An English Professor Breaks Down Kendrick Lamar’s “Fear.”
genius.comKendrick Lamar is arguably one of the most talented lyricists in hip-hop. He’s shown his versatility time and time again, notably on projects like 2017’s DAMN.
The album gave fans a number of notable tracks, especially songs like “FEAR.,” where Kendrick explores three different periods of his life at ages 7, 17, and 27.
Genius spoke to Professor Adam Bradley, an English professor at the University of Colorado Boulder, director of the Laboratory for Race & Popular Culture, and author of the Anthology of Rap.
Professor Bradley explained a number of devices Kendrick uses throughout the song, including repetition known as anaphora, and the literary device assonance. “FEAR.” is littered with distinct rhyme schemes and speech patterns that are part of what make Kendrick Lamar so iconic as a rapper.
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