When one of the greatest rappers of all time takes the stage at Lollapalooza, you better believe people will show up — and so many did at the T-Mobile Stage on Friday night, they could have incorporated their own city under the leadership of Mayor Lamar.
Because when the poet/prophet/preacher speaks, people listen.
It’s a beautiful power to have, and one Lamar uses with the utmost care. A wordsmith who relies on his oration and calm intensity to get his messages — of race and equality, of relationships and family, of trauma and growth, of reality and humility — clearly across.
On this night, Lamar was overtly minimalist. He appeared on stage sans any superfluous stage props other than a large mural backdrop in the beginning, some strobes and smoke effects, while wearing a blue jumpsuit and Dodgers-style cap representing pgLAng — his new entertainment company and label he created with Dave Free in 2020.
Lamar had a troupe of dancers with him, too, whose careful movements provided visual interpretations of each song. But for the most part, it was the rapper and his body of work that took center stage.
At times he was Shakespearian in his spoken word delivery, at other times fiercely melodic and rhythmic. And when the deep piano and bass dropped to introduce “Humble,” it was just as revolutionary as when he first released it in 2017 (featured on an album that earned him a Pulitzer Prize).
In 2022 came “Mr. Morale & the Big Steppers,” the rapper’s first release since his work on the “Black Panther” soundtrack in 2018. And also his first since becoming a father, with the professional pause only enriching works like “Count Me Out” (brilliance takes time, after all).
But, while he did promote the new album, Lamar also dug into the archives, sampling all of his material, including the 2012 track “Money Trees,” 2015’s “King Kunta” and 2017’s “DNA.” He also delivered “Sidewalks,” the 2016 song Lamar guests on for The Weeknd, just as fireworks went off at Perry’s Stage across the way.
Arriving 15 minutes late, the rapper kept things going for 10 minutes over his allotted time, ending on a high note with “Alright,” but not before wishing his cousin Tasha in the crowd a happy birthday and vowing, “Until next time Chicago. I love you. I will be back.”
