Ignorance Is Bliss

By Makai Green


Kendrick Lamar is known today as one of the biggest rap stars and creates some of the most powerful songs of this generation. Many are familiar with his biggest hits such as "Swimming Pools (Drank)" and "Poetic Justice", but one of his most powerful songs has evaded the masses and is a best-kept secret among hardcore fans of Kendrick.

"Ignorance Is Bliss", a single off of his Overly Dedicated mixtape released in 2010, tells the story of a young black male who is involved in the street life and vows to get revenge for his friend who was killed by a rival gang member. Kendrick tells the story from the young man's perspective who is also alarmingly aware of his actions and consequences, but attributes his behavior to his environment. The attribution to the environment is influenced by his neighborhood where survival is the name of the game and drugs and gangs are your claim to fame.

The music video is only less than two minutes long and focuses on the first verse of the song. The first verse tells the story of the aforementioned young male. The video is allegedly based on true events.

The video is set in Compton and begins with Kendrick wearing a black hoodie, jeans, and red Converse shoes (normally associated with Bloods). He hops the fence to a cemetery and sips a 40oz while reminiscing over his slain friend's grave. Kendrick's friend shows up in a black sedan and Kendrick hops the fence and gets in the backseat of the car. He continues to drink liquor to build his courage and ease his nerves as they drive around looking for the rival gang member. They finally spot the gang member and Kendrick hops out with the gun pointed at him. He does not immediately pull the trigger as his face is covered in remorse and anger. It is as if he is contemplating if he should pull the trigger or not, but eventually he makes his decision and the rival's lifeless body drops to the pavement.

Kendrick grew up on the westside, a known territory of the Bloods gang, of Compton, California. He was never involved in gangs or drug-dealing like a lot of his childhood friends, but was usually targeted by Crips, a rival gang, due to his association with his friends. He grew up very poor, but made the most of what he had. He began rapping around the age of 16 under the name "K-Dot."

Even though Kendrick was never involved in the street life, he experienced and witnessed, firsthand, many of the heartbreaks and tragedies that come with that lifestyle. "Ignorance Is Bliss" is a perfect example of Kendrick's powerful storytelling abilities.


Kendrick raps in a detached and nonchalant, but fast pace as to mimic the heartless nature and fast-paced lifestyle of his hometown. He delves deeper into the mind of the young man by rapping "'Momma he's dead' the next morning, I toasted up with my homies, We drink and smoke marijuana, wants us to change our ways? Uh-uh". These lyrics serve as a testament to how little his environment is concerned with human life. The use of alcohol and drugs can be seen as a coping mechanism with his acts or his way of just not acknowledging them. Even the title of the song, "Ignorance Is Bliss", captures the essence of this young man's environment. The young man understands that his actions are wrong, but growing up in his environment has caused him to only be exposed to violence and that's all he knows. He does not know any other kind of life besides this one. Kendrick ends his verse saying "No sympathy , ain't no love when you in these streets just get something" which leaves a cold reminder about his environment's brash mentality.

Kendrick is not a gang member so why did he choose to speak from the perspective of one? The acts that are depicted in the video are reflections of social reality and not just scenes for a music video. He has lost numerous friends who were involved in this lifestyle and friends who weren't gang members but were caught in the crosshairs. The stories and lives of young black males who live these lifestyles are usually forgotten without a second thought. Kendrick's goal is to introduce people outside of that lifestyle to see what life is like in urban inner cities for blacks. On the outside looking in, black males in inner cities are seen as nothing more than thugs, gang bangers, and drug dealers. Kendrick is attempting to change this outlook and force people to view the bigger picture and see this as a widespread social problem in inner cities.

He wants people to start asking "why" these men have turned to these lifestyles. He tries to accomplish this by playing the shooter in the video. Everyone knows Kendrick is not a gangster, but seeing him pull the trigger in the video might shock some viewers. The video starts out in a cemetery and Kendrick grieving over the death of his friend, but at the end of the video another death occurs and it's a cycle. The friend of the rival will most likely do the same thing Kendrick did and retaliate. So if the video was extended, it might include seeing Kendrick being killed this time which might leave viewers upset and saddened.

Once people start asking "why" and viewing this reality as a social problem in many black communities, some of the problems affecting these communities will be fixed. Kendrick is the voice of those who are forgotten in these communities. He is seen as the "golden child" who one day may create enough noise to make people pay attention and solve the problems in these communities.