Kendrick Lamar Video Clip For ‘Backseat Freestyle': Reveals True Story Behind ‘Sing About Me, I'm Dying of Thirst’ Track

Compton-based rapper Kendrick Lamar has released a new music video for his fans for the New Year, Jan. 3. The Compton rapper released an arty black and white video for "Backstreet Freestyle" which is taken from his debut album "good kid, m.A.A.d city."

The video was directed by Lamar himself and has an arty feeling to it, with high-contrast visuals. It is shot in black and white and features a montage of Compton's neighborhood, his dad, mom and booty-shaking Sherane, Aceshowbiz reported.

The filming, done in documentary style with grain effects, travels through his Compton and ends up below the Eiffel Tower.

The Story Behind "Sing About Me, I'm Dying of Thirst"

The 12:03 minute track in Lamar's album "good kid, m.A.A.d city" has a deeper meaning to it than what was thought to be. Lamar revealed details to Life + Times' Decoded in an interview, Jan. 2.

The first verse in the track has direct links with his life. Lamar's friend was killed in a shooting prematurely, inspiring him to relate his story from the eyes of his friends' elder brother who had a criminal past.

"That's one of my favorite verses on the album," he explained. "It's an obvious true story. It hits home, as far as the past members of tragic situations that happened in my life. That one particular situation is my homeboy getting smoked while I'm right there, and I'm being the last one right there just seeing him take his last. [The verse is] his brother being irrevocable, a street cat, and him just thanking me for being right there, and wishing that he could've found a passion in something - maybe music, maybe sports - but [it's] him recognizing the fact and truth that he was already in too deep."

"The craziest part about that verse - and in real life - [is] him saying, 'If something happens to me before your album drops, just make sure you mention and tell this story in a positive light,' and that's exactly what I did and he definitely passed, too. That's why that's one of the final songs on the album - out of 12 songs, that's closer to the bottom because when the reality check really hit, a lot people know Kendrick Lamar for who I am today, but for me to think [of] what I had to do to come from a dark space, and that was the turning point right there," Lamar said, HipHopDX reported.