caption associated_acts years_active alias birth_place label name background birth_date genre image article_title birth_name occupation
lamar . performing at way out west in august 2013 black kid dr. dre j. cole terrace martin bilal hippy anna wise ash riser bj the chicago 2003 -- present k-dot compton , california , u.s. top -lrb- former -rrb- dawg aftermath interscope -lrb- current -rrb- konkrete jungle kendrick lamar solo_singer 17 june 1987 hip hop kendrick . jpg border lamar way out west 2013 -lrb- cropped -rrb- kendrick lamar
 kendrick lamar duckworth rapper songwriter
kendrick lamar

kendrick lamar duckworth -lrb- born june 17 , 1987 -rrb- is an american rapper and hip hop artist from compton , california .
in 2004 , lamar signed to carson-based independent record label , top dawg entertainment -lrb- tde -rrb- .
lamar would later secure a recording contract with a major label in 2012 , when he signed with aftermath and interscope records .
apart from his solo career , lamar is also known as a member of the west coast hip hop supergroup black hippy , alongside his tde labelmates and fellow south los angeles-based rappers ab-soul , jay rock and schoolboy q. lamar embarked on his musical career as a teenager , under the moniker k-dot , releasing a mixtape which garnered him local attention .
he began to gain major recognition in 2010 , after his first retail release , `` overly dedicated '' .
the following year , he released `` section .80 '' , his first independent album , exclusively through itunes .
the album received critical acclaim and instantly ranked as one of the top digital hip hop releases of the year .
the album spawned lamar 's debut single , `` hiiipower '' .
early in his career , prior to releasing his major-label debut , lamar had amassed a large internet following and had already worked with several prominent artists in the hip hop industry , including the game , snoop dogg , wiz khalifa , drake , talib kweli , busta rhymes , e-40 , warren g and lil wayne , among others .
lamar 's major-label debut album , `` good kid , m.a.a.d city '' , was released in october 2012 to widespread acclaim .
the album contained the top 40 hits `` swimming pools -lrb- drank -rrb- '' , `` bitch , do n't kill my vibe '' and `` poetic justice '' .
upon its release , the album debuted at number two on the u.s. `` billboard '' 200 chart and was later certified platinum by the recording industry association of america -lrb- riaa -rrb- .
in early 2013 , mtv crowned lamar the no. 1 `` hottest mc in the game '' , on their annual list .
lamar also received a total of seven grammy nominations at the 56th annual grammy awards -lrb- 2014 -rrb- , including best new artist , album of the year and best rap song .
a year later , at the 57th annual grammy awards -lrb- 2015 -rrb- , lamar won best rap performance and best rap song for his single , `` i '' .
in march 2015 , lamar released his third album , `` to pimp a butterfly '' , to wide acclaim .
it peaked at number one in various countries , including the u.s. and the uk .
