Kendrick Lamar Visits Mr. Mooney's Class
Вставка
- Опубліковано 12 чер 2015
- Listen to the radio piece here: www.npr.org/sections/ed/2015/0...
At around midday Monday at High Tech High School in North Bergen, N.J., about 40 students are crammed into a small classroom, anxiously waiting for Kendrick Lamar to walk into the room.
He glides in with crisp white kicks, a grey long-sleeve shirt, and hair twisting every which way. The 27-year-old rapper has a broad smile on his face. He seems almost as excited as the students, who just might be having their best day of school ... ever.
Lamar is on top of the rap game at the moment. His latest album, To Pimp a Butterfly, came out earlier this year and debuted at No. 1 on Billboard's albums chart. It's a complex, multilayered piece of work that wrestles with themes around blackness and beauty.
That's why Brian Mooney decided to use it to with his freshman English students as they studied Toni Morrison's novel, The Bluest Eye. The book is about a young black girl who yearns to have blue eyes.
"I was listening and I was like, wow, there are just so many themes that are the same," Mooney says. He's also a graduate student at Teachers College, Columbia University, working with a program exploring the use of hip-hop in education.
"The main character that my students spoke about, Pecola Breedlove, she's experiencing internalized oppression," Mooney explains. "And so Kendrick is speaking to that same concept with the song 'Complexion.' He's speaking to that same idea of pushing back against the dominant narrative that there's this mythological norm that is considered good and beautiful and valuable."
The lesson caught on with his students. They wrote essays, poetry and rap lyrics inspired by the book and album. Around Mooney's classroom, posters of Morrison quotes and Lamar's lyrics are paired with images of Trayvon Martin and Michael Brown. Mooney was encouraged, so he wrote a blog post about the lesson.
"It just took off, and it went across the Internet, and Kendrick Lamar got it and read it," Mooney says. "His manager reached out to me and said, 'I want to come visit your school.' So we made it happen."
Lamar, in a brief interview in the school's theater, says Mooney's blog post was fascinating. "I was intrigued how somebody can - other than myself - can articulate and break down the concepts of To Pimp A Butterfly, almost better than I can," he said.
The artist says he didn't just come here to perform, or just to mentor the students.
"Something even - for me - even bigger than mentoring is really listening," he says. "And when I do that, we have a little bit bigger connection than me being Kendrick Lamar and you being a student. It's almost like we're friends, you know? Because a friend listens and we learn off each others' experiences."
Throughout the day, Lamar listens. At a school-wide assembly students present the work they've done with Mooney. Ben Vock, Joan Tubungbanua and Sade Ford read their poetry and essays. Vock reads a poem about his own prejudices.
Lamar says he likes it.
"You know, the hardest thing for not only an artist but for anybody to do is look themselves in the mirror and acknowledge their own flaws and fears and imperfections. And put them out for people to relate to it," he tells the senior. "I can relate to you as well, you dig what I'm sayin'?"
After the readings, a group of students perform a dance number to a mashup of Lamar's songs.
Then it's his turn. Lamar grabs the mic and dives into "Alright," one of the tracks on To Pimp a Butterfly.
"It was very exciting" Sade Ford, a senior, says after the show. "And this is going to be a once-in-a-lifetime experience."
-- by SAMI YENIGUN
CREDITS
Director/Editor: Mito Habe-Evans; Producers: LA Johnson, Sami Yenigun; Videographers: Mito Habe-Evans, Adam Wolffbrandt; Supervising Producer: Steve Drummond; Executive Producer: Anya Grundmann
Drake wouldn’t be able to contain himself
😂😂😂
😅
Nah😭😭😭
Tryna strike a chord and it’s probably A Minorrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr
BROOOOO😂😂😂
That one kid that missed school that day will better not ask what happened this day.
They'll surely exaggerate stuffs for him.😂
"they brought out JCole AND BABY KEEM"
@@KyeGraham-pu4kv bro Baby Keem wasnt even a thing yet, he was still playing Minecraft 😂
@@MowgliDotWav 😭
this video truly represents the diference between him and drake. Kendrick admiring what the students do, and teaching them waht he went through, while drake at 37 would approach one of the teens to chat up fo sho..
weird thats what you took away from this video
@@RegisDegis if you Saw the thread of Drakes acitivities with minor girls right before this you would say the same, don't put this on me
@@RegisDegis nah hes right about that it really is the difference between them
It’s a private school not that courageous
I think the difference drake would be doing this around a bunch of black kids. While kdot constantly panders to the whites while rapping against white culture.
