Kendrick Lamar Duckworth (born June 17, 1987) is an American rapper and singer-songwriter. Often regarded as one of the greatest rappers of all time, he is the only musician outside of the classical and jazz genres to be awarded the Pulitzer Prize for Music. Lamar's works has been recognized for its continual versatility, characterized by his melodic cadences, cinematic songwriting, and striking visual presentations. His regular infusion of political criticism and social commentary influenced a rise of social consciousness within his generation. Lamar secured a joint contract with Aftermath Entertainment and Interscope Records. He rose to prominence with his gangsta rap-influenced second album Good Kid, M.A.A.D City (2012) and its top 40 singles "Swimming Pools (Drank)", "Poetic Justice" and "Bitch, Don't Kill My Vibe". Inspired by a visit to South Africa, Lamar embraced jazz and G-funk styles on his third album, To Pimp a Butterfly (2015). It became his first of four consecutive number-one albums in the U.S., and is one of the most critically acclaimed albums of the 2010s decade. His collaboration with Taylor Swift on the remix of "Bad Blood" garnered his first number-one single on the Billboard Hot 100. Lamar has received various accolades throughout his career, including one Primetime Emmy Award, one Brit Award, four American Music Awards, six Billboard Music Awards, 11 MTV Video Music Awards (including two Video of the Year wins), 17 Grammy Awards (the third-most won by a rapper), and 29 BET Hip Hop Awards (the most won by any artist). Time listed him as one of the 100 most influential people in the world in 2016. Two of his concert tours, the Damn Tour (2017–2018) and the Big Steppers Tour (2022–2023), are amongst the highest-grossing rap tours in history. Three of his works were included in Rolling Stone's 2020 revision of the 500 greatest albums of all time.