kendrick-lamar-bet-2015

All hail King Kendrick. With his No. 1 album To Pimp a Butterfly winning over critics and fans alike, it was only right that TDE’s Top Dawg opened Sunday’s BET Awards at L.A.’s Microsoft Theater.

And he certainly didn’t disappoint, as the performance was full of hiii power. K-Dot arrived on stage standing on a graffiti-embossed police car flanked by a gigantic tattered American flag as he ricocheted bars from “Alright.”

Compton’s own brought out the big guns, as his backup dancers landed from stage to audience—waving flags and breakdancing in TDE tees. In the middle of the performance, an army of civilians marched on stage, surrounding the rapper cypher-style, as he tossed his impassioned verses around, receiving a standing ovation from his fiancée Whitney Alford, Robin Thicke, and BET boss Debra Lee. Needless to say, Kendrick’s performance was everything but “alright.”

He went on to win Best Male Hip-Hop Artist.

“This for Compton. This for Watts. This for the little boys and girls at the community centers,” said K-Dot.