If Drake visits a high school it would be for a different purpose.
Cue Karl Malone shimmy gif
High school female basketball
Hip Hop Lit sounds like a dope ass class
Sound lit.
aomardelta Hell yeah it does. I would have aced that with flying colors if they offered it in my high school. Cultural relevance is an important part of educational curricula.
Ye fo sho them younguns are headed the right path
That class is lit af!!
Omar Alkawasmie kinda cringe to me
That's what we need, rappers that feed positive messages back in to schools. Back to the kids. Rappers with substance.
Micah Louth 'Rappers with substance' are something we are lacking besides a few unfortunately
Gza did this too. But Kendrick's visit looked more dope. Regardless tho, there outta be more emcees doing this shit.
Tupac did this too. Probably inspired Kendrick to do the same.
Tao 타키오 your comment was so unnecessary
@@juniorzale6408 none of our comments are necessary.
"Its only one day what am i going to miss"
FM Online podcast every single time I miss school
*Goes on Suicide watch*
its really how it be lol
I would never come to school again
Bruh I was absent this day. 😬😭
A problem with English classes is that they focus on old ass stuff all the time. It doesn't keep the student interested. Am I saying we should eliminate all old literature from education? No. But we should always incorporate these new forms of poetry somewhat to keep people interested
anthony zepeda Never thought of it like that. Nice point of view.
anthony zepeda I've always thought the same.
Especially since the Us is and has always beende of multiple ethnicities. It seems weird to me since when I was in High School we red from french, English, spanish, mexican, Haitian literature. There's a reason traductions exist so I never understood why you guys seem to have such a problem.
So true man, this teaching system outdated
anthony zepeda to be fair I find older stuff interesting, but not everyone does, the thing is kids are exposed to this stuff everyday, whereas you wouldn't come across a lot of older works anymore
Kendrick Lamar, by far...realest negus alive
I extended version xD
ZARO 95 shhh.
Kay ;-;
not on mah time...kill the music XD
We can save that shit for the streets
yo those kids actually had some pretty good bars
True
I was impressed
Nah facts
Gospel
"Taking you out of slavery
Splitting waters apart"
I thought that on was really good
Drake wanted to do this badly but they don’t allow him near school anymore
ahhahahahahahahah
3:59 I can tell kendrick liked his style.
Facts
more teachers like this are what the education system needs. why not combine fun and entertainment and something relatable for youth with learning. not every kid learns by reading a damn textbook
In due time; a lot of the folks who were inspired by Tupac and others in there teen years, if they went into teaching, are starting to hit that threshold where they've earned the chance to teach subject matter the way they see fit. That 14 or 15 year old who was bumping hip hop in the 90s is in their mid thirties now
Rich M thinking this the whole time i watched to video. im 12 and kendricks music relates to me so much but the negative depiction of hip hop or almost all modern music today creates the close-mindedness of schools or learning facilities when they dont realize how much music affects our lives as teens growing
Rich M
Well said.
You're abso right but some students will it for granted
Rich M
That's what my geography teacher did, we studied the social interaction for when rap and hip hop started and how it spread world wide. He did it because we all failed our last subject which we didn't have any interest in it at all.
If every high school was this progressive, our education system would be working.
100%. You're a Boss.
Sadly the education system isn't meant to "work"; it's meant to perpetually feed the machine.
No
Dedsec. Eric bullet Barry has a great video called dont be a factory worker that exposes the flaws of our education system. I recommend it.
@Almighty Kevin you heard the guy
Kendrick was almost impressed by that one kid rapping about slavery and shit. Man I want to meet this artist so fucking bad.
Aye whats good
These kids got better bars than Drake
Holy shit. That's my old teacher.
No way are you serious?!
+Basket Baller he wishes
He's probably talking about Mr.Mooney guys .... use some sense
damn no sense of humor whatsoever...
You were taught by Kendrick Lamar?!
"OH MY GOD THIS IS SO GOD DAMN LIT"
"AHHHHHHHHHHH*as face turns red*" lol
Obtention That guy knows he a lucky fucker.
I THOUGHT I WAS THE ONLY ONE WHO HEARD THAT AT 6:37 LMAO
Obtention 😆😆😆😆
not just lit, it's Hip Hop Lit
"flow from the heart, taking you outta slavery, splitting waters apart" 🔥🔥🔥🔥
Facts fire
Adonis got the coolest uncle in the world!
