There are some rumors floating around the internet suggesting Kendrick Lamar has left Top Dawg Entertainment in favor of focusing on his pgLang imprint with former TDE president Dave Free.
On Monday (October 5), current TDE president Terrence “Punch” Henderson appeared to reply to the chatter via Twitter, writing, “Smh can’t even try to be mysterious and vague in my tweets no more…A rumor gets halfway around the world before the truth get it’s shoes on. Lol.”
According to an Antixbound live stream, Kendrick’s pgLang roster includes himself, Baby Keem and Jorja Smith, among others.
Kendrick has released four studio albums under the TDE name, including 2017’s Pulitzer Prize-winning album DAMN. While his thirsty fans await a follow-up, the elusive MC has been spotted around Los Angeles in recent weeks, seemingly shooting a music video. However, no update on what would be his fifth studio album has been provided since May, when Punch said “King Kendrick will return soon.”
K. Dot and Free announced pgLang in March, which included a colorful visual featuring cameos from Kendrick, Keem, Jorja Smith and Yara Shahidi along with new music from Florence Welch and Kamasi Washington.
TDE President Punch Responds After SZA Says Her Label Relationship Is 'Hostile'
The pgLang website lays out the imprint’s mission with, “pgLang is multilingual. Our community speaks music, film, television, art, books, and podcasts — because sometimes, we have to use different languages to get the point of our stories across. Stories that speak to many nations, many races, and many ages. That is why our writers, singers, directors, musicians, and producers break formats when we build ideas and make them real for the curious.”
HipHopDX reached out to TDE’s camp and is waiting for an official response despite getting another “LOL” from Punch in response to an inquiry.
Well maybe it’s time for T.D.E to realize they can’t work the way they do indefinitely. Each artist has to wait 4/5 years b/w each album. I bet Ab-Soul and Jay Rock are the next ones to leave the roster. And that would probably be the best decision of their lives. T.D.E is a graveyard. All this talent wasted because of bad managment. FOH
Damn, Kendrick was there only popular rapper.TDE IS DONE!
Good idea
Kendrick deserve better. He’s a great artist
TDE is sort of like what us Lakers fans do with the Lakers. We know have our good players but overrate the other players just because they play on the same team.
Yeah just like G Unit back in the day, 40 glocc is in jail, spider loc died from Covid and young hot rod works at a local barbershop! Shit can happen fast
Spider Loc died of Covid? Is that a weirdo attempt at a joke?
Don’t speak death on that man.. ya bitch you
Sounds like Kendrick done being only TDE artist who works. Didn’t he have to fix Qs Crash Talk but had a hand full of jacks? Soulo, Isaiah…I can learn how to rap and release more than one song in 4 years. Even if Kendrick owns half TDE, why would you carry grown men the rest of your career?
Is there actually anybody that gives a fuck if he still on tde or not? He is on Aftermath! And that’s he’s real home!
TDE been trash, kendrick and sza are the only ones worth any attention. The rest of the label rides on their coattails. He probably didn’t leave, but it doesn’t change the fact that this is the weakest “top” hip hop label in the past 30 years.
School.boys pretty dope.bro
I thought Ab Soul was gonna leave first but this is even better. That means he will follow suit once Kendrick leaves. TDE hasnt been hot since like 2016/17. At one point it seem like they were all trying to fit in with these new kids especially Jay Rock and Schoolboy. DAMN was a huge success commercially but it seems like he stopped trying lyrically after TPAB
Really, yall are swayed this much by an article? Kendrick aint going no where, bet that.
If this is true, this is a great move for him.