Kendrick Lamar Unleashes Surprise ‘untitled unmastered’ Album, Proves Names Are Formalities

What's in a name? Kendrick Lamar, who released an eight-track album called untitled unmastered last night (March 3), isn't too worried about it.

On the heels of 2015's critically acclaimed, Grammy-winning To Pimp A Butterfly, Lamar's new LP appeared just before midnight on Spotify and features eight tracks, which are only identifiable by dates that span from May 28, 2013 to a general mention of "2016." Specific production notes are still scant, but Swizz Beatz posted an Instagram photo that claims his five-year-old son, Egypt, produced "2014 - 2016," the seventh track. "thx #Kendrick for investing in the future," he wrote.

Top Dawg Entertainment C.E.O. Anthony Triffith first hinted in an Instagram photo on Tuesday (March 1) that new material was coming from Lamar, and also alluded to forthcoming projects from SZA and Isaiah Rashad. "S--- about to get nasty real soon... I told y'all I got y'all in 2016," he wrote.

Lamar's five wins at the 2016 Grammy Awards in February made him the most decorated artist of the night. His performance of "The Blacker The Berry" and "Alright," which featured imagery of shackled chain gangs and, later, a massive bonfire, was widely considered one of the best of the night, and delivered stunning testimony of the lives and experiences of black Americans.

Listen to untitled unmastered above, download the LP on iTunes and tell us what you think in the comments.

Look back at the 2016 Grammys red carpet: