Dissect

We continue our serialized analysis of Beyoncé’s Lemonade by dissecting its fifth chapter “Emptiness,” which features the song “6 Inch.” We find Beyoncé wielding her sexuality for profit in a powerful anthem for working girls. But is there something else beneath her external show of dominance? A visual guide for this episode can be found at dissectpodcast.com. Follow us on social media @dissectpod...

We continue our serialized analysis of Beyoncé’s Lemonade by dissecting its fourth chapter “Apathy,” which features the song “Sorry.” The inside of the Madewood Plantation big house in Louisiana becomes the backdrop for Beyoncé’s apathetic dismissal of her partner. A visual guide for this episode can be found at dissectpodcast.com. Follow us on social media @dissectpodcast. Learn more about your a...

We continue our serialized analysis of Beyoncé’s Lemonade by dissecting its third chapter “Anger,” which features the song “Don’t Hurt Yourself.” Beyoncé flips stereotypical gender roles to command the respect of her partner and reclaim her agency. But how long can her anger sustain? A visual guide for this episode can be found at dissectpodcast.com. Follow us on social media @dissectpodcast. Lear...

Hear S6 co-host Titi and Cole in conversation about their experience traveling together to the Louisiana sugar plantations seen throughout the visuals of Lemonade. We’ll also learn more about Titi, her educational background, and both Cole and Titi’s history with Beyoncé’s music. Listen to Titi’s podcast Dope Labs: https://open.spotify.com/show/3pCF6hcNsAHKlKAillCOuZ?si=DZ-hYwjPQ0OS5oW39bjODQ. Lea...

We continue our serialized analysis of Beyoncé’s Lemonade by dissecting it’s second chapter “Denial,” which features the song “Hold Up.” After unsuccessfully attempting to change for her husband’s sake, Beyoncé channels the Yoruba water goddess Oshun to deliver a spiteful message. A visual guide for this episode can be found at dissectpodcast.com. Follow us on social media @dissectpodcast. Learn m...

Surprise! Season 6 is dedicated to Beyoncé’s masterwork Lemonade. Through in-depth, highly researched analysis, we follow Beyoncé on her transcendent journey from subjugation to freedom. Today we unpack the visual album’s opening chapter “Intuition,” which features the song “Pray You Catch Me.” We’ll come to understand the curse that looms over Beyoncé and how she must take a leap of faith to over...

We conclude our season on DAMN. by recapping the album’s narrative in standard track order before speculating on an alternative narrative when listening in reverse track order. Finally, we present a new theory about the album’s track listing (did someone say “chiasm”?). Stay connected over the break by following @dissectpodcast on Twitter and Instagram. Purchase Dissect merch at https://shop.disse...

DUCKWORTH. tells the remarkable true story of the chance encounter between Kendrick’s father Kenny Duckworth and Anthony “Top Dawg” Tiffith. Kendrick uses this story to illustrate the album’s central message: the (unpredictable) blessings that come from choosing weakness. Say hi @dissectpodcast on Twitter and Instagram. Purchase Dissect merch at https://shop.dissectpodcast.com/. Listen to original...

After receiving guidance from Cousin Carl on FEAR., Kung Fu Kenny expresses the joyous feeling of being filled with the spirit of GOD. Say hi @dissectpodcast on Twitter and Instagram. Purchase Dissect merch at https://shop.dissectpodcast.com/. Listen to original Dissect themes on Spotify: https://spoti.fi/2k8BsZM. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

In part two of our analysis of FEAR., we come to understand how fear has been the primary motivating factor in Kung Fu Kenny’s life. Kenny consolidates the album’s major themes into one extremely dense final verse, which unlocks many of the album’s mysteries. Finally, we dissect Cousin Carl’s voicemail that explains the reasons behind Kenny’s tumultuous emotional journey over the course of DAMN. S...

FEAR. is the pivotal track in the narrative of DAMN. We begin our two part analysis by dissecting the song’s virtuosic use of samples before digging into the appearance of Kendrick Lamar’s two real life cousins: Carl and Charles. Finally, we unpack the song’s first verse, which is rapped from the perspective of Kendrick’s mother. Say hi @dissectpodcast on Twitter and Instagram. Purchase Dissect me...

In part two of our analysis of XXX., we discover the dramatic twist in the narrative of DAMN. Say hi @dissectpodcast on Twitter and Instagram. Purchase Dissect merch at https://shop.dissectpodcast.com/. Listen to original Dissect themes on Spotify: https://spoti.fi/2k8BsZM. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

XXX. is a multipart suite that begins to reveal the deep-rooted themes of DAMN. We find Kung Fu Kenny seemingly under demonic influence as he portrays himself as a heartless, bloodthirsty killer. By the song’s second half, we discover the event that triggered such ruthlessness. Say hi @dissectpodcast on Twitter and Instagram. Purchase Dissect merch at https://shop.dissectpodcast.com/. Listen to or...

