The First Voice Heard on Kendrick Lamar’s New Album Is An Old-School Jamaican Legend
When Kendrick Lamar’s eagerly anticipated album To Pimp A Butterfly dropped unexpectedly last weekend, it was streamed 9.6 million times the first day alone, breaking the record for the most streams per day in Spotify history. The first voice all those listeners heard, above the delightful sound of crakling vinyl, was Boris Gardiner singing the phrase “Every Nigger Is A Star” over and over to open the song “Wesley’s Theory,” which kicks off K.Dot’s hip-hop masterpiece. But who is Boris Gardiner? Like so many other Jamaican musical innovators, his work is much better known than his name. Let’s rectify that situation right now. Video After The Jump… (more…)