“You said you feel the love, right?” Kendrick Lamar asked SZA after performing their twinkling 2018 hit collab “All the Stars” during the first LA tour stop of their Grand National Tour at Inglewood’s SoFi Stadium Wednesday night (May 21).
“I think so,” she responded breathlessly. “You feel it?”
“I definitely feel it.”
The two dove head over heels into “Love” from his 2017 Pulitzer Prize-winning album DAMN., with SZA’s honeyed vocals taking the track’s featured artist Zacari’s place. While Dot has been hailed as a generational hater for vanquishing Drake in last year’s monthslong epic rap war, the stadiums he and SZA have been dominating for the last month since the tour started don’t feel like battlefields. Sincere and cheeky love songs like “Snooze” and “Kiss Me More” share the stage with scathing and calculated diss tracks like “Euphoria” and, of course, the five-time Grammy-winning juggernaut “Not Like Us.” The Grand National Tour serves as a well-deserved victory lap for Lamar, who headlined the Super Bowl halftime show earlier this year, and SZA, whose 2022 blockbuster album SOS has continued breaking Billboard 200 chart records three years later. Because what’s better than taking over one stadium? Taking over 32.
As both superstars embarked on separate and at times intertwined trips down memory lane throughout the show, their modes of transportation were very different, yet very them. Lamar pulled up in his sleek black 1987 Buick GNX and frequently flexed his signature whip on stage, while SZA’s “ride” was a gigantic animatronic ant named Anthony (because why not) that carried her throughout “Kitchen.” Shortly after, she sang Rihanna’s “Consideration” lyric about “ridin’ in on a pale white horse,” but that couldn’t be further from the truth. One can only dream of RiRi returning to any stage for their first joint performance of the song since the 2016 Brit Awards, but SZA did surprise concertgoers with her “best friend” Lizzo.
The dynamic duo ended on a high note with the one-two punch of “Luther” and “Gloria,” the former of which has spent the last 13 consecutive weeks at No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100, as of this week (chart dated May 24), and samples Luther Vandross’ 1982 hit “If This World Were Mine.” Well, if you’re Kendrick Lamar and SZA, it certainly feels like it is.
Here are the five best moments from the first SoFi Stadium stop during their Grand National Tour.
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Kendrick Couldn’t Wait to Be Home
“We’ve been all around the world and back, we was on the East Coast, we was in the South for a little bit, but you know I couldn’t motherf–king wait to make sure I came back home, you hear me!” he exclaimed at the base of the stage, homecoming hurrahs greeting him from every corner. “Is Long Beach in this motherf–ker tonight? Is South Central in this motherf–ker tonight? Better yet, is Watts in this motherf–ker tonight? Is Inglewood in this motherf–ker tonight? Is Compton in this motherf–ker tonight?”
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SZA Brings Out Her “Best Friend” Lizzo for a “Special” Performance
After Lizzo caught a vibe at the after party for SZA’s Not Beauty brand in Brooklyn earlier this month, SZA brought out her “best friend for energy and positivity,” she announced before the pop star popped out for a precious performance of the “Special” remix. While the “Good as Hell” hitmaker was the only special guest for the first LA stop, her feelgood attitude and undeniable star power sufficiently filled up the stadium.
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Kendrick Raps New Verse on “Family Ties”
Even though he brought out his younger cousin Baby Keem to perform “Family Ties” during one of their MetLife Stadium stops earlier this month, Lamar held his own with a new verse. “Ay, you n—as will never compare to me/ F— poppin’ in, I’mma declare the streets/ My mama said ‘be scared of God’/ On God, they better be scared of me/ Beverly playing, I was making a right/ Pop punani ain’t making it right/ Told you, you would fight my fight/ I’m buckling up,” he rapped.
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She Was a Fairy
Following “Snooze,” SZA re-emerged onto the stage in a glimmering chrysalis gown with wings during “Crybaby” and caught flight mid-song. She eventually shed the long skirt and completed her metamorphosis into a beautiful butterfly before jumping into her Hot 100 top 10 hit “Nobody Gets Me.” “I wrote this about my ex-fiancé. He hates me,” she said matter-of-factly before encouraging her fans to sing along for him. When asked during one of the deposition video skits if she thought she would have hit songs without dysfunction in her relationships, SZA responded, “No, so grateful. I owe everything to those terrible… interactions.”
It’s a poignant reminder that personal growth and prosperity don’t come without its own set of challenges, but the end result make everything worth it.
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Mexican Fans Ate Up Their Chamoy Bit
SZA has certainly found her sweet spot in the buddy comedy world. After fighting with her bestie/roommate (played by Keke Palmer) while facing eviction in their critically acclaimed One of Them Days film earlier this year, she took on the role of Dot’s nagging little sister during one of the video sketches as the two pulled up to the gas station – in his GNX, no less – and bickered over which snacks he needs to pick up.
“What is it, chimmy chua?” he asked her, acting puzzled over the pronunciation of the sweet, salty and spicy Mexican delight.
“Chamoy,” she responds snootily. “Your fans are Mexican. How do you… Chamoy!”
As he walked away muttering his frustrations under his breath, his LA-based Mexican fanbase nearly lost theirs after having the spotlight on them. Lamar has long documented his appreciation for this demographic and recently featured mariachi singer Deyra Barrera on “Wacced Out Murals,” “Reincarnated” and “Gloria” on GNX, as well as Mexican rappers Peysoh and Lefty Gunplay on the title track and “TV Off,” respectively.
