Lesson From Kendrick

Pusha T, Kendrick Lamar, Nas, Busta Rhymes, and Wu-Tang Clan easily make the list of my all-time favorite rappers. In 2022, I was fortunate enough to either get new music from them or see them on tour. In some instances, I got both! As google photos bombards me with pictures and videos from Kendrick Lamar’s concert last year, I thought I would share a lesson from one of my favorite rappers.

Mr. Morale and the Big Steppers Tour

Kendrick Lamar won “Rap Album of the Year” at the Grammys in January 2023. I personally awarded it to him the moment I heard “Purple Hearts,” which featured my all-time favorite rapper, Ghostface. “Mr. Morale and The Big Steppers” was a great album, and I can say that the concert I attended at the Wells Fargo in August of 2022 was even better.

It has become my practice to revisit old albums from artists prior to seeing them in concert. During my trip through Lamar’s music catalog, the song “Mortal Man” from his album “To Pimp a Butterfly” hit differently and I couldn’t seem to shake the chorus:

“When shit hit the fan, is you still a fan?
When shit hit the fan, is you still a fan?
Make sure you look to the left and right and ask your friends 
When shit hit the fan, is you still a fan?”

K. Dot takes the concept of fair-weather sports fans and applies it to the people who claim to be fans of you. He questions whether those fans will support you even when you’re facing adversity or if they will be like fair-weather sports fans who are quick to abandon, boo, and talk negatively about their so-called favorite teams at the first sign of struggle.

No, these lyrics didn’t make me question whether my friends and family are with me through the good times and the bad. I am blessed to have a support system that has been there for me through the ups and downs, the wins and the losses. It also didn’t make me question whether I am a fair-weather fan for my friends and family. I believe they know that I am someone who will be there “when shit hit the fan.”

However, the song did make me question if I am truly a fan of the Most High. Like many, I find it easy to cheer for Team Most High during the wins and prosperous seasons. But what about when things aren’t going the way I want them to? Am I still a fan of the Most High when “shit hit the fan”?

I don’t think it was a coincidence that these lyrics hit differently during the summer of 2022. The week of the Mr. Morale and Big Steppers show was the same week my family was dealing with one of the toughest situations the Bacchus Family had ever faced. There is no need to go into specifics, but please know that “shit hit the fan,” and if I’m honest, my first reaction was to boo, take off my jersey, and say that Team Most High sucks.

However, Kendrick’s words reminded me of an important lesson. Real fans of the Most High cheer during wins and losses, victories and defeats. If I’m not cheering when “shit hit the fan,” I can’t claim to really be a fan.