😂😂😂😂
😂😂
What school is this god damn. I wish I went here. Diverse af, respectful, influential, off the charts full of credentials
High Tech High School located in North Bergen New Jersey. This school is a county school a part of a Hudson County Schools of Technology (HCST)
It looked cool but don't cap it was not diverse they were really panning hard to find the 5 black people in that whole school.
This is what the world needs. Hip hop should be taken seriously as an avenue of study and deserves appreciation. Also, Kendrick is one of the most prolific artists of our generation.
JohnI'm Loki?Okiul m'llIm Liu 'lI'm uli oummkmmk'llI'lmm UK I'll.I'llKlanIi'llhmI'I'loummkmmk'llI'lmml mm kkllI'llilklo ilk I'll I'll lo mmk'llI'l lomm loilmlu j'kllI'm y 'llk jjuliolioito gold l lc
and thats why he got a Pulitzer.
Yooo these kids can SPIT! Kendrick need to sign somebody lol
lol, yeah that kid at 3:53 has so much personality in his flow!
A Gentleman yea he was beastie.. Kendrick was lovin it!
A Gentleman sign him up and get him a producer DAMN he spits bars with passion
The sad thing is that my school would never even THINK of opening a class like that, even student run and extracurricular
Forodelse Just because your school won't do something about it, doesn't mean you guys as a collective student body, big or small, can't open a club. It never hurts to try, only takes one person to push the button to get things started. Make sht happen bruh!
Chokachilds No man, you don't understand, i live in italy, it's impossible to without state authorization which is in itself impossible
Forodelse same man. fuckkkk
Forodelse Prove them wrong. Start your own group. Fuck the forces, do your thing. You are more powerful than you realise.
Preach
What a great teacher!! Kendrick showing up rewards this cool idea.
Why the teacher look like he about to sell me a spot at VaultTec
lol
My guy LOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOL
BRUHHHHH
PREPAAARE FOR THE FUUUTURE!
Drake and J Cole not doing this
Cole would definitely do this though
@@timy9197 Yeah fr, can't believe people are lumping in Cole with Drake like he's still part of the beef. He's been a real one since day 1
Drake is not allowed in high schools
thay can't
@@sirdourosor preschools
I wish my English teacher is like this
Same
Anson Nguyen Imagine disecting hip hop albums in class rather than Shakespeare, much more relateable imo, it would be so cool
Anson Nguyen My English teacher is the worst teacher I had so far.
Anson Nguyen mine is boring asf
he would be if you didnt add way too much sauce..
Now this is what hip hop is about. Spreading knowledge
Lil Wayne would disagree
Raps about stupid shit most of the time
+Samuel Hernandez Moreno most of the time
Real shit.
Looking at this now thru the lens of the Kendrick and Drake beef further reminds me that Kendrick is pure culture!
so glad they let kendrick visit and not drake
He'd be slobbering
A Minooooooooorrrrrr
so glad you chose to glaze and not actually make music
@@RegisDegisHow's Drake's BBL taste?
I get so frustrated at the lack of appreciation for hip-hop lyricism in English Literature classes and wider society. So this really fills a void and tells me that its beginning. Thank you NPR :)
That was so beautiful. I totally teared up from this.
It's all love
Audre Jankowski wtf, I need to get more in touch with my emotions, what made you cry? I felt warm, happy, inspired but no tears, yo.
It made me tear up as well
Audré Jankowski i did too. Sometimes people end up exactly where they need to be to do as much good, and influence as many people as possible. This is one of those situations
SootheSayinYaySayer
Right?
imagine going to school and kendrick lamar spits a freestyle in your english class bruh i'd love that teacher forever
What did you do today?
"Freestyled with Kendrick Lamar in class no biggie"
4:11 Kendrick like I need to take this guy out, he finna end my career
fabian estrada lmfao petty
😂😂😂😂
Hahahah u can't he the truth and real raps get permanent income
Nah bruh, this guy isn't Supa Hot Fire 🌚😂
That head shake.. he was like nah nigga it’s time for you to stop lmfao
I thank god for him and J. Cole. They care🙌🏾😌
j.Cole just needs bring more dope producers in the studio
🙌🏻🙌🏼🙌🏽🙌🏾🙌🏿
Logic? Joey badass, earl sweatshirt?
+Abdullah Hussain earl always got that heat 🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥
+Melvin ”vorticalauto60” olive do u think future can come to a school and learn them stuff
K-Dot man....... Honestly one of the most important and influential artists of this generation
“Hey kids today we gonna talk about gun control”
Dayum!
