Kendrick Lamar Morphs Into Jussie Smollett in New Music Video

Rapper Kendrick Lamar just dropped his first new song as the lead artist since 2018, "The Heart Part 5".  In the new music video, Lamar shapeshifts into several complicated Black celebrities including Kanye West, Will Smith, Nipsey Hussle, O.J. Simpson, Kobe Bryant, and even Empire star Jussie Smollett. "I am. All of us," reads the opening screen.

The moment happens at the 2:07 timestamp, where you can watch West's face transform into Smollett. "The streets got me fucked up, y'all can miss me," Lamar raps as Smollett. "I wanna represent for us/New revolution was up and movin'/I'm in Argentina wiping my tears full of confusion/Water in between us, another peer's been executed/History repeats again/Make amends, then find a nigga with the same skin to do it."

This past December, the out actor was convicted in Chicago of five counts of disorderly conduct. "The jury found that he staged a racist, antigay hate-crime attack on himself in 2019 and lied to police about it," The Advocate reports.

Lamar's inclusion of Smollett among Smith, West, and Bryant is causing quite the stir online with many fans trying to unpack the video's meaning and message. 

What do you think?

Kendrick Lamar's new album Mr. Morale & the Big Steppers debuts Friday. Watch the music video below: