“To Pimp a Butterfly,” by Kendrick Lamar, may not hit your subwoofers hard, but the blow your heart will take will be extraordinary.

From the first line of “Wesley’s Theory,” to the eerie interview with Tupac on the last track, “Mortal Man,” Lamar delivered us a masterpiece. Spitting verses with unbelievable flow and incredible lyrics, Kendrick took us on a journey through his life. With few upbeat songs, the most popular of which are “i” and “King Kunta,” Lamar configured stories of how he was able to escape the hood life and make it as a rapper. Throughout the album, we learned of the hardships he faced growing up. Leaving his friends and family behind so he could pursue a chance at fame left Lamar disoriented and somewhat lost in the new life he made for himself.

Becoming a celebrity took a toll on him. He started to take advantage of his powers of influence to get what he wanted. Because of this, he got put into bad situations, one of which ended with a friend being killed.

Darrin Love, a junior at EWU, said Lamar’s new album “really shows how messed up things can be in the music industry.”

The songs are about struggle, but through them Lamar delivered messages of hope for young people, especially young African-Americans. He let us know that we can make it —if he did, we can too. He spoke of the recent events at Ferguson, Missouri, and Trayvon Martin’s death. Reminding us of Tupac, he let us know that we need to start making changes in how we view the world and the people in it. Hypocrisy floods the world, even Lamar himself admitted to being a hypocrite when it comes to race.

What makes this album the incredible work of art it is are the lyrics and the unconventional instrumentals. From the heartbreaking “These Walls,” to the heated “The Blacker the Berry,” Lamar put his poetic genius to work. Stringing together tales and ideas, his songs are abundant in metaphors and incredible imagery. Behind his voice, you won’t hear the standard heavy bass. Instead, Lamar used an array of smooth jazz tunes. Not only does this form of ingenuity single him out, it even helped emphasize his words. Upping the ante for album of the year, Lamar’s “To Pimp a Butterfly” is the true definition of a masterpiece.