The Recipe (Kendrick Lamar song)

"The Recipe" is a song by American rapper Kendrick Lamar. It was released on April 3, 2012, as the first single from his major label debut Good Kid, M.A.A.D City (2012). The song, however, only made the deluxe edition of the album.

"The Recipe"
Single by Kendrick Lamar featuring Dr. Dre
from the album good kid, m.A.A.d city (Deluxe Edition)
Released	April 3, 2012 (2012-04-03)
Recorded	2012
Genre	West Coast hip hop
Length	5:52
Label	Top Dawg Aftermath Interscope
Songwriter(s)	Kendrick Duckworth Andre Young Elijah Molina Gabe D'Amico Eric Cardona Andrea Estella Udbhav Gupta Bryan Ujueta
Producer(s)	Scoop DeVille
Kendrick Lamar singles chronology
"Hood Gone Love It" (2011) "The Recipe" (2012) "Swimming Pools (Drank)" (2012)
Dr. Dre singles chronology
"I Need a Doctor" (2011) "The Recipe" (2012) "New Day" (2012)
Music video
"The Recipe" on YouTube

The song, produced by West Coast record producer Scoop DeVille, features a guest appearance from Lamar's mentor, record producer and rapper Dr. Dre, who also mixed the record alongside TDE's engineer MixedByAli.^[1][2]

Background

On March 30, 2012, after speaking on his newly signed joint venture deal, which brought Top Dawg Entertainment alongside Aftermath Entertainment and Interscope Records for Kendrick Lamar's releases, Lamar announced on Big Boy's Neighborhood that he would premier his debut single "The Recipe", to the morning radio show on April 2.^[2][3] The song heavily samples "Meet the Frownies" as performed by Mr Twin Sister.^[4]

Reception

The song has been well received by fans and critics alike. Carrie Battan of Pitchfork summarized the song as an "anthemic Californian pride cut".^[4] Nick Catucci of Rolling Stone jokingly wrote "You might get a contact high from this" and went on to write "Lamar’s wafting number has rolling boulders for a beat, lines about sunlight slanting through shades and Dre explaining, 'How many ways am I killin' 'em? Shit, right around a billion.'"^[5]

Music video

On May 30, 2012, Schoolboy Q released the behind-the-scenes photos of the song's music video, via his Instagram.^[6] However, the music video was never released. Another music video was released showing the duo performing the song at Coachella.

Remix

The song was later remixed, featuring verses from Lamar's Black Hippy cohorts – Ab-Soul, Jay Rock and Schoolboy Q. The remix was included as a bonus track on the Spotify deluxe edition of the album. Chicago rapper Twista also made his own remix.

Track listing

Digital single

No.	Title	Writer(s)	Producer(s)	Length
1.	"The Recipe" (feat. Dr. Dre)	K. Duckworth A. Young E. Molina G. D'Amico E. Cardona A. Estella D. Gupta B. Ujueta	Scoop DeVille Dr. Dre	5:53

Charts

Chart (2012)	Peak position
US Bubbling Under Hot 100 Singles (Billboard)^[7]	3
US Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs (Billboard)^[8]	38
US Hot Rap Songs (Billboard)^[9]	23
US Rhythmic (Billboard)^[10]	29

Certifications

Region	Certification	Certified units/sales
Australia (ARIA)^[11]	Gold	35,000^‡
Canada (Music Canada)^[12]	Platinum	80,000^‡
United States (RIAA)^[13]	Platinum	1,000,000^‡
^‡ Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone.

Release history

Country	Date	Format	Label
United States	April 3, 2012^[14]	Digital download	Aftermath Interscope
	May 8, 2012^[15]	Radio airplay

References

1. "Kendrick Lamar – "The Recipe" (Feat. Dr. Dre)". Stereogum. April 2, 2012. Retrieved May 4, 2012.
2. "Kendrick Lamar Readies Debut Single The Recipe". 2DopeBoyz. March 30, 2012. Retrieved May 3, 2012.
3. Steven J. Horowitz (March 30, 2012). "Kendrick Lamar To Debut New Single "The Recipe" On Monday". HipHopDX. Retrieved May 4, 2012.
4. Carrie Battan (April 2, 2012). "Kendrick Lamar: "The Recipe"". Pitchfork Media. Retrieved May 4, 2012.
5. Nick Catucci (April 17, 2012). . Rolling Stone. Archived from the original on April 22, 2012. Retrieved May 4, 2012.
6. "Kendrick Lamar – The Recipe f. Dr. Dre (BTS Pics)". 2DopeBoyz. 2012-05-30. Retrieved 2012-06-01.
7. "Kendrick Lamar Chart History (Bubbling Under Hot 100)". Billboard. Retrieved January 4, 2015.
8. "Kendrick Lamar Chart History (Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs)". Billboard. Retrieved January 4, 2015.
9. "Kendrick Lamar Chart History (Hot Rap Songs)". Billboard. Retrieved January 4, 2015.
10. "Kendrick Lamar Chart History (Rhythmic)". Billboard. Retrieved January 4, 2015.
11. "ARIA Charts – Accreditations – 2023 Singles" (PDF). Australian Recording Industry Association. Retrieved December 23, 2023.
12. "Canadian single certifications – Kendrick Lamar – The Recipe". Music Canada. Retrieved April 13, 2021.
13. "American single certifications – Kendrick Lamar – The Recipe". Recording Industry Association of America. Retrieved June 13, 2018.
14. [1]. iTunes.com. Retrieved May 3, 2012.
15. . www.fmqb.com. Archived from the original on 2005-12-23.

External links

• "The Recipe" Lyric video on YouTube