Jay Rock, Kendrick Lamar, Future, and James Blake join forces for hard-nosed banger “King’s Dead,” the second single from the highly anticipated ‘Black Panther: The Album.’

“King’s Dead” serves as the second single from Black Panther: The Album, the highly-anticipated soundtrack for the highly-anticipated film, Black Panther.  Following a strong Kendrick Lamar/SZA collaboration on “All the Stars”, Kendrick Lamar reappears with Jay Rock, Future, and James Blake for this hard-nosed, bass heavy banger.

From the start, the beat is trunk-rattling. Kendrick Lamar drops a ferocious hook that ends up being catchier than expected.

“Miss me with that bullshit / You ain’t really wild, you a tourist / I be blackin’ out with the purist / I made a hundred thou’, then I freaked it.”

Jay Rock gets ‘first blood’ with the first verse, matching the toughness of the backdrop. “And it’s like that, lil bitch / MVP, I don’t get no sleep, n, I don’t like that, lil bitch.” Future follows, with a variation on the hook, assisted by Kendrick Lamar.  He’s a perfect fit – this sounds like his elite, outlandish hooks.

“Fuck his baby mama tryna sneak diss / I took her to my penthouse, then I freaked it / I haven’t made my mind up, should I keep it? / I got big dog status, it ain’t no secret.”

The bridge, mostly performed by Future, is bizarre, including the famous lyric, “Slob on [me] knob.” The original, K-Dot hook follows, before a production switch-up.  James Blake initiates the second part of the song, in all his enigmatic, electronic excellence.  Kendrick Lamar then proceeds to go H.A.M. on the second verse of the song.  The beat and overall sound remains hard-hitting.

“Red light, green light, red light, green light… / Fast cars, fast money, fast life, fast broads / Egotistic, goin’ ballistic, why God?”

Final Thoughts 

Ultimately, the end result for “King’s Dead” is simply, BANGER. Jay Rock, Kendrick Lamar, Future, and James Blake all nail their respective roles.  Twon Beatz, 30 Roc, Teddy Walton, and Mike WiLL Made-It stitch up the track superbly with their production.

Various Artists • Black Panther: The Album • Aftermath • Release: 2.9.18

Photo Credit: Aftermath