar is proud of what his labelmate SZA achieved with her debut album CTRL. In a new interview with MTV News, Kendrick shared some thoughts on the work that went into the album, what it means to women, and how "Doves In The Wind" won him over.
"I watched her slave over and over to make a masterpiece that not only represents her, but represents women all over the world,” he said. “[CTRL] is a record where it touched so many demographics — not only just women, but men. Something that we all can feel. It touched so many different spaces and connected with so many people."
As far as why he decided to guest on "Doves In The Wind," it was both the instrumental and SZA's memorable opening line that spoke to the Compton rapper. "Ice Cube always said from the jump, ‘The first line has to be the line that draws everyone.’ Her first line, when she played it, ‘Real n****’s do not deserve pussy.’ Come on,” he said. “That just drew me in. Her storytelling progresses, and it just lured me into writing my own verse."
It was also SZA's unique songwriting angle that he felt made the record special. "I never heard a female artist come from that perspective," he admitted. "It’s aggressive and it’s unapologetic. It just made me feel a certain type of way where I wanted to give my perspective."
You can watch the clip above. SZA is nominated for Best New Artist at Sunday Night's MTV Video Music Awards; a nomination Lamar feels is "Well deserved."
"There’s nothing much more I can say — she needs to win," he said. Kendrick is also set to take the stage at the awards show.
SZA isn't the only artist Lamar has recently thrown his support behind. On Friday night, he tweeted out his appreciation for controversial rapper XXXTentacion's 17 project, writing "listen to this album if you feel anything. raw thoughts."
In the full interview, Kendrick also revealed that DAMN. is meant to be played both forwards and backwards. "It plays as a full story and even a better rhythm," he said. "It’s something that we definitely premeditate while we’re in the studio." Watch the conversation here.