Kendrick Lamar Talks Colin Kaepernick, Early Influences at Forbes' Under 30 Summit

Kendrick Lamar offered advice and shared some of his early childhood memories during an interview at Forbes’ Under 30 Summit in Boston on Tuesday (Oct. 3).

Speaking onstage, K-Dot revealed some of the best tips he received from his mentor, Dr. Dre. “You gotta continue to work, you’re gonna make mistakes along the way, but you have to ask questions,” he said. “That’s something I’m learning now. I don’t know it all. I have to ask questions. I’m still fairly a new cat, as far as being a business man.”

The conversation also included Kung Fu Kenny’s thoughts on former NFL star Colin Kaepernick, who launched an ongoing debate about social justice when he knelt during the national anthem as a protest against police brutality last year. “He wants to stand for something,” said Kendrick. “Simple as that. You don’t look at the moment, whether it’s gonna work or not. No, you look at what the next generation is gonna receive from it.”

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_HCzhA2xA6o

King Kendrick also provided some feedback for fellow rappers, advising them to respect hip-hop and its forefathers while pushing its evolution. “Respect the culture,” he said. “Be yourself and do what you do but also know who laid down the ground work. Don’t go in your interviews and diss ’em and say you don’t like ’em and you don’t care for ’em. That’s your opinion. That’s cool, but you have to respect them.”

During the interview, K-Dot shared some early influences, including Afrika Bambaataa, X Clan, and Big Daddy Kane, while recalling that his father listened to BDK while driving him home from the hospital as an infant. “That’s one of the records my pops was playing when I actually came from the hospital, blasting the music, my moms cursing him out all the way to Compton,” he said. “They tell that story all the time because they trip out when they see me onstage doing my rapping thing, knowing that the very first day, he was blasting that music.”

Now, K-Dot is getting ready to hit the road once again. The European edition of “The DAMN. Tour” is set to kick off Feb. 7 in Dublin with special guest James Blake.