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King Kunta Analysis

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King Kunta: The Rise of a Kid That Had Nothing The song “King Kunta” by rapper Kendrick Lamar is very catchy song about Kendrick’s rise to the top of the rap game and the his resistance to selling out like many rappers do. He really uses ethos strongly in this song to get people to listen to what he is saying and to get his message across to those people. His audience is mainly young people between the ages of 15 and 30, but his music reaches a very wide spread community of people. The name of the song, “King Kunta”, is an oxymoron - Kendrick thinks he is still being oppressed like a slave, while still being dominant and rich like a king. It contrasts the lowest and the highest levels of society. Kunta refers to Kunta Kinte, a fictional …show more content…

He uses hyperboles to drive home the point that he is the best rapper alive. He doesn’t even have to diss the other rappers, because they are already making mistakes, falling behind and ruining their careers without any help from him. Compton, California is extremely famous around the nation for gang violence, rap music, and producing professional athletes. Kendrick is putting Compton back on the map in the music industry and is trying to have a positive effect on the community through his songs. His songs often speak of stopping gang violence. He says he should run for Mayor when he is done rapping because he thinks is already the leader figure of Compton and he wants to make improvements. The vibe of the song picks back up and he uses pathos to persuade you to feel happy for him because he made it past the age of 25. It is often said that black males who live in impoverished environments would either be dead or in jail by the age of 25. 25 is also the age when Kendrick’s idol, Tupac Shakur, died. He’s just a young man from Compton with the world behind him. The Annie that he talks about is a reference to one of Michael Jackson’s most popular and funkiest songs “Smooth Criminal.” He has made it to the bottom to the belly of the beast, which insinuates that life didn’t get any simpler when he made it to the top. It just made him more of a target, but he is a king and can’t be touched by the peasants of

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