Metacritic 89/100 as of 19 critic reviews

Album of the Year.org 90/100 as of 23 critic reviews

The Independent 5/5

A tender opus from the defining poet of his generation – Rapper’s first album in five years is a haunting and surprising meditation on fatherhood and family

The Guardian 5/5

Rap genius bares heart, soul and mind – After a five-year hiatus, the Pulitzer winner returns with an exhilarating epic that ties personal pain to collective trauma – and lets no one off the hook

NME 5/5

A cathartic, soul-baring autobiography – The rapper’s first album in five years sees him overcome “writer’s block” to triumph with a collection on which his observational skills go into overdrive

HipHopDX 4.2/5

Mr. Morale & The Big Steppers paints a gripping portrait of how trauma and therapy have morphed the 34-year-old artist beyond recognition.

Consequence of Sound

Kendrick’s fifth solo album doesn’t miss

Variety Magazine

‘Mr. Morale & the Big Steppers’ Is a Difficult, Ambitious Tour of Kendrick Lamar’s Psyche

Pitchfork 7.6/10 (Thread)

On his fifth album, Kendrick retreats from the limelight and turns to himself, highlighting his insecurities and beliefs. It’s ambitious, impressive, and a bit unwieldy.

TheNeedleDrop 8/10 (Thread)

Kenny’s big step.

Rolling Stone 70/100

The Pulitzer Prize-winning rapper spends much of his fifth studio album deconstructing his own mythology. The result is at moments brilliant but on the whole, frustratingly uneven

Slant Magazine 4/5

The album is a gripping treatise on the relationship between Lamar’s inner turmoil and the cultural landscape.

Sputnik 3.3/5

My brain hurts a lot. – Five years. Hip-hop’s most illustrious artist absent. Five turbulent years. Tension, violence, riots. An attempted coup. Disease. Turmoil.

Pop Matters 9/10

Renowned rapper Kendrick Lamar observes the strife plaguing his kingdom and consciously abdicates the throne.

The Line of Best Fit 10/10

For someone already renowned for their stacked lyricism and poetic nature, it would seem Kendrick Lamar in 2022 has something to say.

Loud and Quiet 8/10

Mr. Morale & the Big Steppers is a record that reaches out halfway and asks you to do the rest of the work, and it’s deeply rewarding as a result.

Gigwise 9/10

One thing is clear … few storytellers, if any, are able to deliver a comment on society that is both as observative and introspective as Kendrick’s.

The Sydney Morning Herald 10/10

It’s his emotional terrain, especially on the revealing second disc, that’s likely to perpetuate a reputation that already transcends the genre.

Dork 10/10

If it does mark the end of something – or simply offers a postscript to an incredible chapter in a career that might take a new direction – then it stands as another stunning landmark for a once-in-a-lifetime artist.

Northern Transmissions 9.5/10

This album, like many of his albums, (notably the jazz masterpiece To Pimp A Butterfly,) dabbles in rap form with all sorts of modern music, including classical, funk, pop, and underground.

The Arts Desk 10/10

Kendrick continues to be a movement, much bigger than one man.

Release Date: May 13th

Runtime: 1h13m

Starring: Kendrick Lamar, OKLAMA, Blxst, Amanda Reifer, Sampha, Taylour Paige, Summer Walker, Ghostface Killah, Baby Keem, Kodak Black, Sam Dew, Tanna Leone, and Beth Gibbons of Portishead

Producers: The Alchemist, Baby Keem, Beach Noise, Bekon, Boi-1da, Cardo, Craig Balmoris, DJ Dahi, DJ Khalil, The Donuts, Duval Timothy, Frano, Grandmaster Vic, Jahaan Sweet, J. Lbs, Oklama, Pharrell Williams, Sounwave, Tae Beast, Sergiu Ghermanm, Tyler Mehlenbacher, Tim Maxey

Label: PGLang, Top Dawg, Aftermath, Interscope

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mr._Morale_%26_the_Big_Steppers

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