In 2020, Kendrick Lamar and LA filmmaker-record executive Dave Free founded their company pgLang to produce technology, and they have recently dropped 250 cell phones in collaboration with the tech company Light.
pgLang shared a promotional video on social media. The model doesn’t include a web browser or colour interface, and its unique selling point is a less distracting alternative to the modern cellphone.
Lamar has described the company as a “multi-lingual, at-service company.” Earlier this year, the brand released a Chuck 70 shoe with Converse as part of a collaboration titled ‘Driven by Luck.’ The sneaker was accompanied by visuals featuring Baby Keem and Dominic Fike.
pgLang was founded in 2015 by Joe Hollier and Kaiwei Tang and launched with a Light Phone Kickstarter that was designed to combat the addictive and intrusive nature of modern-day smartphones. Prior to this latest release from Kendrick, the company released the Light Phone II, which is “more reliable and practical” than the original.
This year, the company won multiple awards, including the Cannes Lions Awards, one of which was for Independent Agency of the Year. In pgLang won a Webby Award for its work on the Cash App short That’s Money.
In 2022, a pgLang representative released a statement reading, “Lamar and Free’s new purpose at pgLang embodies something deeply personal to them. pgLang is at service to creators and projects that selflessly speak with and for the shared experiences that connect us all. ‘In this overstimulated time, we are focused on cultivating raw expression from grassroots partnerships.”
Concerning the latest phone, pgLang’s website ensures customers, “We build all of the tools from scratch to ensure there are absolutely no third-party apps tracking you. In this time of ‘Surveillance Capitalism’ and the ‘Attention Economy,’ the Light Phone represents a different option. You are the customer, not the product. This is a phone for humans.”
