It’s been a month since Mr. Morale and the Big Steppers has hit streaming platforms, an 18-track album by Kendrick Lamar that exorcises both personal and societal shortcomings and speaks to his ever-changing growth and perspective. He is an honest storyteller with a positive impact and a key to Compton to prove it. I believe I can speak for all Kendrick fans when I say his ability to transform complex critical thoughts and feelings into a poetic string of flows is beyond inspirational, and almost hard to fathom. There have definitely been times when I have been at a loss for words and wish I had a Kendrick-esque translator that I could speak to telepathically that could help make sense of my inner workings. And since I don’t, I figured I could use the language of astrology—which is fluent to me—to analyze his astrological placements, in honor of Gemini season and his 35th birthday on June 17, to bring us a little bit closer to understanding the way he operates.

Disclaimer: Human personality is an intricate layering of experiences and reactions and is always evolving. To rapidly summarize it is illusionary, especially when referring to a public figure that you don’t know intimately. This exercise is ultimately being done in a lighthearted nature and in no way claiming to know anything factual about Kendrick Lamar. Think of my astrological analysis as a little party trick, or an ice breaker. Just something to get you thinking and exercising empathy and understanding. Move forward with curiosity and tread carefully!

What does “dominants” mean?

When interpreting what astrologers call a “natal chart”—essentially a snapshot of the sky when you’re born—it’s best to begin with the dominants, starting from standout features and gradually narrowing down to the specifics. As much as I’d love to write a dissertation on Kendrick Lamar’s birth chart, I’m choosing to save you the eye strain and brain-bending by focusing on the dominants of his inner planet placements. Wait, wait, wait… dominants? Inner planets placements? What does it all mean? There are three primary dominants we look at when analyzing natal charts: planets, signs, and houses. While secondary dominants include elements and modalities. We use these to make connections on different influences and how they can be significantly increased, weakened, or bring nuances of their own in relation to one another. We’ll be diving into his inner planetary placements, meaning how these factors are seen in the two luminaries and three-fast moving planets: Sun, Moon, Mercury, Venus, and Mars.

What are Kendrick’s dominants?

I can tell you right off the bat that none of Kendrick Lamar’s dominants have been surprising. I’ve read a lot of charts—again, party trick—that didn’t seemingly make sense at first glance and that is not the case here. The three main dominant planets that are shown in Kendrick’s chart are Jupiter, Mercury, and Venus. He exhibits the influence of expansion, activity, and power dynamics that are often present with Jupiter dominants, is certainly cerebral and quick-witted thanks in part to his Mercurial nature, and finally, with Venus present in his dominants, his charm, aesthetic, and ability to please the masses is omnipresent. With his Libra rising placement, aligning the houses of his chart, the cadent 9th house is one of his most tenanted, putting placements in context of travel as a grander theme. Think travel symbolically, rather than literally, though I’m sure he does plenty of that. Travels may take place in the symbolic sense of mind and thought soaring to faraway places that are willing to question political affairs, philosophy, or spirituality. Need some context? Take this lyric from “Count Me Out” as a case study: “Some put it on the Devil when they fall short / I put it on my ego, lord of all lords.” With Cancer, Gemini, and Libra being amongst his three most dominant signs, he has indicators of high sensitivity that give priority to critical thinking and shows an inspired impulse to take action and implement ideas.

And without further ado, with the groundwork covered—trust me, I tried to be brief—let’s dive right into our Gemini season star’s astrological birth chart:

Sun in Gemini in the 9th House

When you typically ask someone what their sign is, you’re likely to get a simple one-worded answer. Kendrick’s would be “Gemini”. However, we are not only our Sun sign, nor are we just our first house (ascendant) sign. Kendrick Lamar is a Libra rising, meaning his Sun is in Gemini in the 9th house. The Sun speaks to how someone’s “true” nature is perceived, their inner will, and motivations. He is amongst the many notable rappers who are air signs—seriously, look into this, it’s bizarre how some of the all-time best rappers happen to be air signs who are known for their big ideas and knack for communicating them—meaning he is lively, curious and ultimately, clever! This shows that his mind is mobile and flexible, prone to asking lots of questions and seeking answers. With a clever mind comes humor and the ability to share serious ideas with flair, making them more digestible for a broader audience. The Gemini twins have an inclination to paradoxes, present here in being charming and knowing how to play the game but being more interested in the game itself and how it works as a system. The non-committal nature of both Gemini and the 9th house highlighting travel can infer an idea of having a bachelor lifestyle, even once finding a lasting partner, which we see more of in his lyrics throughout his latest album.

Moon in Pisces in the 5th House

Kendrick’s predominance of the element of Water in his astro chart and this Pisces placement specifically, indicates a highly attuned emotional nature that is threaded through his vast imagination. Pisces can give someone the gift of adaptable temperament, borderline empathic, fluctuating on the stimulation around in the present moment. Understanding the impact of Kendrick and his words, I think it’s safe to say he offers a sense of healing. He has an evident ability to tap in, attune, and eloquently translate these complex intuitions into words that can provide catharsis. This placement falls in the 5th house, also known as the house of the Sun and Leo, meaning this is where a person’s glory shines.

Mercury in Cancer in the 9th House

Mercury is the planet associated with communication and intellect, how someone shares and receives information. You might often hear about Mercury in its recurring 15 minutes of fame known as the Retrograde. Kendrick’s Mercury, a dominant planet in his chart, lies in the sign of Cancer. Again, we see the theme of connecting emotional attunement and transmitting them into words or something more tangible. With placements like this, we see how someone can be endowed with the ability to transgress their imagination into their daily reality to bridge the gap between the two. Creatives that have these trends in their charts often take to literary pursuits and have a passion for History, to freely invent stories that transcend time. Sound like Kendrick? I thought so. Not every rapper has to be thought-provoking or interested in a higher consciousness knowledge. But he does. And it makes for some damn beautiful music and lyrics.

Venus in Gemini in the 8th House

With the Sun and Venus—the planet of romance, beauty, and art—both being in the sign of Gemini in Kendrick’s chart, he can easily fall under the category of people who are open-minded, uplifting their craft and receiving high praise for it, seemingly effortlessly. A skill that a lot of people cannot grasp in the same capacity, is to make use of the movements of the times. The inclination to experiment and broaden horizons of their craft is prevalent, whether it’s integrating jazz and soul sounds or collaborating with artists of newer sounds like Baby Keem. And they land. Every time. There is minimal separation between intent, actions, and the aptitude for pleasing the masses.

Mars in Cancer in the 9th House

To top off the inner placements exploration, we look to Mars, the planet of passion, action, and courage. Kendrick displays another Cancer in the 9th house placement here, making for contained aggression and once again, say it with me… high sensitivity. This means Kendrick is likely the type of person to handle something with a cool and collected demeanor but circle back with a backlog of well-written thoughts, full of resistance, that read you to absolute filth. A most lucrative skill. Essentially, this pulls on the competency to feel comfortable and secure before making actions. Or, in easier terms to understand, the propensity to not talk out of your ass.

Overall, we see in Kendrick’s chart that he may focus his energy on the ideal. Whether it is political, moral, or in its highest form, spiritual. His approach, in which his communication is connected, is to flow through the heart (parts 4 and 5?). Don’t mistake this emotional strength for endless warmth. Above all, logic must triumph, clear thoughts and good reasoning cannot be overlooked. Feel. Think. Act. The three-step program to communicating and succeeding like Kendrick Lamar?

Like what you saw? Here’s more:

Aries and Onward: How 2022 Is Unfolding For The Signs
Everything You Need to Know About the 2nd Mercury Retrograde of 2022
I Can’t Stop Talking About Kendrick Lamar’s ‘The Big Steppers’ Tour