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Younge confirmed this account, adding: "Honestly, CeeLo wrote that to show Ali and I what he can do. "Question Marks," CeeLo added, was "initially was an incentive" for Younge and Muhammad to move forward on their prospective collaboration with him. Originally titling the song "Question Marks," he wrote and sang his part for the track, which he saw as "a romantic-comedy kind of satire" involving "an eccentric individual, unique and peculiar but intriguing and attractive." The lyrics, he said, were initially "more just like a conversation with a woman." "I got sent 10 or 12 ideas of random, brilliantly produced Adrian and Ali collaborations, but this one spoke to me," CeeLo said. Younge, Muhammad, and CeeLo were in talks about a collaboration, and the production duo sent the singer a number of demos to see what he could do with them.
#KENDRICK LAMAR UNTITLED UNMASTERED DATPIFF SERIES#
Muhammad replied, "'Technova' by Towa Tei."ĬeeLo had known Muhammad for a while, given their deep mutual roots in hip-hop, and became friends with Younge after seeing the producer on an episode of the documentary series Unsung focused on Philly soul group the Delfonics, whose 2013 album Younge oversaw. What's the bossa nova shit you guys sampled?" But when you said to go upbeat on that, I remember that distinctly and that started a whole new lane for us. For me personally it reminded me of Ali's spirit within Tribe. "I had done bossa nova stuff before, but the kind of bossa nova stuff I was doing was like, really slow, mood shit. "Ali was like, 'Yo, let's go bossa nova.'" Younge told Pitchfork. "It has a certain kind of flavor to it."įor the bossa nova element, Younge credits Muhammad. "It's all live but everything on that, all the instrumentation, is recorded to analog so it has a vintage patina to it," Younge said. Along with drums and guitar, the arrangement includes Rhodes organ, vibraphone, and bass, all recorded using classic instruments and vintage microphones. It's as vital as anything else its maker has released.The two recorded the song's instrumental to tape at Linear Labs in Los Angeles, working with drummer David Henderson and acoustic guitar player Jack Waterson, both members of Younge's Venice Dawn band. While Lamar referred to these tracks as demos, and not one of them has the pop-soul appeal of "These Walls" or the Black Lives Matter protest-anthem potential of "Alright," untitled unmastered. Even while coasting over the latter's breezy and smacking groove, Lamar fills the space with meaning, detailing a confrontation with sharp quips and stinging reprimands. The stretch involves a rolling, ornamented retro-contemporary production from Adrian Younge and Ali Shaheed Muhammad (with vocal assists from Bilal and Cee Lo Green), a stitched suite that is alternately stern and humorously off the cuff (featuring Egypt, five-year-old son of Alicia Keys and Swizz Beatz, as co-producer and vocalist), and a finale of Thundercat-propelled funk. Remarkably, this hits its stride in the second half. offers this and other variations on the connected themes of societal ills, faith, and survival that drove the output it follows, with Lamar at his best when countering proudly materialistic boasts with ever-striking acknowledgments of the odds perilously weighted against his people. He observes terrifying scenes all the while sensing possible relief ("No more running from world wars," "No more discriminating the poor"). After an intimate spoken intro from Bilal, the set segues into an urgent judgment-day scenario with squealing strings and a resounding bassline as Lamar confronts mortality and extinction with urgent exasperation. Track-to-track flow, however, is about the only aspect of this release that can be called smooth. This was assembled with a high level of care that is immediately evident, its components sequenced to foster an easy listen. The dates indicate that the majority of the material was made during the sessions for that album, and the presence of many of its players and vocalists is unmistakable. A postscript, it's (artfully) artless in presentation - not even basic credits appear on the Army green liner card in the compact disc edition - yet it's almost as lyrically and musically rich as To Pimp a Butterfly. Apart from segments previewed at the Grammys and late-night television appearances, there was no formal promotion. consists of eight demos that are simply numbered and dated. Issued without advance notice 17 days after Kendrick Lamar's riveting 2016 Grammy Awards performance, untitled unmastered.