Wiki
-
Length
4:25
“good kid“ kicks off good kid, m.A.A.d city’s back half, depicting the immediate aftermath of K.Dot getting jumped by two guys in hoodies at the end of the previous track, “Poetic Justice.” This sets off the album’s theme of realization, ultimately steeling Kendrick’s resolve to get out of the hood.
Obviously, that’s easier said than done, as Kendrick delves into the negative effects of gang-culture and being racially profiled by police, who prove to be no help; K.Dot’s trials in the first two verses are reminiscent of Tre’s in the 1991 film Boyz n the Hood, who was harassed by gangsters for being a good kid and police officers for being black. Kendrick notes that while he did not affiliate with either gang, he was wrongly assumed to be involved in Compton gang culture by both sides and the police alike.
This is one half of the album’s title tracks, followed by “m.A.A.d city,” which continues this song’s narrative.
“good kid” is notable for its absence of profanity. It is one of the only tracks on good kid, m.A.A.d. city with this designation (with the exception of Real and Now or Never on the deluxe edition of the album). Kendrick’s deliberate avoidance of profanity in this song subtly further drives home the story of a good kid who is simply guilty by association.
Lamar told Complex in October 2012:
"'That represents the space I was in. Knowing that you’re doing wrong things, but at the same time, you’re a good kid at heart. I knew what I was doing and what I was getting myself into and the people I’m hanging with. Getting in the studio with Pharrell was insane. We did about five records together. He bangs out beats so quick, it’s amazing. So we was just cutting records. When he played that beat, I knew instantly that was the one I wanted for the title track. Just because of how dramatic it sounds.'"
Track descriptions on Last.fm are editable by everyone. Feel free to contribute!
All user-contributed text on this page is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License; additional terms may apply.
