Lamar spoke with 'W Magazine' about his family, his music and the life lessons he's learned thus far.
Kendrick Lamar is opening up about his children and the unconditional love he's felt since becoming a father. In a new interview with W Magazine, Lamar got candid about his family and the life lessons he's learned thus far.
"A lot of times, we play with the idea and don’t necessarily know if it’s real, until you feel it. My children allowed me, in their development as human beings beginning to walk and talk, to remove my ego, to know that my children, too, will have their own independence," Lamar, who has welcomed two children with fiancée, Whitney Alford, explained, "That allows me to understand the unconditional love on my end."
"Will I allow them to be themselves? Will I allow them to journey off in the world and experience life for what they know of? That’s love, to me," he continued.
The "Humble" rapper said that in learning and feeling that unconditional love from his children, he's not only changed the way he's expressed himself, but altered the way he handles his relationships with others in his love -- with love and without any judgment.
"When I look at that, I try to apply it with how I express myself, how I look at my career, and how I meet other individuals," Lamar added. "Am I allowing them to be themselves without any judgment? My children have taught me that."
The rapper also said that when he was having doubts about his latest album, Mr. Morale & the Big Steppers, it was his children that gave him the final push -- knowing that it could be something that benefits them in the future.
"When I got to completion and I said, 'I may or may not put this out; I'm not going to put this out; it's way too much,' I thought about my children," he said. "I thought about when they turn 21, or they're older in life, and when I got grandchildren, or if I'm long gone -- this can be a prerequisite of how to cope. That's the beauty of it for me."
Lamar, who has remained fairly quiet when it comes to his relationship and his children, seemingly revealed the birth of his second child in May, with the cover art for Mr. Morale & the Big Steppers -- the highly-anticipated follow-up to 2017's DAMN.
On the cover, Lamar, who wears a roped crown with thorns on his head, is seen holding his daughter, who's now almost 3, while his fiancée, is sitting on a bed, cradling a newborn.
Alford later confirmed reports that the couple had indeed welcomed a second child in a Father's Day post, posing with Lamar and their two young children.
The beautiful family photo shows Lamar kneeling down next to his daughter, who was born in July 2019, while Alford cradles their second child.
"I was almost 30 the first time I celebrated Father’s Day and it’s still one of the hardest for me. I know there are many women like me. So men it’s not as important for us to celebrate you, as it is for You to celebrate You. Celebrate your contribution to the next generation," Alford wrote at the time. "I am grateful for the men that are showing me a different picture, my lens was very narrow before but not anymore. Love you guys, keep showing up. Happy Father’s Day @kendricklamar."
Alford and Lamar have been together since high school and got engaged in 2015.
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