Stevie Wonder recently spoke to GQ for their Legacy Project and brought up Compton rapper Kendrick Lamar when talking about his taste in contemporary music.
"Kendrick Lamar is extremely talented. But not only is he just talented; he has a real concern for the people," Wonder explained before launching into a live remix of Lamar's latest single "i," which preaches the importance of self-love, a topic Wonder has also explored in his work.
The author then goes on to describe Wonder's performance of the song.
"His braids bounc[ed] into motion, the wattage of his huge smile [went] up a few notches as he [used] all four limbs to tap out different rhythms to the song," Mark Anthony Green wrote.
Wonder went on to talk about the cultural impact of the younger generation Lamar is part of.
"The good thing about the young is that they want to fix things," he told them. "They don't want to fall into the same ol' bullshit."
Back in June, AllHipHop reported on a rumor that Lamar had visited Africa and was inspired to write a song that he felt Wonder should be on. Apparently Lamar and Wonder have a mutual friend in hip-hop pioneer Doug E. Fresh, who connected them. The song will reportedly appear on Lamar's sophomore effort, which is rumored to drop next week.
Lamar's song "i" is currently nominated for Best Rap Song and Best Rap Performance at the 57th Annual Grammy Awards. Meanwhile, Wonder has amassed more than 20 Grammys in his 52-year career and will be honored this year with an all-star Grammy Salute to his album Songs In The Key Of Life, airing Feb. 16 on CBS.
Although we're definitely excited about their rumored collaboration, we'd also like to see Wonder's take on "i" one day. Maybe he'll eventually release his version of the track.
Do you agree with Stevie Wonder's assessment of Kendrick Lamar? Sound off in the comments section below!
