“The Blacker The Berry,” the second single from Kendrick Lamar’s third studio album, “To Pimp A Butterfly” (2015), has surpassed 100 million streams on Spotify. Released on February 9, 2015, just a day after Lamar won five Grammy Awards, the track features vocals from dancehall artist Agent Sasco (formerly known as Assassin).
This milestone marks Agent Sasco’s first song to reach 100 million streams, while it is Lamar’s 69th. The track was produced by Boi-1da, Terrace Martin, and KOZ.
The song peaked at No. 66 on the Billboard Hot 100 and No. 83 on the UK Official Singles Chart. It is certified Gold in Australia (35,000), Canada (40,000), and the US (500,000), marking Agent Sasco’s only music certification in any of these countries.
Fans and critics alike have called the song one of the best because of its poignant message however, Sasco does not appear in the music video and he has not performed the black conscious tune in his set. Likewise he has never performed the hit with Lamar.
Despite this, in March 2015 he told Fader, “I can only think about all the good things,” Assassin said. “There is so much great intent in these developments that I can’t even see a negative. I go through the YouTube comments and I see people saying ‘Mannnn, I don’t know that Jamaican dude, but he killed it.'”
It was the deejay’s second collaboration with a rapper where he did not get credited as the artist. His vocals are also on “I’m In It” (Track 6 Kanye’s Yeezus album). That song has surpassed 64 million streams on Spotify.
Beyond credits and recognitions, the song elicited controversy in the US for making reference to Trayvon Martin, mainly for the lines,”So why did I weep when Trayvon Martin was in the street, when gang-banging make me kill a nigga blacker than me? Hypocrite!
In response to the backlash, Lamar told MTV that his music is therapy and the angst he poured into “The Blacker the Berry,” are is to reconcile with street realities.
“When I say these lines, it’s for myself, this is therapeutic for myself because I still feel that urge and I still feel that anger and that hatred for that man next door because I gotta get a call knowing that somebody around the corner done did this to my partner,” he explained.
