Last night, seemingly out of nowhere, Kendrick Lamar dropped a new album for everyone to enjoy. Despite Lil Wayne and 2 Chainz dropping a joint album on the same night, K.Dot broke the internet and dropped ‘Untitled. Unmastered’ for your listening pleasure.
True to its name, the eight track album is full of untitled songs but despite that fact, it was still ready enough to be released at the request of a basketball star. The prompt release of Kendrick’s newest work might be attributed to NBA superstar, LeBron James and a tweet he sent out last week after Kendrick’s fantastic performance at the Grammy’s.
Yo @dangerookipawaa after that @kendricklamar Grammy performance , you have to release those untitled tracks asap!!! What’s up? Talk to me
— LeBron James (@KingJames) February 23, 2016
James’ tweet was directed at Top Dawg Entertainment CEO Anthony Tiffith last week in anticipation of the new project. Tiffith responded to the four-time NBA MVP with a video Thursday night, telling the world to thank the Cleveland Cavaliers star for the release.
Yea KIng Kendrick returns 2nite…. Make site y’all thank @kingjames … #TDE
A video posted by gwadpot (@dangerookipawaa) on
And then after the drop, LeBron James commented on the album on twitter.
Blue Faces! @kendricklamar @dangerookipawaa #UntitledUnmastered
— LeBron James (@KingJames) March 4, 2016
It’s clear The King enjoys the work of K.Dot and he wants everyone to know it. Check out LeBron jamming out to Kendrick’s ‘Untitled 07’ earlier today.
King Kendrick! Levitate levitate levitate levitate #EssenceOfItAll #StriveForGreatness #YoungKings
A video posted by LeBron James (@kingjames) on
And if you need any more evidence of James’ involvement with the release, look no further than ‘The King’ himself. When he spoke to the media today after Cavs shootaround, LeBron confirmed what we all know.
Following from Dave McMenamin of ESPN.com.
James was asked about his relationship with Lamar after Cleveland’s shootaround Friday.
“Is there any back story? Um, it’s just family ties,” James said. “That’s all. It’s family ties.”
Lamar, 28, is not actually related to the 31-year-old James, but the Los Angeles-based performer and James share a close friend in Los Angeles Clippers guard Chris Paul.
“Really close,” James said. “Admire each other’s work and each other’s craft. And even with him being all the way on the West Coast and me being here, we share a lot of qualities, being around the same age.”
Should James really get credit for Lamar opening up his library or was the timing just a happy coincidence?
“That’s what it’s been documented, as of now,” James said. “Yeah. That’s what they said. They said to thank me. So, appreciate it. You’re welcome.”
Apparently it’s good to be King James, know King Kendrick and have the reach of 28.5 million Twitter followers to help bring weight to your whims.
“That’s how it works sometimes,” James said with a laugh.