Coming off the heels of LUST., LOVE. presents the flipside of the coin as Kung Fu Kenny explores the youthful, romantic love he felt as a teenager. As we’ll discover, this isn’t the first time Kendrick has explored the love/lust dichotomy in his music: it was actually the basis for his major label debut good kid, m. A.A.d. city. Say hi @dissectpodcast on Twitter and Instagram. Purchase Dissect mer...

When DAMN. released just months after Donald Trump was elected president, many were anticipating the moment Kendrick Lamar -- the greatest rapper of our generation -- addressed the election on the album. LUST. presents that moment, but not in a way many people were expecting… Say hi @dissectpodcast on Twitter and Instagram. Purchase Dissect merch at https://shop.dissectpodcast.com/. Listen to orig...

We continue our season-long analysis of DAMN. with the album’s hit single HUMBLE. Coming off the heels of PRIDE. in which Kung Fu Kenny admitted his imperfections, we are puzzled to find Kenny egotistically lifting himself up by putting down others. But as we’ll hear, this mentality embodies the central biblical theme that powerful rulers and nations often become corrupted by pride. Say hi @dissec...

Kung Fu Kenny takes a big step forward by admitting his imperfections and humbling himself. As track 7 of 14, we hypothesize about PRIDE. being a micro-resolution to DAMN’s first half. Say hi @dissectpodcast on Twitter and Instagram. Purchase Dissect merch at https://shop.dissectpodcast.com/. Listen to original Dissect themes on Spotify: https://spoti.fi/2k8BsZM. Learn more about your ad choices....

Kung Fu Kenny teams with Bad Girl RiRi for a meditation on the concept of LOYALTY. What begins as a self-serving demand for absolute devotion eventually unfolds into a recognition that one’s highest degree of loyalty should be shown to God. Say hi @dissectpodcast on Twitter and Instagram. Purchase Dissect merch at https://shop.dissectpodcast.com/. Listen to original Dissect themes on Spotify: http...

Kung Fu Kenny’s pursuit of sex, money, and murder comes to a head in FEEL. In a violent storm of emotions, Kenny reveals the underlying isolation and suffering caused by his self-centered way of life. Say hi @dissectpodcast on Twitter and Instagram. Purchase Dissect merch at https://shop.dissectpodcast.com/. Listen to original Dissect themes on Spotify: https://spoti.fi/2k8BsZM. Learn more about y...

ELEMENT. is a brutal meditation on Kung Fu Kenny’s intuition toward preemptive violence. But upon analysis we realize that beneath Kenny’s aggression is an underlying fear of his family going back to a life of poverty. In this way, the track exemplifies how self-preservational pride tilts toward death and destruction. Say hi @dissectpodcast on Twitter and Instagram. Purchase Dissect merch at https...

Cole and Femi discuss Kanye West's new album Jesus Is King, including a song-by-song thematic analysis. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

YAH. formally introduces DAMN’s protagonist: Kung Fu Kenny, a prophet who rejects God’s call. Kenny chooses instead to follow his intuition toward sex, money, and murder -- the very traits named on the album’s previous track DNA. Say hi @dissectpodcast on Twitter and Instagram. Purchase Dissect merch at https://shop.dissectpodcast.com/. Listen to original Dissect themes on Spotify: https://spoti.f...

In Part 2 of our DNA. analysis, we dissect the song’s dramatic second half. Triggered by the disparaging comments by FOX News, Kendrick goes ballistic in a now icon extended verse. While we may have originally thought DNA. was about Kendrick Lamar, the song ends with the diagnosis that sex, money, and murder are traits shared in each and every human being. Say hi @dissectpodcast on Twitter and Ins...

DNA. lays the philosophical groundwork for the album DAMN. In the song’s first half, Kendrick defines his genetic makeup as a mixture of biological (family), environmental (Compton), and cultural (hip-hop) inheritances. Say hi @dissectpodcast on Twitter and Instagram. Purchase Dissect merch at https://shop.dissectpodcast.com/. Listen to original Dissect themes on Spotify: https://spoti.fi/2k8BsZM....

We begin our season-long analysis of DAMN. with the opening track BLOOD. We unpack the many layers of the wickedness/weakness dichotomy presented as well as the cryptic parable in which Kendrick is shot by a blind lady -- or shall we call her Lady Justice? Say hi @dissectpodcast on Twitter and Instagram. Purchase Dissect merch at https://shop.dissectpodcast.com/. Listen to original Dissect themes...