Kendrick Lamar: Going From Obama to Trump is “a Complete Mindfuck”

After winning one his five GRAMMY awards this past Sunday evening, Kendrick Lamar endorsed JAY-Z to become the next commander-in-chief, blurting “Jay for president!” before ending his speech.

Jay, like Oprah, isn't likely to run for the fice the President the United States in 2020, but his success beyond music, as a businessman and an entrepreneur, has served as inspiration for Lamar, who, like many Americans, is still trying to wrap his head around the transition from former president Barack Obama, a friend and noted fan his music, to our current president, Donald J. Trump, who has openly mocked hip-hop in the press.

On his recent appearance on Touré Show, a weekly podcast hosted by esteemed American journalist Touré, Lamar was asked to put this dynamic into words:

“It's a complete mindfuck, man. It's a complete mindfuck,” Lamar said. “If you don't have the mental stability knowing who you are and what you're capable , you're immediately going to be brainwashed by the idea , again, you are a part the problem.”

Touré quickly changed gears, covering a wide range topics including whether or not Kendrick enjoys the sound his own voice (he does) and how rappers practice (“Just being in that studio, writing terrible verses, terrible hooks, you have your homeboys and your friends, people that you trust, telling you that's garbage.”), but throughout the 46-minute interview, Lamar repeatedly brought up the word “community,” referring to his audience, his fans, and the people who supported him at the earliest stages his career. 

Since taking fice, Trump has gone out his way to make anyone who isn't a white man—blacks, immigrants, women—feel lesser. Kendrick's music alone won't change this ugly rhetoric, but his encouragement self-belief and his support for his community is the best way to counteract an evil political agenda.