At some point, years after I loaded her MP3 player up with key tracks from Bayside and The Starting Line, my sister has officially become more savvy than I when it comes to emerging musical trends. I owe my love for Donnie Trumpet (and Chance The Rapper for that matter), Corbin (aka Spooky Black), and Vince Staples solely to her. A few months ago, she made another recommendation. This time for Anderson .Paak.
Spoiler alert: I'm a fan.
Anderson .Paak caught a lot of ears with Venice, his 2014 LP. He piled on a lot more with his 6 appearances on Dr. Dre's Compton. He solidified my attention with his new album Malibu, and floored me with his TV debut on Colbert.
It's well known my love for Kendrick Lamar's television performances. Each one somehow outdoes the last and improves upon the studio version—if there is one (here's another one). He's infinitely impressive. Anderson .Paak has only performed on television once, but that one performance is nearly as memorable as one of Kendrick's—nearly.
That's not surprising. .Paak seems to pull a fair amount of influence from the Compton rapper. There are tracks on Malibu that sound not so much like To Pimp A Butterfly B-sides as they do spiritual successors. The sounds of both artists have grown into lush tapestries of sonic collage. Each transcendent over their peers in hip-hop and R&B by harkening back to the roots of their genre.
I imagine with his new Aftermath deal and plenty of opportunities on his horizon, .Paak has a bright career ahead. The ideal first step would be Kendrick taking him out on tour.
Grab Malibu on iTunes to support the artist and this blog.