Kendrick Lamar was able to act on multiple narratives with "The Pop Out" show last night (Wednesday, Juneteenth) in Los Angeles, all of which provided very special moments. Of course, it served as a final nail in the coffin in his Drake beef, but folks will likely remember the show throughout history for much more heartening reasons. One of these is the massive heap of West Coast artists that came out to perform, and the other was how moving it was to see members of various Los Angeles gangs, namely Bloods and Crips, sharing the stage in peace and calling for an end to violence between them. In addition to this display, K.Dot also spoke on the loss of Nipsey Hussle and Kobe Bryant, and how this moment is also for them and all the other unnamed lives lost in these struggles.
"This s**t making me emotional," Kendrick Lamar remarked after a performance that followed, among many other parts of Mustard's set, a tribute to Nip. "We been f***ed up since Nipsey died. We been f***ed up since Kobe died. This is unity at its finest. We done lost a lot of homies to this music s**t, to this street s**t. For all of us to be together on stage, that s**t is special. Everybody on this stage got fallen soldiers." This falls alongside Mr. Morale's previous statements on gang unity and how he advocated for that within his art.
Kendrick Lamar Speaks On Nipsey Hussle & Kobe Bryant
Whether or not Los Angeles gang culture responds in kind remains to be seen, but let's bask in the moment and appreciate the message. After all, Kendrick Lamar is not our savior, and there were some notable exclusions from this "Pop Out" that indicate that, at least on a music industry level, there's still some unity to achieve. The Game pledged his support for Drake in many's eyes through his social media and his Rick Ross diss. As such, this prompted a lot of speculation online about what could be going on behind the scenes.
Meanwhile, other special appearances in "The Pop Out" crowd included a SZA, who donned a disguise to party with the people. Even if this was born out of a feud, it's still great to see Kendrick Lamar take advantage of the opportunity to speak to something greater. It clearly resonated with a lot of fans and viewers outside of the West Coast, as well. We don't always get the luxury of these unitary moments, so witnessing them is a true privilege and a hopeful declaration.