Kendrick Lamar surprises fans with release of new album 'GNX'

Rap superstar Kendrick Lamar surprised fans on Friday with the unannounced release of a new album.

The 17-time Grammy Award-winning artist’s new album features 12 songs and dropped just months before he is set to headline the Super Bowl halftime show in February, which has become one of the biggest annual live music performances in the US.

GNX, the performer’s sixth studio album, appeared on streaming services unannounced at 5pm Irish time.

The latest release from the 37-year-old comes at the end of a year that has seen his music fueled by a feud with Drake, a spat that produced some of the year’s biggest hits.

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One of them, Lamar’s ‘Not Like Us’, grabbed the top spot on Billboard’s Hot 100 chart and garnered him a number of Grammy nominations for next year’s gala.

GNX is the first album from Lamar since his mega-selling “Mr. Morale & the Big Steppers” in 2022, which itself came after a five-year hiatus.

Friday’s release is timely for an artist who will headline the Super Bowl halftime show in February, a coveted showcase that takes place in the middle of the NFL season finale, which is routinely watched by around a third of Americans.

The upcoming halftime festivities are Lamar’s first as a headliner after he performed at the 2022 Super Bowl during an ensemble act that also featured the likes of Snoop Dogg, Mary J. Blige, Eminem and 50 Cent.

– © AFP 2024