How Rihanna ended up on Kendrick Lamar’s ‘Loyalty’: “It was beautiful”
Kendrick Lamar collaborated with Rihanna for the first time in 2017 on ‘Loyalty’, a hit single from his fourth studio album DAMN. One of the song’s producers, Terrace Martin, revealed that Kendrick knew he wanted RiRi on the record as soon as the drums got added to the production.
The ‘Loyalty‘ beat was a joint effort between Martin, DJ Dahi, Sounwave and Top Dawg Entertainment boss Anthony ‘Top Dawg’ Tiffith, with the process starting from one of Martin’s studio sessions with Rapsody. From there, it went through many different changes to become the memorable song that it is today.
“‘Loyalty’ came about because I was working with Rapsody and 9th Wonder,” Martin told The Fader. “9th Wonder has a producer under him named Khrysis, who sent me a record to play on. It was a Bruno Mars sample of ’24K Magic’. I was like, ‘Whoa, that sounds crazy.’ I said, ‘I wanna replay it, reverse it, change the key, add a third harmony — do all these things to it. But still make it sound just like the sample, but with a different edge.'”
He continued, “I turned the sample around, set it up, and then hit Sounwave. From there, me, Sounwave, and DJ Dahi got in the studio and started to put drums on that motherfucker. Right there, on my mama, Kendrick said, ‘I’ma get Rihanna on this.’ That day. Right when the drums started, he looked at me saying, ‘Aye, I’m gonna get Rihanna on this record.'”
‘Loyalty’ peaked at number 14 on the Billboard Hot 100 and won Best Rap/Sung Performance at the Grammy Awards in 2018. As well as ’24K Magic’, the song also samples Jay-Z’s ‘Get Your Mind Right Mami’ from his 2000 album The Dynasty: Roc La Familia.
“It was beautiful. Kendrick came with the melodies, man,” Martin said about the ‘Loyalty’ session. “We was just having a ball in the studio. It felt fun. I spent a long time on that sample. That particular sample has been through the ringer: from TopBox to VoCoder — we was really loving that sample way before we finally said let’s do something with that.
“‘Loyalty’, which we recorded over a few days, was done with a different impulse than the last couple of records. When ‘Loyalty’ was done, I looked at Dahi and Sounwave, and told them that I was happy that we were all a part of a composition. I was just happy that we all saw that seed grow.”
Kendrick spoke highly about Rihanna during an interview with Apple Music, revealing a RiRi collaboration was on his bucket list. “I love everything about her,” he told Zane Lowe. “Her artistry, how she represents women to not only be themselves but to express themselves the way she expresses herself through music, and how she carries herself. I love everything about her so I always wanted to work with her.”
When it was announced that Kendrick would be the halftime performer at Super Bowl LIX, Rihanna, who headlined the event in 2023, gave him his flowers. “It’s a diamond on a ring finger, honey. It’s meant to be! It’s Kendrick Lamar!” she told Entertainment Tonight. “Kendrick Lamar is the one that’s supposed to do it right now. He’s gonna crush it. We should never doubt him.”
She added, “He’s an amazing artist, top-tier. He had an incredible year. He actually brought so many people together. It’s to be celebrated. That’s what culture is. He deserves it. I cannot wait to see it. Kendrick, thank you.”