at first i was joking about this when i saw he released untitled unmastered., which is a bunch of demos and B-sides for TPAB (you hear similar themes and some lines are reused in TPAB from the songs too) but after looking (and listening) at Kendrick's discography, I see that there is actually a lot of similarities, if somewhat a bit reaching.
Let's start with the beginning of the similarities:
Kendrick's releases (beginning from Overly Dedicated) have all taken similar stylistic approaches.
Overly Dedicated has its roots firmly held in its origins and of the musik popular at the time, if dying out in mainstream popularity (being traditional West coast Hip-Hop), similar to Pablo Honey from Radiohead (rooted firmly in 90s grunge and alt-rock), with both not being the best work of the artists with both being non-indicative of their most popular work.
Their following releases, being Section.80 for Kendrick, and The Bends for Radiohead, are still somewhat rooted in their genre's footing, but with more ambition and ideas that would be worked on later being present in both works (Kendrick displaying more conceptual and socially conscious ideas, as well as trying to have an over-arching theme, in Section.80, and Radiohead showing their themes of isolation, disillusionment with modern society and fear of being depersonalized on The Bends).
Then, Good Kid Maad City and OK Computer, both of which are considered to be masterpieces in their genres, if not displaying absolutely brand new ideas, but instead taking their previous ideas, themes and inspirations and combining them in a interesting and unique way, while still having a solid footing in their root genre, albeit with crossovers of their inspirations (Kendrik having a jazzier, more atmospheric style on his album, with Radiohead carrying their electronic interests onto theirs) and modern styles (at the times) all over the albums, with GKMC having trap and atmospheric hip-hop songs, and OKC having a strong alternative rock influence from the time of its release. They both have an overlying concept (although this is disputed for Radiohead's album) and both have some of the most popular songs from either artist on them, as well as being having their most singles from out of all their albums from a singular album. Also, "Backseat Freestyle" could be considered Kendrick's "Creep", as they are one of the most popular songs from either artist, while not being indicative of the artist's actual work.
Following that, we have To Pimp A Butterfly and Kid A. Considered by many to be the peak of either artist, both have similarities to their origins, but are far more musically-experimenting with their influences, (TPAB being rooted more in funk, disco, jazz and R'n'B than hip-hop, and Kid A having a far more electronic direction than previous Radiohead releases). They also expand on their previous ideas.
Finally we have Untitled Unmastered. and Amnesiac, both outtakes and B-sides from their previous albums from their respective artists, and both having a rougher, darker sound, while still having themes and ideas from their predecessors, albeit in alternately thought out ways to their predecessors. Also, they both are more lowkey in their sonic approach, and don't cross too many genre lines like their respective artist's previous releases, although they still do experiment with their influences. They both managed to have a single or two released.
Now, musik fans on KYM, what are your thoughts on this observation? Is it reaching too far? Is it an interesting similarity? What do you think?
Also, as a sideline meme:
Hail to the Thief was Radiohead's jazziest record, and in terms of discography, Kendrick should be scheduled to released his HTTT. However, Kendrick already dabbled a lot in jazz influences, so the logical thing would be to go to a rock or trap orientated album. Now, he is slated to release his new album as a collaboration with J. Cole, both of whom are BLACK STARS.
Now, David Bowie's last release, BLACKSTAR, was a jazz ROCK album. Could this mean that Kendrik will attempt to release a " jazz-rock-hop" album to the public with this new release???