Kendrick Lamar: A Biography

Kendrick Lamar Duckworth was born on June 17, 1987, in Dominguez Hospital to Kenny Duckworth and Paula Oliver. Nestled in the tumultuous confines of Compton California, doctors and nurses at Dominguez Hospital had no idea what force they had just ushered into the world. At the time of Kendrick's bir [...]
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Kendrick Lamar Duckworth was born on June 17, 1987, in Dominguez Hospital to Kenny Duckworth and Paula Oliver. Nestled in the tumultuous confines of Compton California, doctors and nurses at Dominguez Hospital had no idea what force they had just ushered into the world. At the time of Kendrick's birth, Kendrick's parents had recently moved to Compton from Chicago in an effort to raise Kendrick in a culture other than the one that they had grown up in. This precaution proved to be futile however as drug violence seemed to follow them all the way to the West Coast. Kendrick's parents had recently had a big disagreement on the route of life Kendrick's father was taking. Faced with the ultimatum of making a conscious effort to change his ways or lose his wife and son, Kendrick's father complied with the move and attempted to start fresh in Compton. Back in Chicago, Kendrick's father Kenny had been an integral member of the infamous street gang named the Gangster Disciples. Following in his brother's footsteps, a few of Kenny's brothers were even members of the Bloods as well as the Crips. Kendrick's mother came from a family of 13 children, all of whom had six children themselves. This tight-knit family would all live in Compton till Kendrick was 13. Named for Eddie Kendricks, the lead singer of The Temptations, Kendrick Lamar found his musical background in his younger years thanks to his mother. The younger years for Kendrick were not easy, however, and his family found themselves in financial ruins. Given few other options of financial reprieve, along with the skyrocketing standard of living in Compton, Kendrick's parents were forced to apply for welfare while maintaining their residency in section 8 housing. These conditions would endure for all of Kendrick's years under his parent's roof. These conditions, however, would only add to the drive Kendrick would experience later-a drive that forced Kendrick to work hard, unless he wanted to return to the dismal living conditions his family had endured.