Dear Kendrick & Fans,

Congratulations on becoming thee most decorated hip hop artist of our time. With the mega success of your recent single, “Not Like Us”, hitting the Billboard Hot 100 charts for over 22 weeks, winning a sweep of awards at the 2025 Grammys totaling 22 overall, and most recently performing in front of 133 million people- the most ever- at the LIX Super Bowl, you have done your biggest ones!

I am proud to see the progression of hip hop music in its most raw and conscious form. To see Kendrick Lamar displayed amongst an all black performance team at the Super Bowl on Sunday, dressed in red, white, and blue to create the most artistic and Black AF American 🇺🇸flag we’ve ever seen was pure genius!

To see the flag split down the middle with Kendrick at the center was extremely symbolic. I was perplexed as to whether he felt he was at the center of the country’s divide or if the divide was simply racial or political. It gave us all a lot to think about. Then, to have Samuel L. Jackson dressed as Uncle Sam speaking about how consciously and strategically black people must play the American “game” or it will cost us one life- a reference from the show Squid Game on Netflix, it was all too relatable.

Many of us within the black community felt powerful, heard, supported and entertained.

However, for me, entertainment is no longer enough. The beautiful sound of Sza’s voice soothes me for a moment then reminds me how disproportionally celebrated our talent is amongst those from other races. Visions of Serena Williams doing the c-ip walk dances around in my head then when I count the amount of coonery videos masquerading and making fun of this black American athlete and ICON, I remember how comfortable this society has gotten disrespecting Black women. When I recall what got Kendrick and the culture here- the defamation and degradation on another black rapper in the midst of a battle, it reminds me that we are still so far from equality and freedom. So this is more than just a love letter and more like a reality check.

And while I truly love how hip-hop has changed the world for African-American communities, there is more work to be done. It has given us the immense money, power, and opportunity to thrive in a space we had no precedence in prior, yet I must say the experience for me is bittersweet. As hip-hop began somewhere between a village in Africa and the Bronx, New York and today has transformed the global lifestyle and culture for urban listeners everywhere, I appreciate that hip-hop music has such a unique opportunity to pour knowledge and inspiration into so many. It is literally the way we transcend and share our one-of-a-kind culture with the world.

In that, I feel we have the chance to demonstrate a lot more respect for ourselves and support for each other. While hip hop can be seen as a positive, the overwhelming influence its music has on our people can sometimes take a negative turn. There are oftentimes when we celebrate the downfall or pain of one other, which can make for a more enticing, and competitive musical experience. However, to have the world celebrating the mistakes and failures of another does not feel right to me in real life.

I am not condoning the actions that have led to Drake’s downfall, to be clear. However, I want to remind us all that any weapon used against one man to hurt another can easily be turned back around on him.

And I’m not here to determine whether the lyrics of “Not Like Us” were deserving to its target artist but instead, the point I’m trying to make is that instead of sharing such a defamatory message worth a lifetime of hate and negativity amongst the culture, we could easily be sending an uplifting, collaborative message that takes the focus off the beef and more so onto the challenges we face in these streets.

We have a long way to go in solving our problems and securing solutions to major cultural issues. Between the health disparities, educational declines, violence and safety concerns, lack of economic resources, and breakdown of family & community; there is so many cultural conversations we must speak on in our lyrics in order to make music that continues to matter.

My hope is that we all consider the platform in which we stand on and recognize the immense impact that it has on our community, our nation, and our children. And I know the age old defense, “hip hop music is not here to educate” which we know, but it is here to influence.

I ask that as we finally have the world’s ear, including that of our culturally uninformed President, we use this platform to promote peace, love, and change over all things, because we need that so badly right now.

Peace and blessings y’all!

Sincerely,

Delicia B. Davis

The Luxe Library Founder

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DISCLAIMER: Views expressed in “Love 💌 Letters: A Weekly Blog” are strictly the perspectives of the editorialist and may not reflect the views of The Luxe Library c/o Precise Publishing Group Inc.