Kendrick Lamar's "Backseat Freestyle" Beat Was Originally For Ciara

BYMitch Findlay4.3K Views
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Kendrick Lamar
What might have been: Hit-Boy reveals that Ciara originally recorded a song over Kendrick Lamar's "Backseat Freestyle."

Kendrick Lamar's good kid, m.A.A.d city is widely regarded as a classic album, arguably one of the best in recent memory. Highly conceptual to the point where repeat listens are basically necessary, Kendrick Lamar's vision ensured that every song played a pivotal role in the character study. Even "Backseat Freestyle," the project's most in-your-face banger, develops the protagonist in an interesting and immersive way.

Recently, the track's producer Hit-Boy sat down with HipHopDX for an interview, where he shared an interesting revelation about the history of "Backseat Freestyle." "I actually did a couple sessions with Kendrick before, we did a couple ideas," he reveals. "We went to Vegas for a few days, and locked into the studio. None of them songs ended up being in the mix."

Kendrick Lamar's "Backseat Freestyle" Beat Was Originally For <a href=Ciara">
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"He came back like 'I need some more beats.' That was in the batch of the beats I gave him...next thing I know, I'm out in Texas, he emailed me the song like we got one. I listened to it, I'm like this n***a spazzing for real.

"I didn't expect it, cause somebody recorded a song to that beat," he continues. "Actually, Ciara recorded an r&b song to that beat. The song was called 'Hit-Boy,' so I was dumb hype on it, she's saying my name! But that shit wasn't supposed to go down."

Though it would have been interesting to see how Ciara approached Hit-Boy's instrumental Kendrick's contribution was undeniable. Not only was "Backseat Freestyle" an integral part of the GKMC narrative but a standalone banger in its own right. Check out Hit-Boy's convo with HipHopDX below. 


About The Author
<b>Feature Editor</b> <!--BR--> Mitch Findlay is a writer and hip-hop journalist based in Montreal. Resident old head by default. Enjoys writing Original Content about music, albums, lyrics, and rap history. His favorite memories include interviewing J.I.D and EarthGang at the "Revenge Of The Dreamers 3" studio sessions in Atlanta and receiving a phone call from Dr. Dre. In his spare time he makes horror movies.
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