Kendrick Lamar Duckworth was born in Compton, California on June 17, 1987. Before he was born, his parents lived in the South Side of Chicago, Illinois, where life was just as hard in Compton. Both his mother and father came from large families; his mother was one of thirteen, his father one of seven. Kendrick’s parents moved to Compton in 1984 while they were still in their teenage years in order to avoid the gang life. However, Kendrick would grow up exposed to unpredictable activity in the streets of Compton. This didn’t stop him from excelling in school where he would develop a love for writing stories, poems, and eventually lyrics. At a young age, his lyrics were heavily influenced by his father and his idol Tupac Shakur. As Kendrick grew into adolescence, he would begin to emulate the very things he was surrounded by. Kendrick’s father would be the person to bring clarity to his son’s mind and give him a more conscious look on life and in his lyrics. Being an …show more content…
The tape would land Kendrick his first contract with an independent but very renowned record label called Top Dawg Entertainment. While under the label, Kendrick would continue to write new music and eventually release two new mixtapes titled Training Day and C4. He also gained more notoriety through collaborations with fellow TDE rappers Jay Rock, Ab-Soul, and Schoolboy Q. As an upcoming rapper from Compton, Kendrick received a great deal of criticism for being involved with gangs and drugs. Kendrick has made it evident in his music that even though he grew up affiliated with these misconducts, he has never taken part in gang activity or drugs at all. There are multiple tracks on his fourth mixtape Section .80 that detailed his life in Compton and how he tried his best to avoid it