Kendrick Lamar’s new single “HUMBLE.” zigzags constantly. It shifts from retellings of his humble beginnings to world-conquering boasts in a few beats. The song is a hard-nosed G check of his lessers, that pivots into imperfect critiques of beauty standards. But what it makes clear is his supremacy: when trapped in the long shadow he casts, his contemporaries have nothing to brag about. Reiterating sentiments from “The Heart Part 4”: “If I quit this season, I still be the greatest,” he snarls early on. “It’s levels to it, you and I know, bitch be humble.” The menacing prickle of soured piano keys provided by super-producer Mike WiLL Made-It set the tone for this sonning.
The song is enhanced by the video’s dynamic visuals: papal imagery, a black-bloc black mob, and TDE’s own Last Supper. In several of the scenes, he stands in the center of a large crowd addressing the audience. In one adjusting shot, as the perspective of the camera changes, he remains fixed in the middle. He is the focus— that’s the point.
It isn’t hard to imagine “HUMBLE.” taking on a new life on his fourth LP, a loosie given new meaning with new context, similar to the way “Backseat Freestyle” transformed. It stands on its own, yet it could also fit neatly into a larger narrative. But in Lamar’s current frame of pettiness, only a week removed from his last sweeping airstrike, it seems like another salvo: choice words weaponized with a heat-seeking accuracy. It isn't needling or provocation; it’s a pronouncement from on-high by rap’s self-proclaimed savior. Must be humbling for his peers.
