--- description: The soulful track samples the Isley Brothers’ “That Lady” title: Kendrick Lamar Returns With "i" image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt462f3bf126851ba8/6986a4c455a859d325a82b97/kendrick-lamar.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  * [Entertainment](/section/entertainment/) ## Entertainment Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close # Listen to Kendrick Lamar's New Song 'i'  by [Nolan Feeney](/author/nolan-feeney/)  ## Nolan Feeney Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Sep 23, 2014 2:27 PM CUT  Kendrick Lamar Kendrick LamarKatie Darby—Invision/AP  by [Nolan Feeney](/author/nolan-feeney/)  ## Nolan Feeney Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Sep 23, 2014 2:27 PM CUT Kendrick Lamar’s 2012 opus _good kid, m.A.A.d_ _city_ was one of the most-discussed rap albums in recent memory — so it would be understandable if Lamar wanted to rest on his laurels and take his sweet time following up a record that earned rave reviews and crashed numerous year-end best lists. But no, the Compton rapper is back with “i,” the first single from his as-yet-untitled next album. Instead of mining the grit of his past for inspiration, Lamar this time opts for some self love on the soulful, feel-good offering, which samples the Isley Brothers’ 1973 jam “That Lady”: “Everybody lack confidence, how many times my potential was anonymous? / How many times the city makin’ me promises, so I promise this / I love myself.” Not that he had a problem with confidence before — his hip-hop peers probably haven’t forgotten his landmark [“Control” verse](http://www.mtv.com/news/1712240/kendrick-lamar-big-sean-control/ "undefined"). Hear “i” below: ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/3421796/kendrick-lamar-new-song-i/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/3421796/kendrick-lamar-new-song-i/"},"headline":"Listen to Kendrick Lamar's New Song 'i'","datePublished":"2014-09-23T14:27:43.000Z","dateModified":"2026-02-21T10:21:17.311Z","description":"The soulful track samples the Isley Brothers’ “That Lady”","url":"https://time.com/3421796/kendrick-lamar-new-song-i/","keywords":["Music","Kendrick Lamar"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt462f3bf126851ba8/6986a4c455a859d325a82b97/kendrick-lamar.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Nolan Feeney","jobTitle":null,"url":"https://time.com/author/nolan-feeney/"}],"articleSection":"Entertainment","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt462f3bf126851ba8/6986a4c455a859d325a82b97/kendrick-lamar.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"Kendrick Lamar","caption":"Kendrick Lamar","creditText":"Katie Darby—Invision/AP","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/section/entertainment/","name":"Entertainment"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/3421796/kendrick-lamar-new-song-i/","name":"Listen to Kendrick Lamar's New Song 'i'"}}]}] ```