Cool teacher.
Well bravo to you Mr. Mooney and every teacher like you. This is one way to get around the ever spreading death of creativity and art in the class room.
What happens when you miss school 😂
This school is cool af
It sucks that a 15 year old like me prolly won't ever get to meet him, but it doesn't matter, his music is just as good as a simple conversation. Lot of respect to him for doing this tho.
feel you man, at least i'll be kendrick ammar, 5'5", same as kendrick, i didnt grow up in the hoods of compton, but man, i had some stuggles, glad to be here now, just wanna make it big so i can pay back my mom and dad, both workin 2, sometimes 3 jobs to support me and my siblings
Ammar AlAhmad Yeah one thing I realised as soon as I left high school was try not to judge because everyone wether privileged or not, all of us have different struggles. bless you and your family lil bro
@@asammar4835 say no mo always remembered real raps get permanent income
@@uncharted7againblackking256 hope you doing better now bro
Greatest English teacher in the world right there, folks.
No cap
I swear sometimes Kendrick brings tears to my eyes. The beauty of an artist who genuinely cares deeply about people and peace in humanity. He is a figure that impacts the world in a positive light. He's far from greedy. I love this man, my generation need him in their music! ☮️✌️
I wish I had a hip hop lit class in my school.
Jade T where are you from?
Wow education has come a long way since I went to school thirty years ago.
xwhite2020 This is so rare man, it takes a truly great teacher for something like this
xwhite2020 I fucking wish...smh
xwhite2020 no it hasn't....majority of this education system is still the same garbage as it is.......dont judge a whole system by one classroom and teacher....this system still is based on what you put on paper and defines you by a letter...and teaches you to pass a test...not to enlighten you with knowledge....
traven64 Amen, school is prison.
xwhite2020 a long way? more like downhill
4:20 lmao when you turn into a t-rex cuz of kendrick
+Josh Robinson Holy fuck XD
+Josh Robinson ahhahaa
I watched for this moment after reading your comment, and I died laughing thank you
Ahahahahahahah
@@ItzSpeedBump welcome
This is incredible! Big ups to this amazing teacher, his students and of course Kendrick 🙌🏽
This video made me cry. I'm the same age as these kids and being a Kendrick fan and coming across this video and seeing the happiness on Kendrick's face and hearing what he said- it was all just a perfect combination for me to break down. What an incredible person.
I WANT KENDRICK TO COME TO MY SCHOOL, EVERYONE ELSE LISTENS TO BULLSHIT, THEY NEED TO HEAR TRUTH AND GOOD MUSIC, WHILE GROOVIN LIKE FUCK
same
agree
+Patita Budi I'm Portuguese.
+Patita Budi lol. I like Kendrick though.
+Patita Budi that's my school in a nutshell
i'm making sure Kendrick Lamar will know my name, IDGAF if i'm from Africa.
I stand with you on that
lol count me in haha
Me too
Same, and I'm from Africa too, I'll meet y'all you and Kendrick back stage
@@samguy7654 always remembered real raps get permanent income oh
What a legend. Kendrick Lamar time and time again proves that he is so much more than an artist. Hopefully he can inspire an entire generation of young and aspiring artists who employ what he is trying to pass down.
This is incredibly beautiful
Best. Teacher. Ever.
if teachers weren't so uptight school would be soooooooooo fucking better.
My English teacher had tupac tuesdays where was this class when I was in school
Cause tupacs dead buddy
You took "90s rap banger lyrics" and compared them to tupac as a whole? You ever heard "keep ya head up"?
+oscar cooke that's a diss track lol. That's not Tupacs literature
Ones teaching kids while the other one is touc-
ayo xD chilll
imagine you skipped that day and your classmates got a free kendrick performance
The guy with the red hat literally has the thickest eyebrows in the world. He should call Guiness and collect.
LMAO CHILL! xD
burmashavetom BRO CHILL!
burmashavetom Lmao...
How can someone even press that dislike button. Even as a joke it isnt right lol
Probably because their school is boring and they're jealous.
Hello Nathan
6:40 "O MY GAD THAT WAS SO GOD DAMN LIT"
Incredible. If only my school was like this smh
iB3RNAL exactly! I showed my English teacher Kendrick Lamar and she judge him because "he swore too much" damn just listen to poetic lyrics!
3:55 - 4:08 TDE needs to sign him now
bruhhhhh yessss
you know your teacher is cool when he has quotes that say bitch and fuck on the wall
This video was sooooooo amazing in so many ways. He gets to meet potential new talents and connect and stay humble with fans, he performs for the school AND Mr. Mooney was cool af wish he was my teacher once upon a time.
this is so amazing. Seeing the teacher be so knowledgeable about music and be able to make a lesson and teach his students who then study music and learn lessons through what they love to listen to or make is AMAZING. I cannot understate how jealous i am of this. wonderful video
When he next come it better be with J.Cole!! We ALL still waiting patiently for that K.dot & Cole Album
True
I agree with that statement.
I don't think that would be a good album at all cole isn't even on Kendricks level no disrespect to cole though.
Javon Green You must not listen to J.Cole a lot?
Charles Barkley nah I just don't think he can tie his music together like kendrick does over the course of an album.
Fox won't display this on their channel. They wouldn't be able to twist and and misconstrue the message. Glad he said this is was the best accolade he's collected. Positivity.
I wish Kendrick Lamar came to my school but my English teacher is 63 :(
The algorithm is doing its thing
True MC, let's see Drake spit at a high school lol..he would go back to being bullied "make everybody have to go thru security clearance" lol
dead
This is one more reason why I have been a huge fan of his since first hearing his music many years ago… Thank you for being such a great writer and role model, Kendrick!
Mans would come to my school and I'd be the only nigga that knew him
SnipezZ same all my school is white
SnipezZ same I live in Mississippi and all these people out here only listen to country an shit or mainstream shit
The high school I went to was full of Mexicans and Blacks
SnipezZ My school would claim to know him, yet all they would know is "Humble".
nah same i was talking to sum ppl about me goin to see kendrick this november and they were like "who's that?" i was like🙁
Cipher
I love this so much! If my school had hip-hop lit I would be in that class and have such a high mark lol, love the idea and love the teacher whose trying to spread the knowledge of hip hop! It's so much more deeper than people think! Amazing
that guys eyebrows are thiccccc
offbrand who
Supercars Of Wichita 5:06
That class sounds lit
I like how they all had that old-school rap flow. There's a lot of modern rappers out their with that style and flow. Meaningful lyrics and stuff that's cool to see in this time & age at a highschool. ✊
this is amazing. kids are engaged and learning. k dot is such a great person!
I hardly know Kendrik Lamar. I don't know his music or what he's about. But from seeing this video, seeing the impact he has and seeing how he utilizes it to inspire and invigorate young minds is truly outstanding. Way to be a great role model Kendrik, keep doing what you do.
"We dissect hip hop albums we dissect album covers"
Wtf why couldn't I get this in Special Ed
That is one cool teacher,and big ups to Kendrick for going to the school and spending time with the class.This is a great video.Thanks
NPR is one of the few places that truly benefit musicians & up and coming platinum entertainers. They make my job easier when teaching my courses to those who follow them! THANKS NPR SG-1
very clever way of bringing rap/poetry in the community! time to get the taboo of this master art!
this is what truly seperates Kendrick from other rappers. He, in no doubt, is the best.
This is so amazing I totally agree that some rap songs are poetry especially Kendrick he writes about serious topics in today's world and it's nice that high schoolers can analyze that to achieve a new perspective
I really love this, we need more of this.
Love Kendrick for this! Such a humble guy man spreading positives vibes is what life is all about
Me: hey bro I'm sick today what did I miss
Best Friend: Kdot
America needs more schools and teachers like this. We see the whole school getting down to Kendrick's music and having an amazing experience regardless of personal beliefs or opinions. Put more kids in a positive environment like this, and you can inspire and change lives.
first lines i hear are immediately off Rigamortis, awesome
I'm currently studying to be an English teacher. I am so unbelievably inspired by this video. Thank you, NPR.
I hope your career is going well, go easy on em 🤞🏽🤞🏽
Dawg someone missed a day of school.
When Drake goes to high school it’s for a different reason 🤦🏻♂️
Dude it's amazing to see Kendrick Lamar get engaged with the youth! It's even more amazing to see real art get recognized! All of these other rappers are imputing poison to our radio stations.
This wasnt meant for 16 year olds
But them understanding and relating to it shows how improved and mature the society has become 🥺🥺🔥🔥
This was so powerful! I love KL’s mission - he’s actually doing some real ish out there touching lives.
The teacher looks like the kinda guy where if he shouts at you you know you MESSED UP messed up.
He ain’t mad at you just disappointed