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Kendrick Lamar has become one of Hip-Hop’s most talked about artists this year and is quickly rising to take over the hip hop game. Lamar has already gained support from legendary artists Snoop Dogg and Dr. Dre and is now winning the heart of another. One of hip hop’s most influential lyricists, Lupe Fiasco, made an appearance at Lamar’s BET Music Matters & TDE tour in Chicago, Sunday, Sept. 23.

Fiasco awarded Lamar with The Next Big Thing award and told the crowd that he is a fan of his music, then pointed at him and said, “This is the future right here, y’all!” Fiasco performed “Put ‘Em Up” from his recently dropped album, “Food & Liquor,” and by the end had the Congress Theater chanting, “Lupe! Lupe! Lupe!” The chaos continued when Ab-Soul brought out one of the world’s fastest rappers, according to Guinness World Records, Chicago bred, Twista. The praise that Lamar has been getting from these legendary rappers is only proving that he will one day be in the top rankings of artists. 

The fascination with Lamar surfaced in his release of “Overly Dedicated” and “Section 80.” Lamar gained thousands of faithful followers, including a large fan base here in Chicago. The Compton native showed loved to the city when he paused from his hip hop performance and made a shout out to his family that originated from the South Side of Chicago. Lamar is now signed to Top Dawg Entertainment, Aftermath Entertainment and Interscope Records.

 The talented 25-year-old artist has already done work with Dr. Dre, The Game, Talib Kweli, Rick Ross and many more famous artists. His truthful lyrics and passion for hip hop is what is bringing him success all around. One of Lamar’s biggest influences growing up was Tupac Shakur. He is now being compared to Tupac, along with Eminem, Nas, and Jay-Z. With his music being compared to these huge rap artists, Lamar is definitely making a statement that he belongs right there.  

When Lamar finally stepped out on stage, the whole theater got on their feet and drinks of men and women rose to the ceiling. He came out rocking a hat with the letters “LA” and a crew neck ‘repping the Chicago Bulls. His outfit said it all; he brought Los Angeles straight to Chicago. The fans went crazy when Lamar performed his hit single, “The Recipe” and rapped along to their favorite lines, “In Chi-Town, I be really pimpin’.” Another favorite performed was “Michael Jordan” which hyped up the crowd and had them rapping each word. Lamar had a sold out show.

Hours after the show, Lamar tweeted, “Chi Town. It’s been real.” He received more than 1,000 re-tweets and a few hundred favorites within minutes. Fans continued to show him love as they thanked him via twitter for an amazing performance and a good day in hip hop music. Lamar is set to release his major label debut, “good kid, m.A.A.d city” Oct.22. He will continue his BET Music Matters tour traveling to Florida, Georgia, Louisiana, Colorado, Oregon, Washington, Nevada, and his hometown California.